If you want a tattoo in Liverpool, the question is not which studio is best. It is which artist regularly produces the kind of work you want.
Liverpool has artists working in black-and-grey realism, traditional tattooing, fine line, blackwork, neo-traditional, portraits, colour and cover-ups. This guide covers ten studios: what their artists are known for, where they are, and how booking and walk-ins work.
Studio details, artists and prices below were checked on 30 August 2026. Rosters and books change often, so check the artist's current portfolio before you book.
The short version
- Black-and-grey realism and portraits: Sonny Mitchell at Black Lotus in Litherland.
- Traditional tattooing and historical flash: Richie Clarke at Forever True on Cheapside.
- Realism, neo-traditional, blackwork and cover-ups: Laura Evelyn at The Painted Ladies.
- Neo-traditional: Peter Murray at Swallow The Anchor.
- Several artists and styles to compare: The Painted Ladies, Bold as Brass and Design 4 Life.
- Walk-ins: Design 4 Life advertises same-day walk-ins Monday to Saturday; Forever True takes them when time allows.
- South Liverpool: Hellcat on Aigburth Road.
- History as well as ink: Dermagraffiti runs the Liverpool Tattoo Museum on Bold Street.
For anything large, detailed or highly style-specific, choose the artist before the studio.
How this guide was researched
This guide combines first-hand L1Local experience with current information from studio websites, artist portfolios, Companies House and council guidance.
L1Local's editor has been tattooed by Sonny Mitchell at Black Lotus in Litherland and has had work done at Forever True on Cheapside. Those two recommendations come from experience.
The other studios are here because there is enough current, checkable information about their artists, styles, location or booking to help you compare them. We have not claimed to have used studios where that is not the case.
Choose the artist before the studio
A studio can have an excellent reputation and still not contain the right artist for your tattoo. Tattooing is not one discipline.
A realistic portrait needs controlled shading, proportion and likeness. Traditional tattooing uses a different visual language: stronger outlines, simplified forms, deliberate colour. Fine line brings its own demands. A cover-up needs an artist who understands how an existing tattoo affects the new design. Two artists in the same studio can suit completely different jobs.
Before booking, look past the studio homepage and check the individual artist's recent work. Pay attention to:
- tattoos in the same style you want
- healed work, where the artist publishes it
- pieces at a similar size
- line quality and black-and-grey shading
- colour saturation
- portraits and facial likenesses
- lettering, if your tattoo contains text
- work on different skin tones
- cover-ups, if you need one
For a large tattoo or a portrait, there is little value in choosing someone simply because they have an appointment sooner.
Black Lotus Tattoo Studio, Litherland
114 Linacre Road, Litherland, L21 8JT. Open Tuesday to Saturday.
Black Lotus sits on Linacre Road in Litherland, north of the city centre and just inside Sefton. The reason to look here is Sonny Mitchell's black-and-grey realism and portrait work.
His portfolio is the one to check if you are considering portraits, realistic faces, black-and-grey imagery or detailed realism. Someone after traditional flash or delicate ornamental work may be better served elsewhere. Current work and booking details are on the studio's Facebook page.
L1Local first-hand experience
L1Local's editor has been tattooed by Sonny Mitchell and recommends him on that basis. That is a recommendation of one artist, not a claim that he is right for every tattoo.
Because Litherland is in Sefton rather than Liverpool, Black Lotus registers with Sefton Council, not Liverpool City Council. More on registration below.
Forever True Tattoo, Cheapside
23 Cheapside, L2 2DY. Open 11am to 6pm, Tuesday to Saturday. Closed Sunday and Monday.
Forever True has operated in Liverpool since 1995. Owner Richie Clarke has built the shop around classic Western tattooing and historical flash, including reproductions and interpretations of designs associated with earlier tattooers such as Bert Grimm, Joseph Hartley, George Bigmore and Tom Berg.
If your references are old-school eagles, daggers, roses, swallows, hearts or other classic flash, Richie Clarke's gallery is directly relevant. Forever True does not take bookings or give prices by phone or online, so you need to call into the shop in person.
L1Local first-hand experience
L1Local's editor has had work done at Forever True and recommends the studio from that experience. The shop has more than one artist, so check the individual tattooer's work before booking.
The Get What You Get machine
Forever True also runs a Get What You Get machine. Its current page lists 400 designs across four books numbered 1 to 100, which gives you four choices, at £100 a go. It is the clearest fixed-price option in this guide.
