Rex says
Money math without the spreadsheet headache. Plug in your numbers and I'll show you exactly where the dollars land.
Try a scenario
Click to load — tweak from there.Inputs
Result
Net income under flat rent
$6,160
Net income under percentage split
$4,560
Flat rent advantage (or disadvantage)
$1,600
Revenue where flat rent beats split
$3,429
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How to use this
- 1Enter monthly tattoo revenue ($).
- 2Enter artist's split percentage (%).
- 3Enter artist's supply cost under split (shop covers most) (%).
- 4Enter flat monthly chair rent ($).
- 5Enter artist's supply cost under flat rent (%).
- 6Read your net income under flat rent on the right — it updates as you type.
- 7Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone.
About this calculator
Tattoo shops typically run either a percentage split (commonly 50/50 or 60/40 favoring the artist) or a flat weekly/monthly chair rent, and which one nets more depends heavily on how much an artist actually books. This calculator compares both models using your average monthly tattoo revenue, giving net take-home under a percentage split versus a flat rent arrangement, plus the crossover revenue level where rent starts winning. It also factors in that artists on flat rent buy their own ink, needles, and supplies, while percentage-split artists often have those covered by the shop, which materially changes the real comparison beyond just the split number.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Monthly tattoo revenue: 8000 $
- Artist's split percentage: 60 %
- Artist's supply cost under split (shop covers most): 3 %
- Flat monthly chair rent: 1200 $
- Artist's supply cost under flat rent: 8 %
Results
- Net income under flat rent: $6,160
- Net income under percentage split: $4,560
- Flat rent advantage (or disadvantage): $1,600
- Revenue where flat rent beats split: $3,429
What each field means
Inputs
- Monthly tattoo revenue ($)
- The monthly tattoo revenue used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 8000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Artist's split percentage (%)
- The artist's split percentage used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 60 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–100 %.
- Artist's supply cost under split (shop covers most) (%)
- The artist's supply cost under split (shop covers most) used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 3 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–20 %.
- Flat monthly chair rent ($)
- The flat monthly chair rent used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 1200 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Artist's supply cost under flat rent (%)
- The artist's supply cost under flat rent used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 8 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–25 %.
Results
- Net income under flat rent
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars and shown as the headline result. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Net income under percentage split
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Flat rent advantage (or disadvantage)
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Revenue where flat rent beats split
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
FAQ
What's a typical tattoo shop split?
50/50 is the most common baseline for newer or less established artists, with 60/40 or 70/30 favoring the artist as they build a following and bring in their own clients. Guest artists and highly sought-after tattooers can negotiate splits as high as 70-80% in their favor.
At what revenue does flat rent typically win?
Using typical splits and rent levels, most artists cross over somewhere between $2,500 and $4,000 in monthly revenue — below that, percentage split's lower fixed risk wins; above it, flat rent's 100% marginal revenue capture pulls ahead since the artist keeps everything past the fixed rent cost.
Do walk-ins change which model is better?
Shops with heavy walk-in traffic often keep artists on percentage split because the shop is doing real marketing and foot-traffic work to generate those clients, which justifies taking a cut. Artists with their own strong following and social media presence benefit more from flat rent since they're not relying on the shop for clients.
Accuracy and limitations
- Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.
- Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.
- This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant.
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Compare the true cost of a W-2 stylist versus a 1099 booth renter.
Cite this calculator
Writing about this topic? Grab a citation — every link helps keep these tools free.
RevenueLab. (2026). Tattoo Shop Chair Rate Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/tattoo-shop-chair-rate
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/tattoo-shop-chair-rate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tattoo Shop Chair Rate Calculator — RevenueLab</a> (2026).</p>
Source: [Tattoo Shop Chair Rate Calculator — RevenueLab](https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/tattoo-shop-chair-rate) (2026).