Tattoo shops in Washington DC
A tattoo is a permanent decision made in a room you'll spend hours in, so the studio matters as much as the artist. Washington DC, DC has 30 tattoo shops mapped right now. All 30 are mapped as tattoo studios proper, and each one is worth a portfolio browse before you commit — style varies more between shops than towns.
This guide covers every tattoo shop we could verify in and around Washington DC (within about 40 km), built from OpenStreetMap's community-maintained data. Names you'll run into include Jinx Proof and British Ink Tattoos, plus Ambrotos Tattoo. If a studio's missing from Washington DC's list, it probably just hasn't been mapped yet — the scene is bigger than any single dataset.
The Washington DC tattoo lineup
30 mapped within about 40 km:
Jinx Proof
Tattoo studio
Jinx Proof is Tattoo studio on 3285 M Street Northwest.
3285 M Street Northwest
British Ink Tattoos
Tattoo studio
British Ink Tattoos is Tattoo studio on 508 H Street Northeast.
508 H Street Northeast
Ambrotos Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Ambrotos Tattoo is Tattoo studio on 940 Bonifant Street.
940 Bonifant Street
Traditions Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Traditions Tattoo — Tattoo studio.
Fatty's Tattoos and Piercings
Tattoo studio
Fatty's Tattoos and Piercings is Tattoo studio on 516 H Street Northeast, Washington. Fatty's Tattoos and Piercings also notes on the map: the map lists its hours as 12:00-24:00.
516 H Street Northeast, Washington, 20002
Hours: 12:00-24:00
Cirque de Rouge
Tattoo studio
Cirque de Rouge — Tattoo studio, found on 416 H Street Northeast in Washington.
416 H Street Northeast, Washington, 20002
Skinhibitions
Tattoo studio
Skinhibitions — Tattoo studio, found on 2790 Metro Plaza in Woodbridge.
2790 Metro Plaza, Woodbridge, 22192
Embassy Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Embassy Tattoo is Tattoo studio. Embassy Tattoo also notes on the map: the map lists its hours as Mo-Sa 12:00-22:00; Su 12:00-20:00; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
20009
Hours: Mo-Sa 12:00-22:00; Su 12:00-20:00
Phone: +1 202-733-3846
Red Octopus
Tattoo studio
Red Octopus — Tattoo studio, found on 6718 Suitland Road in Morningside.
6718 Suitland Road, Morningside, 20746
Piercing Connect and Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Piercing Connect and Tattoo is Tattoo studio.
Thirteenth Floor
Tattoo studio
Thirteenth Floor — Tattoo studio, found on 1510 King Street in Alexandria. Also worth knowing about Thirteenth Floor: the map lists its hours as Mo-Tu,Sa 09:00-17:00; We-Fr 09:00-20:00; Su 09:00-13:00; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
1510 King Street, Alexandria, 22314
Hours: Mo-Tu,Sa 09:00-17:00; We-Fr 09:00-20:00; Su 09:00-13:00
Phone: +1-571-310-8169
Body Gallery Tattoos
Tattoo studio
Body Gallery Tattoos — Tattoo studio.
Globe Electric
Tattoo studio
Globe Electric is Tattoo studio.
Sueno Tattoo
Tattoo studioRun by Jose Alvarado
Run by Jose Alvarado, Sueno Tattoo is Tattoo studio, found on 618 University Boulevard East in Silver Spring. Also worth knowing about Sueno Tattoo: the map lists its hours as We-Su 12:00-19:00; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip.
618 University Boulevard East, Silver Spring, 20901
Hours: We-Su 12:00-19:00
Phone: +1 240-732-0004
Capitol Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Capitol Tattoo is Tattoo studio on 7920 Georgia Avenue.
7920 Georgia Avenue, 20910
Lady Octopus Tattoos
Tattoo studio
Lady Octopus Tattoos is Tattoo studio. Lady Octopus Tattoos also notes on the map: a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
Phone: +1 703-528-1099
The Tattooery
Tattoo studio
The Tattooery — Tattoo studio, found on 7420 1/2 Baltimore Avenue in College Park. Also worth knowing about The Tattooery: a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
7420 1/2 Baltimore Avenue, College Park, 20740
Phone: +1-240-764-5146
Electric Cat Scratch Tattoos
Tattoo studio
Electric Cat Scratch Tattoos — Tattoo studio on 505 Florida Avenue Northwest. Also worth knowing about Electric Cat Scratch Tattoos: a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
505 Florida Avenue Northwest
Phone: +1 202-986-4239
Pop's Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Pop's Tattoo — Tattoo studio on 1917 Seminary Road. Also worth knowing about Pop's Tattoo: a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
1917 Seminary Road
Phone: +1-301-850-1792
Marlowe Ink Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Marlowe Ink Tattoo — Tattoo studio, found on 10405 Main Street in Fairfax.
