For Individual Tattoo Artists
Calculate realistic monthly costs, expected leads, bookings, and potential return on investment for your tattoo marketing campaigns.
Studio owners: Click here for the Studio Calculator
We've said it before and we'll say it again: traditional marketing agencies promise the world, then blame you, your budget, or anything else when results don't materialize. We can't promise anything.
But here's the difference: This calculator is based on actual data and real client results—not some bullshit like a regular agency would spout saying "we got you 60 leads, you charge $1,500 a day, therefore your ROI is $90k." That's fucking nonsense and we all know it.
Take your time with this calculator. Think before entering each field. Be pessimistic. These aren't promises—all of this depends very much on you, your work, where you tattoo, other tattooers in the area, and obviously demand. But this is based on real-world results, so take it with a grain of salt.
Don't sign up with us if you can't pay rent and need a lifeline. But if you want to grow and take the next step, this calculator can show you what you're likely to get.
Also, it says "ESTIMATED RETURN ON INVESTMENT" up there—this doesn't take into consideration your time, the tattoo session, supplies, etc. This is a tool, not a contract. It just gives you an idea of what's realistic.
Minimum $15 NZD per day recommended
For artists who do a lot of smaller tattoos, walk-ins, and flash work, enquiries can be very affordable—typically between $2-$6. For larger-scale work like Japanese, realism, neo-traditional, etc., it's closer to $8-$12. We have clients getting steady enquiries for as low as $1.50, while artists who exclusively do large-scale work remain profitable even with enquiry costs up to $15. This totally varies based on competition, location, style, and demand. If you've run ads yourself before (or even just boosted a post), you may have an idea what yours could be. If not, we recommend being conservative and setting this somewhere between $8-$10.
Calculated at 1.25x median between day rate and minimum
We all know what the average enquiry from Facebook or Instagram looks like. We like to be on the cautious side—we don't want to over-project what you could be earning, and you shouldn't either. A realistic number for most artists is about 20% or 2 out of 10 enquiries converting over time. However, we have some clients we've worked with for a long time whose audiences are ultra-targeted and they're converting closer to 40-50%. New campaigns usually run far closer to 10%. Set this conservatively.