Do Canadians Have More Tattoos Than Americans?

Narrative Research surveyed 1,230 Canadian adults in March 2024. The results were weighted by age, gender & region.

The survey found that just over one-third of Canadians had at least one tattoo. That works out to roughly one in three adults.

The U.S. result was nearly identical.

Pew Research Center surveyed 8,480 American adults in July 2023. It found that 32% had at least one tattoo. Around 22% of all U.S. adults had more than one.

The difference between the headline figures is about one percentage point.

That is too narrow to treat as a meaningful cultural divide. The surveys were also conducted separately. They were not designed as a direct head-to-head study.

The bigger story is how closely the two countries align. Tattooing has become a familiar part of life on both sides of the border.

The gender results are even more similar.

In Canada:

• 38% of women had tattoos
• 28% of men had tattoos

In the United States:

• 38% of women had tattoos
• 27% of men had tattoos

The percentage for women is exactly the same. The figure for men differs by only one point.

This pattern challenges an older stereotype. Tattoos were once strongly associated with male-dominated spaces, rebellion & certain subcultures. Today, women are more likely than men to report having tattoos in both countries.

The same trend was already visible in 2012.

At the time, Ipsos found that 24% of Canadian women had tattoos, compared with 20% of men. In the U.S., the figures were 24% of women & 18% of men.

Tattooing has grown since then. The gender pattern has remained.

Age also tells a similar story.

In Canada, Millennials were the most tattooed generation in the 2024 survey:

• Millennials: 51%
• Gen X: 43%
• Gen Z: 35%
• Baby Boomers: 17%

In the United States, adults ages 30 to 49 had the highest tattoo rate:

• Ages 30 to 49: 46%
• Under 30: 41%
• Ages 50 to 64: 25%
• Ages 65 & older: 13%

The categories are different. They should not be compared point for point.

Still, the broad pattern is clear. Tattoos are especially common among younger & middle-aged adults. Rates decline in older age groups.

A 2025 review of 86 studies found the same international trend. Tattoo prevalence varied widely between countries & study groups, but it was generally higher among younger people. The review also found that tattooing has increased over time.

Tattoos have become much more common over the past decade.

In 2012, an Ipsos survey found that 22% of Canadian adults had at least one tattoo. The U.S. figure was 21%.

Today, both numbers are closer to one in three.

The older survey also found that 11% of adults in each country had multiple tattoos. More recent U.S. data suggests that having several tattoos is now common. Pew found that 22% of all American adults had more than one.

The Canadian survey showed a similar interest in collecting tattoos.

Among tattooed Canadians:

• 31% had one tattoo
• 28% had five or more
• The rest had between two & four

Some people choose one meaningful piece. Others continue collecting work throughout their lives.

Both are now normal parts of modern tattoo culture.

A note about comparing older & newer surveys

The increase looks significant. But it should be read with some care.

The 2012, 2023 & 2024 studies did not use identical methods. The wording, survey format & sample design changed.

Pew also notes that its current findings should not be directly compared with its older tattoo research because of methodological differences.

We cannot say that tattoo prevalence rose by an exact number of percentage points.

We can say that several surveys point in the same direction. Tattoos are more visible, more accepted & more widely reported than they were in the early 2010s.

The Canadian results show two distinct groups.

Some tattooed Canadians stop after one piece. Others build much larger collections.

People in Gen Z & the Baby Boomer generation were more likely to report having one tattoo. Millennials & Gen X were more likely to have several.

This may reflect age, time & access.

Older Millennials and Gen X have had more years to collect work. They also reached adulthood during a period when tattooing was becoming more visible & socially accepted.

The numbers do not tell us why each person chose one tattoo or many. But they show that there is no single type of tattooed person.

Tattoo culture includes first-timers, casual collectors & people who see their bodies as an evolving canvas.

People get tattooed for many reasons.

Some designs remember a person. Others mark an experience, represent a belief or simply celebrate the art.

Pew asked tattooed Americans about their motivations.

Among those with tattoos:

• 69% said honouring or remembering someone or something was at least one reason
• 47% said expressing a belief was at least one reason
• 32% said improving their appearance was a reason

These answers could overlap. One tattoo may hold several meanings at once.

The Canadian research asked different questions. It focused more on how people felt about their tattoos.

Around three-quarters of tattooed Canadians said they loved them. Some enjoyed showing them. Others preferred to keep them private.

The surveys cannot be directly compared here. One looked at motivation. The other looked at feelings & visibility.

Together, they suggest the same thing. Tattoos are rarely just marks on the skin. They often carry memories, identity, beauty & personal history.

Tattoo culture is mainstream. That does not mean every tattoo is public.

Seven in ten tattooed Canadians said their tattoos could be covered by long sleeves & pants. Some loved their tattoos but still preferred to keep them private.

Visibility is a personal choice.

A tattoo can be bold & public. It can also be intimate, hidden or shared only at certain times.

This variety is part of what makes tattoo culture difficult to define through numbers alone. A prevalence survey can tell us how many people are tattooed. It cannot fully explain what those tattoos mean to them.

Public attitudes have changed alongside tattoo prevalence.

Pew found that 80% of American adults believed society had become more accepting of people with tattoos over the previous 20 years.

Among Americans without tattoos, 66% said seeing someone with a tattoo gave them neither a positive nor negative impression of that person.

That neutrality matters.

It suggests tattoos are less likely to define a person in the eyes of others. For many people, they are now simply another part of someone’s appearance.

Acceptance is not universal. Tattooed people can still face judgement in some families, communities & workplaces.

But the wider direction is clear. Tattoos have moved closer to the centre of everyday culture.

So, do Canadians have more tattoos than Americans?

Technically, the latest Canadian estimate is slightly higher.

Canada sits at just over one-third. The United States sits at 32%.

But calling Canada the clear winner would overstate the evidence. The surveys were conducted independently. A one-point difference may reflect sampling, timing or methodology.

The shared patterns are far more interesting:

• About one in three adults is tattooed
• Women are more likely to have tattoos than men
• Tattoos are most common among adults under 50
• Tattoo prevalence has grown since the early 2010s
• Many people have more than one tattoo
• Tattoos are often connected to memory, identity & art
• Social acceptance has increased

Tattoo culture does not stop at the border.

Across Canada & the United States, people use tattoos to carry stories, celebrate art & express who they are. The numbers differ slightly. The larger story is shared.