10405 Main Street, Fairfax, 22030
Custom Ink
Tattoo studio
Custom Ink is Tattoo studio.
Great Southern Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Great Southern Tattoo is Tattoo studio.
Tantric Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Tantric Tattoo is Tattoo studio on 837 Olney Sandy Spring Road, Sandy Spring.
837 Olney Sandy Spring Road, Sandy Spring, 20860
Rowan - The Shoppes at Bethesda
Tattoo studio
Rowan - The Shoppes at Bethesda — Tattoo studio.
KONKRETE JUNGLE
Tattoo studio
KONKRETE JUNGLE is Tattoo studio.
Raw Ink Studio
Tattoo studio
Raw Ink Studio is Tattoo studio on 18200 Georgia Avenue, Olney. Raw Ink Studio also notes on the map: the map lists its hours as Tu-Su 12:00-20:00.
18200 Georgia Avenue, Olney, 20832
Hours: Tu-Su 12:00-20:00
District Tattoo
Tattoo studio
District Tattoo — Tattoo studio, found on 1285 4th Street Northeast in Washington. Also worth knowing about District Tattoo: the map lists its hours as 11:00-19:00; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
1285 4th Street Northeast, Washington, 20002
Hours: 11:00-19:00
Phone: +1 202-808-9974
Fatty's Tattoos and Piercings
Tattoo & piercing studio
Fatty's Tattoos and Piercings is Tattoo & piercing studio.
Hybrid Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Hybrid Tattoo — Tattoo studio, found on 14788 Buildamerica Drive in Woodbridge.
14788 Buildamerica Drive, Woodbridge, 22191
Cobalt Tattoo
Tattoo studio
Cobalt Tattoo is Tattoo studio on 13520 Richmond Highway. Cobalt Tattoo also notes on the map: a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip.
13520 Richmond Highway
Phone: +17033029523
What the map tells us about tattoo shops in Washington DC
6 of the 30 list their opening hours on the map, which is genuinely useful — tattoo studios often work by appointment, so posted hours can be more of a guideline than a promise.
7 have websites listed. Studios with websites usually show portfolios there — the fastest way to tell if a shop's style matches yours.
1 of the studios are also tagged for piercings, handy if you're after both in one visit.
The Washington DC tattoo shop tour
The efficient Washington DC tattoo shop tour strings these together: Jinx Proof on 3285 M Street Northwest, British Ink Tattoos on 508 H Street Northeast, Ambrotos Tattoo on 940 Bonifant Street, Traditions Tattoo, Fatty's Tattoos and Piercings on 516 H Street Northeast, Cirque de Rouge on 416 H Street Northeast, Skinhibitions on 2790 Metro Plaza, and Embassy Tattoo — 30 stops, one logical order. 22 more are listed below.
Tattoo tips for Washington DC
Picking a studio in Washington DC? A little homework pays off:
- Think about placement long-term at Jinx Proof. Hands, neck and face limit job options in some fields. Your artist will be honest about this if you ask.
- Tip your artist at British Ink Tattoos. Standard practice, like any skilled service. Twenty percent is the usual benchmark for good work.
- Ask about the deposit. Custom pieces usually need a deposit that comes off the final price. Ask how it works before you sit down, not after.
- Avoid the cheapest shop in town. There's a reason it's the cheapest. With tattoos you get exactly what you pay for, permanently.
Good to know
We searched about 40 km around Washington DC — that covers the town itself plus the surrounding communities you'd reasonably drive to. Listings come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by local volunteers, so a brand-new tattoo shop in Washington DC can take a while to appear. If you spot one of the 30 that's closed, or a great tattoo shop we missed, the fix is to update the map itself — that's where this guide reads from.
We don't rate studios or artists, and we never list prices — those are between you and the shop. What we list is the where and the how-to-find, from places real mappers have verified.
If you run one of the 30 listed here and something's wrong — a closure, a move, new hours — the fix is the same: update the shop on OpenStreetMap and the correction flows through to this page on the next daily refresh.
Tattoo shop listings for Washington DC: 30 mapped from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Photos from Wikimedia Commons contributors; individual photo credits appear in captions. Listing data was last refreshed automatically — verify hours before visiting.