Sternum Tattoos: How Much They Hurt and Cost

As a tattoo artist with over 10 years' experience, sternum tattoos are one of my favorite placements to make. The placement itself is unique, and is a focal point on the body. Almost everyone booking a sternum piece asks me about the pain. The pain is real but it will be over in a few hours, but your chest moves every time you breathe, and that is the part that catches people out.

Moth tattoo design for women, fine line style, on the sternum, with delicate wings, surrounded by ornate celestial elements and geometric patterns

Do sternum tattoos hurt

Yes, I wouldn't say it is one of the most painful placements on the body, but it's definitely full of nerves, and people can be a little more sensitive to this area. The commonly quoted number across the industry is 8 out of 10, and I would not argue with it for the centre line itself.

When the needle works directly over bone, the vibration carries into the bone itself. People describe that as a different sensation from normal tattoo pain, less like scratching and more like a deep ache that keeps going after the machine stops.

It is not evenly bad across the whole area. The centre line, directly over the bone, is the worst of it. As you move outward toward softer tissue the intensity drops.

Two things genuinely help. Eat a real meal beforehand, and do hold your breath every time the needle goes into your skin. The body goes up and down while you're breathing, and this can badly impact the tattoo artist's efficiency. If you can help the artist by holding your breath, this can cut the session length to be much shorter, which decreases the pain by a lot.

Cranes lotus tattoo design for women, Chinese brush painting style, on the chest, with pink flowers and red hanging foliage over a soft landscape

What is a sternum tattoo

A sternum tattoo sits on the breastbone, the flat bone running down the centre of your chest between the ribs. In practice the term covers a bit more than the bone itself — most pieces called sternum tattoos start on the centre line and spread outward under the bust or across the upper ribs.

Usually it is centred and symmetrical. But asymmetrical pieces can also be called sternum tattoos in a lot of occasions, as tattoo is a type of art, and artists do not make sense often times (lol).

There are no definite rules for how a tattoo must look, but visually speaking, a symmetrical tattoo on the sternum area is very pleasing to look at, and it also fits the body shape perfectly. And for that reason, a lot of tattoo artists still love to make symmetrical tattoos for the sternum area.

Lotus flower tattoo design for women, fine line style, on the sternum, on the sternum with intricate scrolls and leafy vines

Sternum, underboob, and below the bust

These get used interchangeably and they are not the same placement.

Sternum proper sits on the centre line over the bone. Most painful, most symmetrical.

Underboob follows the curve underneath the bust. Less painful than the bone, but it sits on skin that moves and folds, and it is in contact with bra bands constantly. It also changes shape the most over time.

Below the bust / upper ribs spreads outward from either of the above onto the rib cage. Painful as well — ribs are also sitting on the bones.

General chest usually runs from under the collarbone, end around the shoulder, Covering the whole chest.

Dragonfly tattoo design for women, fine line style, on the sternum, with surrounding celestial elements and a curved branch of leaves

How much a sternum tattoo costs

This very much depends on whether you want a simple minimum design or a complicated colored full chest piece. Most tattoo artists in the US charge by the hour or day rate, and the time cost can vary a lot according to the style of the tattoo. Sternum tattoos are also a little bit more difficult to do compared to other placements, because of the way artists and clients sit, usually the artist will have to make the tattoo sideways, which will increase the session length.

Expect somewhere in the $250–$800 range in the US for a simple or Minimal sternum tattoo. Larger work that is more complicated and spreads onto the ribs or under the bust can go past that by a lot, For example, I've made chest piece tattoos for 10 sessions.

Butterfly lilies tattoo design for women, fine line style, on the sternum, with a butterfly on the left and multiple calla lilies on the right

One thing, though, studios and artists generally bill larger pieces with a discount. The best way to ask an artist is to send them one of their past works and be like, "How many sessions was this one, and can you let me know the price?"

What actually drives the number is time in the chair, and sternum work takes longer since the Artists have to go sideways a lot of times. Expect more breaks — it is pretty hard on the artist's neck.

If you are comparing quotes, the same size tattoo between two different artists can vary a lot due to their different personal styles, even when they have the exact same hourly rate or day rate. For example, a fine-line style tattoo might only take 1 or 2 sessions, versus a Japanese traditional style can take up to 8 or 10 sessions. So again, the best way is to find your favorite artist first, and then find one of their past custom tattoo works similar to what you want, then politely ask them to give you a quote based on their past tattoos.

