I’ve got three tattoos. One on my lower back, my first. It didn’t really hurt, more like a stingy annoyance. Second on my foot, that one hurt like a mother. Third on my shoulder blade, didn’t hurt at all. My first is like 5″x1″. That one took about 45mins. The second about the size of a orange, took a couple of hours. Third about the size of a grapefruit, also took a couple of hours. Make sure you check out the tattoo parlor you go to. Make sure they autoclave all the needles, and that the needles are packaged and single use. The best references to get are when you see somebodies tattoo and you like it, ask them. People are always glad to talk about their tattoos. They will tell you who did it and where.