Boston's Best Tattoo Shops

Anyone who has spent any time on the internet has probably spent some guilty pleasure time scrolling through slideshows of incredibly bad tattoos. Maybe you want a tattoo but are terrified of someday ending up on one of those lists yourself. Ink is forever, so it is important you put a lot of thought and planning into what design you want and where on your body you'll put it. But the most important decision of all is which artist you'll use to do your tattoo. You can't just walk into any old tattoo shop and get amazing results. The thought you put into which shop to go to pays off big time. But you can cut your research time down by checking out some of the Boston tattoo shops on this list.

Fat Ram's Pumpkin Tattoo
374 Centre St.
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
(617) 522-6444
www.pumpkintattoo.com

Conventional wisdom is that you get what you pay for. This goes double for tattoos. Good ink comes at a good price. But there is an exception to this rule. The exception is Fat Ram's Pumpkin Tattoo. The shop has an $80 minimum but beyond that, it is exceptional at working within your budget to give you great ink at a sweet price. Some clients complain that the front desk could use some customer service training but the artistry of the shop's tattooers more than makes up for the initial rough impression.

Redemption Tattoo
2094 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02140
(617) 576-0097
www.redemptiontattoo.com

Crisp, clear lines, amazing artistry and friendly knowledgeable staff — what isn't there to love about longtime Boston favorite Redemption Tattoo? This is a great shop if this is your first tattoo or your twentieth. You won't find any tattoo elitist snobbery but you will find some of the best ink in Boston. You should note that when booking your appointment, you will need to put down a deposit. And that deposit has to be cash. But never fear, there's a Bank of America ATM right around the corner from the shop that does brisk business with Redemption Tattoo customers.

Related: Best Tattoo Parlors In The Boston Area

Empire Tattoo
151 Washington St.
Somerville, MA 02143
(617) 764-3085
www.empiretattooInc.com

Walking around Somerville, you're sure to notice some artistic ink on area residents. So it should come as no surprise that one of the best tattoo shops in Boston can be found right here. This is an all-around fantastic tattoo shop where the talent of the artists is matched only be their dedication to superb customer service. They are well known for working with their clients to get them the best design possible.

Brilliance Tattoo
957 Commonwealth Ave.
Boston, MA 02215
(617) 902-0957
www.brilliancetattoo.com

At Brilliance Tattoo, you'll find a clean, comfortable atmosphere and talented friendly ink artists. What really earns it a spot on the list of Boston's best tattoo parlors is its flexibility with scheduling. Clients not only love the tattoos they get at Brilliance, but they love not having to wait for months to get them! In fact, many repeat customers have raved that they were able to walk in and get inked up with no appointment at all. Of course, walk-in service is never guaranteed so if you've done your research and know that Brilliance is the tattoo shop for you, call ahead and make an appointment. But if you're so fired up that you just can't wait, it doesn't hurt to drop in and see if there's time available.

Disappearing Inc.
128 Tremont St.
Boston, MA 02108
(617) 477-8636 
www.disappearinginc.com

This is an odd, but definitely necessary addition to any article talking about tattoos in Boston. You might be looking over this list and wonder why you didn't go to one of these fantastic tried-and-true tattoo shops and instead ended up with a disaster. Luckily for you, Boston is home to Disappearing Inc. If you've made a mistake, it's not one you have to live with forever. And you're not going to go broke trying to erase a tattoo you can't stand. Disappearing Inc. is an amazing place to correct a tattoo mistake. It offers a free consult and will spell out exactly how many sessions with its surprisingly low-pain laser you'll need to start over again with a blank, or pretty darn close to it, canvas.

Related: Best Tattoo Parlors South Of Boston