FARMERSBURG, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — Do you have a tattoo? If so, do you regret it?
While 30% of all Americans have been “inked”, that percentage jumps up to nearly 40% when looking only at Americans aged 18 to 34.
Of that 30% nearly one in four reportedly regret at least one of their tattoos.
A recent study by the company LaserAway, determined which states have the most regretful tattoos and learned that when it comes to the Hoosier state, relatively very few end up regretting their decision of permanent artwork.
To determine where Americans with the most tattoo regret reside, we surveyed Americans in every state and asked a variety of questions including how many tattoos they regret, why they regret their tattoo, if they have had a tattoo removed or covered up, and more. For each answer that was associated with regretting their tattoo(s), we assigned a point. Using this 0-100 scale, we ranked cities and states across the U.S. from the least to most regret.
LaserAway study on tattoo regrets
Of the forty states that had enough responses to report the data, Indiana ranked at #6 for having the least regrets in terms of tattoos. Only Arkansas, Maine, Mississippi, North Carolina and Kansas had less residents with a tattoo regret.
Hoosiers stand out a bit from their neighboring states of Ohio, Illinois, and Michigan who all appear in the top ten for states with the most residents who regret a tattoo.
One of the key findings of the study was that for the most part, regrets stem from the size and placement of their tattoos rather than the chosen imagery. 1 out of 25 respondents listed their regret as having to do with a past relationship.
The study also found that the upper arm was the location of most tattoo regrets, with lower arms coming in second and lower legs coming in third.
Alabama came in ranked #1 for most regrets, and residents of the state were found to spend the most money on their tattoos on average over any other state at approximately $1,005.
When looking at money spent by Hoosiers, the state was the second lowest when ranking by average money spent on tattoos, with an average of just $273 per tattooed respondent.
For more details on the report visit LaserAway’s website here.
