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Byrdie / Chloe Jeong
Tattoos deserve to be shown off, but before you can flash your new ink around, you have to diligently care for your tat to ensure proper healing. One of the most important steps in the aftercare process is choosing a lotion that will keep your fresh design moisturized, free of infection, and without irritation, according to tattoo artists. Because a tattoo is technically a wound, tattoo lotions are incredibly important to not only keeping your ink looking good but to aiding in the healing process as well.
Byrdie Researched & Approved
Our best overall pick is Aquaphor Healing Ointment, a favorite of tattoo-artists for its petrolatum-powered formula, which acts as an occlusive to seal in moisture. If you prefer something more lightweight, we love Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion, replete with colloidal oatmeal to calm inflammation and kickstart healing.
Finding your perfect lotion isn’t as easy as it sounds, however, and it's not as easy as asking for help; everyone has their own favorite products. “I think what lotion you use depends a lot on climate and skin type. Also how much you apply is important too,” says the tattoo artist known as Olive, who is behind the Oregon-based Damn Zippy. “I prefer not to rep a certain brand because everyone is different and I want my clients to use what works for them, which might not necessarily be what works for me.” Still, there are certain things to look for in a formula.
Knowing what you want (vegan? water-based? budget or splurge?) and what will work best for your skin and new tattoo is key. “I generally recommend that the person uses whatever they find most comfortable,” says hand-poke artist Harper Rose of Melbourne’s Pocaharper. “After all, they have to wear it on their skin every day.” To help you narrow down your choices, we researched the best formulas, evaluating them on type, active ingredients, and skin-feel. We even tried a few formulas out—our product testers using a couple for weeks at a time and noting their insights. After considering dozens of options and consulting with two tattoo-artists, we landed on these picks.
Ahead, find the best lotions for healing a tattoo and preserving your body art.
Best Overall
Aquaphor Healing Ointment
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Ulta
Super hydrating
Seals moisture into skin
Helps keep tattoo looking vibrant
Sticky formula can transfer
Who else recommends it? Cosmopolitan, NBC News, and Verywell Health all picked Aquaphor Healing Ointment.
What do buyers say? 88% of 59,600+ Amazon reviewers rated this product 5 stars.
Aquaphor's Healing Ointment is of the most widely used tattoo aftercare treatments, and you’ll find a lot of artists quick to recommend the old stand-by. Because the petrolatum-powered formula has occlusive properties, it creates a semi-permeable layer on top of the skin which allows moisture to be kept in and everything else to be kept out. By holding in the skin’s natural moisture, it helps keep your tattoo fresh and promotes healing.
Price at time of publish: $10
Active Ingredients: Petrolatum | Skin Type: All | Size: 14 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: No | Cruelty-Free: No
Best Drugstore
Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion
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Calms and soothes skin
Not greasy
Can help with itching
Not Byrdie Clean
Aveeno may be a name you are used to hearing, and there’s a reason for that: It works. All of Aveeno’s products feature colloidal oatmeal, which moisturizes and calms inflammation while creating a protective barrier on top of your skin, meaning it's great for both soothing and protecting your healing ink. This lotion is also free of parabens and fragrance, so it won't irritate a fresh tattoo. Plus, it comes with a super affordable price tag, making it a must after any and every tattoo.
Price at time of publish: $10
Active Ingredients: Dimethicone | Skin Type: All | Size: 18 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: No | Cruelty-Free: No
What Our Testers Say
"Aveeno's Daily Moisturizing Lotion will give you soft, silky, properly hydrated limbs." — Emily Algar, Product Tester
Best Splurge
Billy Jealousy Tattoo Lotion
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Byrdie Clean and cruelty-free
Contains antioxidants
Moisturizing
Strong scent
Although Billy Jealousy’s Tattoo Lotion is a bit on the pricier side, it’s packed with skin-soothing elements like shea butter, sunflower seed oil, jojoba oil, green tea leaf extract, and more. One thing to note is that this lotion does feature lavender and rosemary oils for fragrance, and most artists will tell you to stay away from lotions with fragrances. However, Billy Jealousy’s fragrance comes from essential oils, so it gets an okay from me! This lotion will keep your tattoos looking fresh and clean.
Price at time of publish: $15
Active Ingredients: Aloe leaf extract, glycerin, olive oil | Skin Type: All | Size: 8 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Vegan
Hustle Butter Deluxe Luxury Tattoo Care & Maintenance Cream
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Made with clean, natural ingredients
Smells great
Hydrates
Small bottle
Another option that Harper suggests is Hustle Butter, a vegan alternative to traditional tattoo lotions. “It is all-natural and great for the skin, although not as accessible or cheap as the other two options,” says Harper. The product smells amazing and comes in a variety of sizes for everything from small line art to the heavy blackwork. Hustle Butter moisturizes and seals the ink to keep it looking new and feeling soft even after it’s healed.
