{"id":188876,"date":"2026-02-22T14:30:07","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T14:30:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/188876\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T14:30:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T14:30:07","slug":"the-best-tattooers-and-shops-in-san-francisco-according-to-a-panel-of-pros","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/188876\/","title":{"rendered":"The best tattooers and shops in San Francisco, according to a panel of pros"},"content":{"rendered":"

Recommendations are a dime a dozen, but in Pro Tips<\/a>, we go directly to the source, asking local experts for their professional opinions on the city\u2019s best burgers<\/a>, dive bars<\/a>, and more.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Finding a good tattoo artist is mostly about knowing yourself. There are plenty of skilled people who make quality work, but not all their styles will suit every client. What starts as a reflexive \u201clike\u201d on an Instagram post might turn into a piece of body art you hate after six months.<\/p>\n

The good news is that San Francisco has a tattooer for every taste. There are surly, old-school shops where you can get a bold trio of Pharaoh\u2019s Horses (opens in new tab)<\/a>, and there are young artists tattooing lighthearted doodles out of bedroom studios. We asked tattooers across the spectrum for their expert recommendations.<\/p>\n

Ross Jones (opens in new tab)<\/a>, Idle Hand<\/p>\n

Favorite competitor shop: Black Heart Tattoo (@blackhearttattoo (opens in new tab)<\/a>), 177 Valencia St., Mission<\/p>\n

When he first started getting tattooed, in the 1990s, Jones would go to Ed Hardy\u2019s legendary Tattoo City in North Beach (now closed) and Freddy Corbin\u2019s Temple Tattoo 13 in Oakland. His first shop job was at Spider Murphy\u2019s in San Rafael. \u201cThen Black Heart opened,\u201d Jones recalled. \u201cWhen they started that shop, they were like the top dogs in the city, and what they were doing was impressive and new and interesting.\u201d Jones is loyal to Idle Hand, where he\u2019s worked for 13 years, but Black Heart would be his other recommendation. Most of the artists there specialize in traditional styles \u2014 thick lines, classic designs \u2014 but that doesn\u2019t mean they all look the same. Scott Sylvia and Jeff Rassier have owned the shop for more than 20 years. \u201cAnyone there is gonna give a good tattoo, or they wouldn\u2019t be working there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Selin Cetin (opens in new tab)<\/a>, independent studio<\/p>\n

Favorite artist: Nayelli (@nayellitattoo (opens in new tab)<\/a>), UNDRGRND, 3191 Mission St., Bernal Heights<\/p>\n

Cetin is known for tattoos of buttons, butterflies, and big eyes. And as someone who taught herself the craft and never apprenticed at a shop, she feels at home in the city\u2019s \u201calternative\u201d tattoo scene. So it\u2019s no surprise that she chose Nayelli, a fellow purveyor of playful designs, as her favorite artist. But it wasn\u2019t just artistic kinship behind the decision; it\u2019s also Nayelli\u2019s bedside manner when she\u2019s inking dolphins or Beanie Babies. \u201cIf you\u2019re ever feeling anxious about getting a tattoo or it\u2019s your first one, you should go to them.\u201d Nayelli has clear favorite themes \u2014 baby animals, cute objects with smiley faces \u2014 but Cetin recommends them too for their ability to create custom tattoos based on clients\u2019 ideas.<\/p>\n

Bryan A (opens in new tab)<\/a>., independent studio<\/p>\n

Favorite artist: Chris Sugino (@csugino (opens in new tab)<\/a>), Raven Eye Tattoo, 4355 A California St., Inner Richmond\u00a0<\/p>\n

Bryan provided a PSA before giving any recommendations: It\u2019s on the clients to figure out what they like, whether that\u2019s just scanning social media or poring over old flash books. \u201cI suggest people do their research on artists instead of just jumping into it,\u201d said Bryan, who got his first tattoo at 16. \u201cThat\u2019s coming from someone who just jumped into it.\u201d For anyone who likes American traditional, though, Bryan\u2019s choice is Chris Sugino, who works at the Inner Richmond\u2019s Raven Eye Tattoo. \u201cRight now, fine-line is popular, but American traditional is always going to stay popular,\u201d Bryan said. \u201cThe thing about tattoos, man: Bold will hold.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roc\u00edo Reveco (opens in new tab)<\/a>, UNDRGRND<\/p>\n

