Conclusions: There was no difference between females and males in pain intensity during tattooing. Directly after the procedure, however, pain intensity was higher in women when compared to men. The most important factors increasing pain were time, bleeding, and the level of stress.
Clinical studies consistently find evidence of greater pain sensitivity and chronic pain prevalence in females, with sex and gender differences in analgesia reported as well (for review, see Mogil et al, 20201 or Mogil et al, 20125).
Female artists tend to have a lighter touch than male artists so usually it doesn't hurt as much with them. If your skin type is thinner, aged, or otherwise scarred, it will hurt more and take longer to heal. Usually a tattoo doesn't hurt any more than a cat scratch or a blood draw.
Shoulder, bicep, calf, thigh, are all relatively low-pain areas. High-pain areas are tops of feet, inner arms, elbow/knee, and neck, so those aren't necessarily great places for your tattoo idea anyway.
``Gender: 38% of women have at least one tattoo, compared with 27% of men. This includes 56% of women ages 18 to 29 and 53% of women ages 30 to 49.''
Some placements, like along the thigh as seen here, seem to be more popular with women getting tattooed, which gives them a “feminine” reputation. “I suppose the most common areas I get requested by women are on the wrist, ribcage, sternum, spine, tricep, hip, and top of the forearm,” says Ruiz.
Race and ethnicity: 39% of Black Americans have a tattoo, compared with 35% of Hispanic, 32% of White and 14% of Asian Americans. Age: Adults under 50 are especially likely to have a tattoo. Some 41% of those under 30 have at least one, as do 46% of those ages 30 to 49.
Those attracted to women saw a three-way tie between the upper back, shoulder and hips (with a 3.3 rating). The back: a top-rated tattoo location for women and men. The hip: a top-rated tattoo location for women. The upper arm: a top-rated tattoo location for men.
How bad do tattoos hurt? There's no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to how much pain you'll feel when getting tattooed. But if you're wondering what type of pain to expect, Caranfa says the experience is comparable to the feeling of a cat scratch or a sunburn.
So what are the worst places to get a tattoo on the body? Areas like the feet, hands, stomach, chest, elbow, lips, and inner ear are not good tattoo locations. It's essential to consider a few things when choosing a proper placement, such as pain intensity, practicality, and visibility.
Christianity. Some Christians take issue with tattooing, upholding the Hebrew prohibition. The Hebrew prohibition is based on interpreting Leviticus 19:28—"Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you"—so as to prohibit tattoos. Interpretations of the passage vary, however.
Among adults, males have slightly higher verbal and reasoning abilities than females and a more pronounced superiority on spatial abilities. If the three abilities are combined to form general intelligence, the mean for males is 4 IQ points higher than the mean for females.
The Gender Pain Gap refers to the phenomenon in which pain in women is more poorly understood and more mistreated compared to pain in men due to systemic gaps and biases.
Differences were especially strong in pain tolerance—even though male participants had higher tolerance, female participants were less variable across visits. According to the researchers, this was the first study to measure gender differences in the test-retest reliability of pain sensitivity in humans.
Getting tattooed on the arm and upper back is only moderately painful compared to the head, armpit, and rib cage. While you should still expect to feel much discomfort, getting inked in these areas is tolerable for most people.
Smaller tattoos work best on smaller areas like the wrist, ankle, behind the ear, or collarbone. These placements add elegance and don't overpower the body's natural proportions.
The most painful places for women will be areas with more nerve endings like your nipples or breasts including between your breasts. If you're planning a sternum tattoo this can also be a painful spot, same as your ribs.
The most painful spots to get a tattoo are those with the least fat. These include most nerve endings and thinnest skin. Bony areas such as ribs, hips, or chest usually hurt significantly. Tattoos on ribs are trendy, especially among women; for example, quotes, song lyrics, or jewelry along the lower ribs.
“The most common answer is that it feels like a cat scratch on a really bad sunburn,” Olivia says. And for Trinity: “Getting a tattoo feels like when you pet a cat's belly, and the cat grabs your hands and kicks, scratching you with its claws,” she says. “It's not aggressive. But it does hurt, at least a little.”
Ear tattoos are known to be slightly more painful than other areas, primarily because the skin around the ear is thin, and the area has many sensitive nerve endings. For most people, the pain is manageable but more intense compared to tattoos on less sensitive areas like the arm or leg.
The higher melanin content in darker skin may retain ink differently, making the tattooing process more delicate. It's important to consider how a tattoo may appear on someone's skin and how certain features such as skin tone, blemishes, previous scarring, and tans may affect the process.
She is not alone. Today more American women than men have tattoos — 38 percent of women vs. 27 percent of men, according to Pew Research Center. Overall, nearly a third of Americans have at least one tattoo, Pew says, including 56 percent of women ages 18 to 29 and 53 percent ages 30 to 49.
The list of countries prohibiting tattoos, including Iran, Turkey, and North Korea, reflects a complex interplay of cultural, religious, and political factors. In Iran, tattoos clash with religious beliefs, while Turkey witnessed a shift in the attitudes of the authorities.