Generate a custom sternum tattoo design — free, no signup.

What to wear for a sternum tattoo

From my own work experience, I like to ask my sternum tattoo clients just to take their tops off. You can wear something that opens at the front, but not wearing anything is easier for the artist to look at your body shape (including the shape of the shoulder, neck, etc.) to better decide how the tattoo fits with your body.

A stretchy tank is easier to put back on after the session's done.

On bras specifically, this is the question people are too awkward to ask, so here is the plain answer. Wear a soft bralette or sports bra rather than an underwire. Your artist may ask you to tape it out of the way or take it off entirely, and most studios will offer pasties or a cover so you are not sitting exposed. I always prepare nip covers for my clients, but you can also prepare your own, in case your artist doesn't have them.

Do not wear the bra home. A band sitting directly on a fresh sternum tattoo for the drive back is not great. Bring something loose to change into, and skip underwire/ anything tight for the first couple of weeks while it closes.

Bring a layer you do not mind getting ink on, and bring something warm, like a blanket. You will be partly uncovered for a few hours and studios run cold.

Lotus flower tattoo design for women, watercolor style, on the sternum, with lily pads and fish swimming in blue water

Do sternum tattoos stretch or age badly

The sternum ages better than people expect. Most of the time, this area is very well covered by clothing, so the sun doesn't accelerate your tattoo's aging process.

Sternum tattoos also usually holds its shape very well, because this area doesn't stretch too much, even with changes in weight. One exception is for women with pregnancy or a breastfeeding situation, which changes the shape and can stretch the tattoo.

What I will say is a design decision rather than a prediction: the more your piece depends on perfect symmetry across soft tissue, the more any change shows. A design with looser elements spreading outward, or an asymmetrical design, tolerates change a lot better than a rigid mirrored pattern.

Bellflowers tattoo design for women, fine line style, on the sternum, delicate blue blossoms with green leaves and small insects climbing on the stems, placed on the sternum

How long a sternum tattoo takes to heal

The surface closes in about one to two weeks, and the piece is properly settled by around four to six weeks. Scrubbing with a bra can slow down this healing process.

Other than that, the healing time is pretty similar to general tattoos, around 3 weeks.

My opinion is always this: the healing process is more related to the tattoo artist's skill and execution during the tattoo session, and less reliant on the client's aftercare actions, including cleaning and applying creams. As long as you have normal-level metabolism, without any skin issues, Any tattoo should heal around this time window. (Of course, excluding extremely risky behavior, such as going to the gym or going swimming.)

Cobra tattoo design for women, fine line style, on the sternum, with an ankh symbol and lotus flowers, in black and grey

Why people choose the sternum

You control who sees it. Under most necklines it is completely hidden, which makes it one of the few placements that can be large and private at the same time.
It connects other work. A sternum piece bridges chest, ribs and stomach tattoos into something that reads as one project rather than several separate ones. You can also bridge your both side sleeves. (The crane tattoo in this article was one of my past projects, Bridging Two Sleeves.)
It lasts very well. For a placement that usually, naturally avoids the sun, tattoos here stay very well.
Enjoy every day Most tattoos are hard to see for the owner themselves, either they are upside down or backwards. A sternum tattoo is the kind you can look at and enjoy every day.

The honest downsides

Pain level, as we said, it isn't an easy place, especially for first-timers. Size It's pretty common for artists to suggest a large-size chest piece placed here instead of a small sternum tattoo. The reason is that the chest is one of the focal points on your body, and large pieces, in many cases, would look better long term. If you're very firm on getting a small sternum tattoo, it is fine, but be prepared to want to expand it after a few years. Symmetry is unforgiving. On a chest with a visible midline, a little bit off-center reads. And even if the tattoo artist has a very steady hand, the tattoo might still grow to be asymmetrical over the years when your body naturally changes shape.

Owl tattoo design for men, neo-traditional style, on the sternum, flying across the chest with red roses and berries

Who I would talk out of it: anyone getting their first tattoo. Getting a few other tattoos at other places would help the clients to understand whether they are ready to commit to a certain piece or not.

Want a sternum tattoo after reading this article? Describe your idea and get design ideas in seconds.

What makes the sternum different from the rest of the chest

2 things separate it from a general chest piece.