Dermagraffiti Tattoo and the Liverpool Tattoo Museum, Bold Street
69A Bold Street, L1 4EZ. Open Tuesday to Saturday.
Dermagraffiti is a working studio combined with the Liverpool Tattoo Museum, upstairs on Bold Street. The studio dates itself to 1995. Jay Forshaw has tattooed professionally since then and works across black and grey, portraits, skulls, Celtic designs and heavy colour.
The museum makes this one worth a look if you are interested in the history of tattooing as well as getting tattooed. It is a short walk from Liverpool Central, on the same street as our Bold Street independent shops guide.
The Painted Ladies, Hope Street
13 Hope Street, L1 9BQ.
The Painted Ladies is a female-owned tattoo and piercing studio with several resident artists working across traditional tattooing, realism, blackwork, neo-traditional, fine detailed work and hand-poked tattoos. It is a clear example of why a studio should not be pinned to one style. Three artists show the range.
Sofia: traditional tattoos
Sofia lists a specific interest in traditional tattooing, with bold lines and a limited colour palette, and influences including Sailor Jerry flash, wildlife and botany.
Laura Evelyn: realism, neo-traditional, blackwork and cover-ups
Laura Evelyn works mainly in realistic and semi-realistic black and grey, colour, neo-traditional and blackwork, and states that she has substantial experience with cover-ups. A cover-up needs different planning from a fresh tattoo, so evidence that an artist does them regularly matters more than a portfolio of attractive new work.
Helios: detailed and realistic work
Helios has a fine arts background and lists realistic portraiture, detailed tattooing and custom design. Check each artist's own page on the studio site before choosing.
Bold as Brass Tattoo Company, Rumford Place
The Basement, Charleston House, 12 Rumford Place, L3 9DG.
Bold as Brass is a multi-artist studio. Its site lists each artist with their own portfolio and Instagram, so the approach is the same: find the work closest to what you want and contact that artist.
Access
The studio is in a basement, reached by steps from Fazakerley Street. If you need step-free access, check with the studio before paying a deposit. Bold as Brass tattoos over-18s only and asks for photo ID for every tattoo. Moorfields station is about two minutes' walk away.
Design 4 Life Tattoo and Piercing, Lime Street
70 Lime Street, L1 1JN. Its current page gives hours of 11am to 6pm Monday to Saturday, Sunday by appointment.
Design 4 Life is one of the broadest studios here. Its site lists eight tattooists and work across portraits, realism, traditional, blackwork, fine line, black and grey, colour, biomechanical, dotwork, Asian-influenced work, cybersigilism and cover-ups, plus piercing. Use the list to find the relevant artist, then check their portfolio rather than assuming every artist covers every style.
Walk-in tattoos
Design 4 Life advertises walk-in tattoos Monday to Saturday and can often take same-day work depending on availability. That suits smaller pieces, or anyone flexible about which artist they use. For a portrait or large custom piece, book the specific artist whose work you have chosen.
The business has traded as a registered company since July 2005.
Hellcat Tattoo, Aigburth Road
684 Aigburth Road, L19 0NY. Open 10am to 6pm Monday to Saturday, Sunday for pre-booked appointments.
Not every established studio is in the city centre. Hellcat works from Aigburth Road in south Liverpool and lists four tattoo artists, Alessia Pedrosa, Paul Reston, David Velasco and Lewis Ashes, plus a separate piercing service. It describes itself as woman-owned and vegan-owned, and says it uses vegan products. Free consultations are advertised. It sits in the area covered by our Lark Lane and Aigburth food guide.
Swallow The Anchor, Jordan Street
Jordan Street, L1 0BP, in the Baltic Triangle.
The artist with the clearest documented style here is Peter Murray, known for neo-traditional work. Tattoo supplier Killer Ink produced a detailed feature with Murray tattooing a neo-traditional nature piece, which shows the type of work he does. If neo-traditional is what you want, his current portfolio is a sensible starting point.