Favorite shop: Castro Tattoo (@castrotattoosf (opens in new tab)<\/a>), 3991 17th St., Castro<\/p>\n

When Reveco came to San Francisco from Chile in early 2020, she didn\u2019t intend to stay. But she ended up spending the first year of the pandemic in her van as an itinerant tattooer before settling in the city and falling in love with its tattoo scene. \u201cHere, it\u2019s more open to be creative and take risks,\u201d she said. Reveco shouted out a ton of tattooers and studios, including her home shop UNDRGRND, but she\u2019s especially fond of Castro Tattoo. \u201cThese are people I would send my little brother for a first tattoo,\u201d she said. That recommendation holds particular weight for Reveco, whose own experience was a nightmare. As a teenager, she went to an artist for a tiny rose on her back. He plied her with alcohol and pressured her to supersize it. When her dad saw the enormous tattoo, he kicked her out of the house. \u201cIt\u2019s something sacred, what we\u2019re doing. It\u2019s very disruptive for the other person,\u201d she said. \u201cThese are all people I really trust. They\u2019re different in their art, but they all have great ethics, and I love the way they work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gabriel May (opens in new tab)<\/a>, Black Heart tattoo<\/p>\n

Favorite artist: Stefan (@didyourtattoohurt (opens in new tab)<\/a>), One Shot Tattoo, 555 Irving St., Inner Sunset<\/p>\n

Even in a shop full of veterans, the most gratifying thing can be seeing a young artist come into their own. \u201cI tattooed him like seven years ago, when he was an art student,\u201d May said of Stefan. \u201cFast forward a few years, and he\u2019s working at one of the premier spots in San Francisco.\u201d Stefan has carved out a niche by applying fine stipple shading to traditional imagery. \u201cIt seems he\u2019s very interested in a juxtaposition in styles,\u201d May said. \u201cThe soft shading, pairing it with bolder lines and simple designs \u2014 that combination is what makes it look a little more modern.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wyatt Schuster (opens in new tab)<\/a>, independent studio<\/p>\n

Favorite artist: Paul Urich (@nowheresvilleoakland_ (opens in new tab)<\/a>), Trudy\u2019s Tattoo Parlour, 3373 A Mission St., Bernal Heights<\/p>\n

Schuster and Urich are more than tattooers. Schuster makes wood cutouts, masks, and shelves; Urich draws on clothes and builds tattoo machines. But while Schuster works out of his Oakland apartment and prefers tattooing cute, somewhat spooky doodles, Urich is most strongly influenced by the folk art roots of American traditional. Urich\u2019s shop, Nowheresville Oakland, closed after a 2024 burglary, and he now works out of Trudy\u2019s Tattoo Parlour in the Outer Mission\/Bernal Heights. \u201cI would tell anyone to go get tattooed by him,\u201d Schuster said. \u201cHe has tons of original flash ready to tattoo, has great texture with his pepper shading, does a variety of line thicknesses, and makes tats that are gonna last forever.\u201d Schuster put his money where his mouth is and had Urich tattoo a big dragon and castle design on the back of his leg.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Galen Leach (opens in new tab)<\/a>, UNDRGRND<\/p>\n

Favorite shop: Seventh Son (@seventhsontattoo (opens in new tab)<\/a>), 765 Clementina St., SoMa<\/p>\n

Leach is the only person on this list who has tattooed a Costco hot dog labeled with the words \u201c$1.50 to the DEATH.\u201d Many of his designs are like this; one is an angry pizza box asking, \u201cYou wanna piece of me?\u201d That gives him a unique perspective on recommendations: \u201cUsually my first step is to steer people away from me.\u201d But he refers shops based on specific modes. For fine-line and the trendy \u201ccybersigilism\u201d style, go to UNDRGRND, he said. For American traditional, go to Black Heart. For Japanese-style tattooing and huge back pieces, go to Seventh Son in SoMa. \u201cThey\u2019re cultivating a style and a look,\u201d Leach said. \u201cEveryone\u2019s heard of them, and they\u2019re really good.\u201d Of course, that\u2019s for other people. \u201cThe reason I got into tattooing in the first place was to get free tattoos \u2014 from myself,\u201d he said. \u201cI didn\u2019t care about quality, I just wanted to have more and look scary.\u201d<\/p>\n