Tattoo Deposit Policy: How Much to Charge, With a Template

Charge a deposit on every tattoo booking, no exceptions, and make the amount and the rules for losing it clear before the client pays anything. That single habit prevents more lost revenue than any other scheduling change a shop can make. The rest of this guide walks through how much to charge, how refunds and reschedules should work, and gives you a full policy you can copy today.

How much deposit to charge

For a single session under a couple hours, a flat deposit between $50 and $200 is standard. It is easy to state at booking and easy for the client to understand. For larger custom pieces or work you expect to price by the hour, a percentage of the estimated total, usually 15 to 25 percent, scales better because it stays proportional as the estimate grows.

Pick one method per shop, or one per pricing model if you run flash and custom work side by side. Mixing methods without a clear rule confuses both the client and the front desk. See /flash-vs-hourly-vs-project-pricing for how the three pricing models interact with deposits.

Refunds

Non-refundable is the standard in the trade, and for good reason: once a client books, the artist has turned away other work for that slot. A non-refundable deposit that transfers to a new date with notice gives the client a fair path if their plans change, without the shop absorbing the loss of a held slot that goes empty.

If you decide to offer refunds under some condition, name the condition exactly. “Refundable within 24 hours of booking” is enforceable. “Refundable if there’s a good reason” is not, and it puts the front desk in the position of arguing with clients over what counts as a good reason.

Reschedules

Give clients a real window to reschedule without losing the deposit, commonly 48 to 72 hours before the appointment. Inside that window, the deposit transfers once to a new date. Outside that window, or on a second reschedule, the deposit is forfeited and a new one is required. State the number of hours explicitly, do not leave it as “advance notice.”

No-shows

A no-show forfeits the deposit. This is the least disputed rule in the policy because the client agreed to it when they paid. Publish it anyway, in writing, so there is no ambiguity later.

Applying the deposit to the final price

Make it explicit that the deposit is credited against the total cost of the piece and is not an extra charge on top. Clients who are unclear on this sometimes assume the deposit is a booking fee separate from the tattoo price, and that misunderstanding shows up as a dispute at checkout if it is not addressed up front.

Multi-session work

For sleeves, back pieces, or anything that spans more than one appointment, decide whether you take one deposit for the whole project or a smaller deposit per session. Charging per session keeps the amount smaller and easier to say yes to, and it protects each individual sitting rather than only the first one. Read how Turbo Link tracks deposits across a multi-session project on /multi-session-tattoo-scheduling.

How to actually collect it

Writing the policy is half the job. The other half is making sure it happens automatically, every time, without the front desk chasing a payment by text. Turbo Link sends a deposit invoice with a payment link the moment an appointment is booked, and once it is paid, the deposit is recorded against that appointment on its own. See /help/tattoo-consent-and-deposits for how the consent form and the deposit are handled together, and /help/record-a-deposit for how a payment shows up once it clears.

The copyable policy

Use the template in the box above as a starting point. Fill in your flat amount or percentage and your reschedule window, then post it wherever clients book, on your intake form, and on your booking confirmation. Read more about how the whole tattoo workflow fits together on /for-tattoo, and check your state’s rules before finalizing your consent language on /guides/tattoo-consent-form-laws-by-state.