It is over bone, not muscle. The definition of a sternum tattoo strictly requires it to sit on the center line, which changes the pain. Speaking from a tattoo artist/tattoo designer perspective, if it's a general chest piece, usually I would try to guide the visual and focal point to the side of the chest where it has more muscles or soft tissues, instead of the middle area. A sternum tattoo cannot avoid that. It has to grow out of the middle.

It has a built-in axis. The center line is pretty visible on the body. So, symmetrical designs here are less forgiving.

Dragon roses tattoo design for men, Japanese style, on the chest, flying through clouds and red flowers, with some parts outlined in orange

Designing for a centred, symmetrical piece

Anchor on the centre line first. The stencil placement matters more here than the drawing. Fun fact: a lot of people don't have a perfectly symmetrical body. With that being said, a perfectly mirrored design on the body may look more crooked than a purposely modified design.

Decide early how far outward you are going. Looking at the body as a full canvas instead of just staring at the chest, a larger piece than what clients imagine usually works better. If you're a tattoo artist, make sure to consider the shoulder and arm as part of the canvas, not excluding them. If you're a client, find reference photos for your ideal sternum piece to give the tattoo artist a better idea.

Scorpion tattoo design for women, cyber sigilism style, on the sternum, with intricate, wing-like formations and detailed carapace designs extending across the ribs

Best styles for a sternum piece

Ornamental and fine linework dominate this placement for a reason — the symmetry suits symmetrical patterns.

Florals are the most common request I see for this spot, and they work because a flower has a natural centre and natural spread. As a tattoo artist, I would suggest not having rigid, symmetrical floral designs unless you're looking for that decorative style, because the nature of plants and flowers is more organic and flowy. If I were to design it, I would definitely make it asymmetrical.

Winged forms — moths, butterflies — naturally symmetrical. Heavy blackwork. An impactful style sitting on an impactful placement makes a very powerful tattoo.

Ornamental flower tattoo design for women, fine line style, on the sternum, centered on the sternum with small dots and geometric lines

Pro tip about sternum tattoos

Written by tattoo artist Jing

Sternum/chest tattoo projects are one of my favorite. And I believe it's the favorite for a lot of other artists, too. It is a flat surface, which means it's easy to design, easy to foresee the visual effect, and also easy to execute. There are not many changes based on the body shape or muscle shapes. So as a client, it's easier for you to see the end result from the design, too.

My only suggestion here is: don't put anything that's not going to bridge with anything else. Sternum/chest is such an important placement and focal point that bridges many different parts of your body. If you put a single, isolated element here, it is going to create a headache for your future — you would always want to somewhat connect or extend it to one of your future sleeves, or your future rib tattoo, or something else. So leave the design a little bit open at the edges.

Crane tattoo design for men, black and grey style, on the sternum, with widespread wings among cattails and lily pads, in black and grey

FAQ

Can you wear a bra after a sternum tattoo?

Suggest not immediately, and not an underwire for the first couple of weeks. A band sitting on a healing sternum piece rubs exactly where you do not want friction. Soft bralettes without wire are fine, and bring something loose to change into for the trip home from your appointment.

Do sternum tattoos stretch when pregnant?

Skin across the chest and ribs does change during pregnancy, and a design spreading onto soft tissue is more affected than one sitting on the bone. It is definitely better than a stomach tattoo, but yes, they will stretch a little bit during pregnancy, especially if it's closer to your rib cage.

How long does a sternum tattoo take to heal?

The surface closes in one to two weeks and the piece settles by four to six weeks.

Is the sternum the most painful place to get tattooed?

It is in the top handful. The centre line over the bone is the sharpest part. The saving part is that most sternum pieces are shorter sessions than a large back or sleeve project, so you are comparing a brief intense sitting against a long moderate one.

Do sternum tattoos fade faster than other placements?

It holds better than most other placements. This placement is covered most of the time away from the sun, which helps with the longevity by a lot.

Will a sternum tattoo show in normal clothes?

Usually not. Under a standard neckline it is completely hidden, which is a large part of why people choose it. Swimwear and anything open at the front will show part of it, so if visibility matters for your job, think about where the top edge of the design sits.

How many sessions does a large sternum piece take?

A small centre piece is usually one sitting. Anything spreading under the bust or onto the ribs/ shoulders commonly runs between 2 and 10 sessions, depending on the style and how complicated the design is.

Are sternum tattoos "trashy"?

That is a judgement about fashion, not about tattoos, and it has moved around a lot over the years. The question underneath it is a practical one: how often does this placement show on you, and are you comfortable with it showing in the settings where it will?