Dude. Tattoos are painful. People who say they aren’t are either lying to you or absolutely bat sh*t crazy. 

But some tattoos are more painful than others. You can probably guess a few of the most painful places to get a tattoo, but we’ve put together a list of the top five least talked about spots for seriously intense “kill me please” tattoo pain. 

The Top 5 Most Painful Places to Get a Tattoo

The most painful places to get a tattoo are areas that have less muscle, lots of nerve endings, minimal fat, thin skin, and are close to bone. This includes obvious spots like your head, chest & rib cage, stomach, nipples, face, ears, neck, groin, and armpits. 

Tattoo pain is no joke, but everyone experiences pain differently. Not only does the placement of your tattoo effect your pain level, but your sex, age, weight, and the experience & style of the tattoo artist can also make getting tattooed more or less painful.  

At Derm Dude™, we know a thing or two about getting inked, which means we can tell you our top five most painful places to get a tattoo that aren’t on every list or getting talked about enough. We all know tattoos hurt, but dude, these five are painful AF.

#1 Sternum

For many, the sternum, or breastbone, is an excruciatingly painful spot to get tattooed. Not only is the skin around your ribcage and sternum extremely thin, but there’s also less fat in this area, making it pretty much just skin on bone. Plus, every time you take a deep breath in, the area moves with each inhale and exhale, making the tattoo experience even more intense.

#2 Clavicle

Just like tattooing the sternum, getting inked on your clavicle (collarbone) is intensely painful because of the needle digging into thin skin over bone. They’re also a difficult placement for tattoos because of how the skin shifts over the protruding bone, depending on how you move. 

#3 Elbow

Or should we say ‘F*CKING ELBOW!!”  The front and back of elbows are both major areas for intense tattoo pain. The thin, wrinkly skin on the outside of the elbow makes sense, but the inside of the elbow can be especially painful because of how many nerve endings are packed in this area. 

#4 Knee

Behind the knees or right on the kneecap, getting your knees tattooed looks badass, but it can also feel like a total b*tch. Not only is the skin on the knees loaded with nerve endings, but it’s even more painful because of the loose stretchy skin, making the entire area super sensitive.

#5 Toes

Thinking about tattooing your toes? You might want to reconsider once you learn that foot tattoos are high on the tattoo pain chart. Many people find that tattooing toes disrupts the nerve endings to the point where they experience painful spasms, making your time in the chair even longer and more unbearable. Even amazing tattoo artists have a difficult time achieving clean lines on these tiny, curved surfaces. 

You went through all this time, money, and pain to express yourself with a badass piece of art, so why wouldn’t you take care of your ink with the respect it deserves? 

With a little TLC, you’ll be able to show off your tattoos for years to come!

Explore Derm Dude™ tattoo aftercare products to help heal, brighten & renew all your tattoos.