Liverpool tattoo artists by style
There is no objective ranking of Liverpool tattoo artists, but there are clearer places to start depending on the work you want. This is a starting point for portfolio research, not a league table.
| Style or requirement | Where to start |
|---|
| Black-and-grey realism | Sonny Mitchell, Black Lotus |
| Portrait tattoos | Sonny Mitchell; Helios at The Painted Ladies; relevant Design 4 Life artists |
| Traditional tattooing | Richie Clarke, Forever True; Sofia at The Painted Ladies |
| Historical tattoo flash | Richie Clarke, Forever True |
| Neo-traditional | Peter Murray, Swallow The Anchor; Laura Evelyn at The Painted Ladies |
| Blackwork | Laura Evelyn; relevant Design 4 Life artists |
| Fine line | Design 4 Life artists |
| Cover-ups | Laura Evelyn; Design 4 Life |
| Walk-ins | Design 4 Life; Forever True when time allows |
| Several artists to compare | The Painted Ladies; Bold as Brass; Design 4 Life |
| South Liverpool | Hellcat Tattoo, Aigburth Road |
How much does a tattoo cost in Liverpool?
There is no useful city-wide price. Artists may charge a shop minimum, a fixed price for the finished tattoo, an hourly rate, a half-day or full-day rate, or a project price for a larger piece.
Size is only one factor. A detailed portrait can take longer than a simpler tattoo covering the same amount of skin. Placement, colour, complexity and the amount of drawing also affect the price. The clearest fixed price in this guide is Forever True's £100 Get What You Get option.
For custom work, send the artist enough to give you a real answer:
- the subject or design idea
- approximate size in centimetres
- where you want it on your body
- colour or black and grey
- reference images
- a photo of any existing tattoo if you need a cover-up
Ask about the deposit and cancellation policy before you pay anything.
Can you get a walk-in tattoo in Liverpool?
Yes. Design 4 Life advertises same-day walk-in tattoos Monday to Saturday. Forever True takes walk-ins when time allows.
Walk-ins make most sense when the tattoo is relatively small, you are flexible on the design, you are not set on one particular artist, and the artist has time that day. If you have spent weeks choosing a specialist for their style, book them.
Getting a cover-up tattoo
Cover-ups need more planning than ordinary tattoos. The new design has to work with the darkness, shape and position of the existing one. That can mean making the new tattoo larger, using dark areas strategically, changing the design, working across several sessions, or lightening the old tattoo first.
Laura Evelyn at The Painted Ladies states that she has extensive cover-up experience, and Design 4 Life advertises cover-up work. If you contact an artist about a cover-up, send a clear photo before you arrange the appointment.
Look for healed work, not only fresh tattoos
Fresh tattoos photograph well. The skin is newly worked, colours look saturated, and the photo is often taken straight away under studio lighting.
Healed work tells you something different. Where an artist publishes healed examples, look at whether fine lines have stayed clear, how shading has settled, how solid black has healed, whether detail is still readable, and whether portraits keep their likeness. That matters most when comparing artists for realism, portraiture and fine detail.
Can someone under 18 get a tattoo in Liverpool?
No, apart from a narrow medical exception. The Tattooing of Minors Act 1969 makes it an offence to tattoo someone under 18 in Great Britain unless it is done for medical reasons by a qualified medical practitioner or under their direction. Parental permission does not change that, which is why studios ask for photo ID.
Tattoo studio registration
Liverpool City Council requires both tattoo practitioners and premises in its area to register for tattooing and skin piercing. The council says this is to meet health and safety standards and reduce infection risk, and registration certificates must be displayed at the premises.
Litherland is in Sefton, so Black Lotus registers with Sefton Council instead. Every council in England runs its own version of the same skin piercing and tattooing registration.
Why this matters
Registration tells you a studio has met the legal hygiene requirement. It does not tell you whether an artist is right for your portrait, traditional piece or cover-up. That is what portfolio research is for.
What to ask before booking a tattoo
A useful first message gives the artist enough to understand the job:
- What you want: describe the subject, not just "a sleeve" or "something small".
- Size: centimetres, not small, medium or large.
- Placement: forearm, calf, shoulder, ribs, chest or wherever you are considering.
- Style: realism, traditional, fine line, blackwork or another, if you know.
- Colour: colour or black and grey.
- References: images that explain the idea. Do not expect an artist to copy someone else's tattoo exactly.
- Existing tattoos: clear photos if the area has work that needs covering or working around.
For larger pieces, ask how many sessions are likely and how those sessions are priced.
Our two first-hand recommendations
Most of this guide is researched rather than personal experience. There are two exceptions.
L1Local's editor has been tattooed by Sonny Mitchell at Black Lotus and has had work done at Forever True on Cheapside, and recommends both from that experience. Because a studio can hold several artists, check the individual tattooer's current work before you book. For every other studio here, we have set out what can be verified about the artists, styles, booking and location, and left the judgement to you.
Useful links and sources
