How big is a 5 cm tattoo?
updated
A 5 cm tattoo is 2 in on its longest side, a little shorter than the short edge of a bank card (5.4 cm). It is the classic small tattoo: big enough for an outline with some inner detail, a short word or a small animal, and it suits the wrist, ankle, collarbone and inner forearm.
5 cm in everyday objects
Hold a bank or debit card upright: its short edge is 5.4 cm, so a 5 cm (2 in) tattoo is a few millimetres shorter than that. Two £1 coins laid edge to edge come to 4.7 cm, and two US quarters to 4.9 cm. Sizes are measured along the longest side of the design, so a 5 cm piece fits inside a 5 × 5 cm square whether it is tall and thin or round.
Square inches and centimetres confuse a lot of searches. A "2x2 tattoo" in American shops means 2 × 2 inches, which is 5.1 × 5.1 cm, so this page is the one you want. A 5 × 3 cm piece, a common shape for a small animal or a short word, is 2 × 1.2 in.
What changes between 4 and 7 cm?
People often ask for "5–7 cm" because it is the range where a small tattoo stops being a symbol and starts being a picture. Each centimetre counts here: the area of a design grows with the square of its side, so a 7 cm piece has almost twice the room of a 5 cm one.
| Size | Inches | Room compared with 5 cm | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 cm | 1.6 in | about two-thirds | a symbol, a word of up to eight plain letters, a small flower |
| 5 cm | 2 in | the same | a small animal, a flash outline with a little shading, a short name |
| 6 cm | 2.4 in | about one and a half times | fine-line flowers, a short phrase on one line |
| 7 cm | 2.8 in | about twice | a traditional piece with solid colour, a two-line phrase |
Bosphorus Ink's sizing guide calls 3–6 cm small and 7–15 cm medium, and it gives 2–5 cm as the minimum for a minimal symbol and 3–6 cm for a single word. The Sydney Tattoo Convention puts 3–5 cm on the forearm, behind the ear and on the collarbone, and 5–7 cm on the upper arm, the back of the neck and the calf. Below about 4 cm, Bosphorus Ink warns, the margin for error becomes very small, which is why 5 cm is a comfortable floor for anything with inner lines.
What fits in a 5 cm tattoo?
Clean outlines, a small animal, a moon, a single flower or a word. Studios recommend letters at least about 3–4 mm tall (Vatican Tattoo Studio, Think Tank Tattoo), and at that height 5 cm holds a word of about ten plain letters or a slightly shorter word in script. A small traditional piece fits too: Bosphorus Ink starts traditional and neo-traditional work at 5–8 cm, because bold lines and solid fills survive the ink's slow spread.
Fine-line work and detailed shading are where 5 cm runs short. Think Tank Tattoo designs for 10–20% line spread after healing, and Vatican Tattoo Studio describes edges going slightly fuzzy after about five years. Bosphorus Ink suggests 6–10 cm for fine-line pieces on the wrist or forearm. If your design has hatching, a face, or lines drawn closely side by side, try it at 7 or 8 cm before you commit.
A 5 cm tattoo on the forearm, chest and back
The pictures show 5 cm woodcuts on the outer forearm, one side of the chest and the upper back of a plaster figure. Every size page frames each area the same way (45 cm of body in the frame height for the forearm, 50 cm for the chest, 60 cm for the back), so you can flick between this page and the 2 cm and 8 cm pages and see the same view grow.
Where 5 cm sits best
On the inner wrist, 5 cm takes up much of the width, so it looks complete there. Bosphorus Ink gives 2–6 cm for the wrist and 2–7 cm for the ankle, so 5 cm is near the top of both. The collarbone, the back of the neck and the spot behind the ear are other natural homes. On the forearm it reads as a small, separate piece, and many people place one there as the first of several. On the upper arm or calf it works as a single flash piece.
On the chest or the back, 5 cm sits small. Bosphorus Ink starts the chest at 8 cm and the back at 15 cm, and the back picture above shows why: between the shoulder blades a 5 cm piece is a mark in a large field. That works if you want something discreet, or a piece that will later join a larger one. If the chest is the place and you want it read across a room, look at 8–10 cm.
How long does a 5 cm tattoo take?
Estimates vary with detail. Platinum Ink says a small flash tattoo may take thirty minutes to an hour, while Skin Design Tattoos' chart gives 2–3 hours for 1–2 in and 2–5 hours for 2–3 in, which covers detailed or shaded work. A plain outline sits at the short end; a densely shaded 5 cm piece sits at the long end. Your artist gives the real estimate once they have seen the design.
Trying 5 cm before you book
Cut a 5 cm square of paper and tape it to the spot, then look in the mirror at arm's length and from across the room. To see the design itself, put it on a plaster 3D body in plan.tattoo, type 5 cm and turn the camera round; then type 4 and 7 cm and compare. The tattoo size chart shows how 5 cm compares across placements.
Questions
How big is a 5 cm tattoo in inches?
A 5 cm tattoo is about 2 inches on its longest side, a little shorter than the short edge of a bank card. A tattoo shop's 2x2 inch tattoo is 5.1 centimetres square, so it is effectively the same size.
Is 5 cm a good size for a first tattoo?
Yes, for a simple design. It is large enough for an outline with a little inner detail or a short word, quick to tattoo, and easy to place on a wrist, ankle, collarbone or forearm. Detailed shading or fine-line work does better at seven or eight centimetres.
How many letters fit in a 5 cm tattoo?
Studios advise letters at least three to four millimetres tall. At that height a five centimetre line holds about ten plain capital letters, or a little fewer in a looped script. A name or a single word fits comfortably; a sentence needs two lines or more room.
What is the difference between a 5 cm and a 7 cm tattoo?
A 7 cm tattoo has almost twice the area of a 5 cm one, because area grows with the square of the side. That extra room is what lets shading, fine lines and small faces stay readable as the ink softens over the years.
Is 5 cm too small for the chest or back?
It can look small there. Sizing guides start the chest at about eight centimetres and the back at about fifteen. A 5 cm piece on the upper back reads as a discreet mark, which suits some people, but most chest and back pieces are larger.
Sources: Bosphorus Ink: tattoo size and placement guide · Sydney Tattoo Convention: tattoo size and body part guide · Vatican Tattoo Studio: why micro tattoos blur · Think Tank Tattoo: script tattoo sizing · Platinum Ink: how long does a tattoo take · Skin Design Tattoos: tattoo sizing guide