Price at time of publish: $22
Active Ingredients: Shea, mango, and aloe butters | Skin Type: All | Size: 5 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Gentle
Stories & Ink Tattoo Care Aftercare Cream
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Courtesy of Amazon
Unscented
Contains vitamin E
Hydrating formula
Small bottle
The last thing you want to apply to a fresh tat is something harsh, and this aftercare cream from Stories & Ink is extra gentle. Not only is it fragrance-free, paraben-free, and hypoallergenic, but it contains a soothing, fatty acid-rich blend of panthenol, bisabolol, and vitamin E meant to help calm inflammation and deeply moisturize the skin. It certainly doesn’t hurt that it’s also vegan and cruelty-free.
Price at time of publish: $19
Active Ingredients: Glycerin, hydroxystearic/linolenic/oleic polyglycerides | Skin Type: All | Size: 2 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Soothing
Mad Rabbit Repair Soothing Gel
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Courtesy of Amazon
Cooling feel
Contains vitamin C
Helps with itching
Can dry a little sticky
If you’ve been tattooed before, then you know that your skin doesn’t necessarily feel the greatest post-tattoo session. That’s why you’ll love this soothing, cooling gel from Mad Rabbit to gently calm and heal your freshly inked (err, punctured) skin. It contains aloe vera, a known skin soother that’s rich in antioxidants and stimulates cell regeneration, as well as reparative vitamin C and argan oil.
Price at time of publish: $22
Active Ingredients: Shea and cocoa butters | Skin Type: All | Size: 3.4 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Water-Based
H2Ocean Aquatat Moisturizer
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Unscented
Moisturizing
Eco-friendly packaging
Small bottle
H2Ocean Aquatat is a water-based and petroleum-free lotion that promises to create a protective skin barrier that is perfect for all skin types, including sensitive. It’s fragrance-free and anti-inflammatory, and reviews say it helps accelerate your ink’s healing period. Aquatat won’t stick to your skin, but it will leave your tat looking almost as pretty as new.
Price at time of publish: $13
Active Ingredients: Petrolatum | Skin Type: All | Size: 1.75 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: No | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Color-Enhancing
Tattoo Goo Balm
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Won't clog pores
Helps relieve chapped, dry skin
No petroleum
Small bottle
Having been on the market for ten years, Tattoo Goo lotion is another well-known aftercare product recommended by many artists. Rich in Panthenol (Vitamin B5), it promises to keep your ink moisturized, prevent scabbing, and speed up healing—all without clogging up your pores. Also nice? Tattoo Goo is also meant to help make colors more vivid and is dermatologist tested for your assurance.
Price at time of publish: $7
Active Ingredients: Olive oil, cocoa butter | Skin Type: All | Size: 0.75 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Natural
After Inked Tattoo Moisturizer and Aftercare Lotion
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No petroleum
Hydrating formula
Helps enhance tattoo vibrance
Contains alcohol
After Inked is enriched with grape seed oil to provide an extremely moisturizing effect on your new tats. It’s a daily skin product that won’t stick to your clothes and that will naturally help your ink—both new and old—look healthier and better than ever. If you’re looking for a natural aftercare product, After Inked is non-petroleum based, paraben-free, fragrance-free, vegan, cruelty-free, and gluten-free, so you can be certain it fits your needs and still works wonders on your tattoos.
Price at time of publish: $22
Active Ingredients: Grape seed oil, glycerin | Skin Type: All | Size: 3 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Oil
Nutiva Virgin Coconut Oil
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Contains pure coconut oil
Multipurpose product
Inexpensive per ounce
No other special ingredients added
If you want to be certain your lotion choice is completely all-natural, consider reaching for pure coconut oil. Although it has a seemingly infinite number of uses, it’s also the perfect product for tattoo aftercare due to its reputation for treating wounds and other skin irritants. If you decide to go with coconut oil, make sure you use a clean utensil (or wear gloves) when applying to avoid exposing your ink to any potentially harmful bacteria.
Price at time of publish: $7
Active Ingredients: Coconut oil | Skin Type: All | Size: 15 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Stick
People Of Substance All-Natural Tattoo Balm Stick
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Courtesy of People of Substance
Convenient for travel
No synthetic fragrance
A little goes a long way
Could be more hydrating
This convenient tattoo healing stick is great for healing fresh tattoos and preserving your older ones. Packed with nutrient-rich grape seed, sweet almond, and argan oils, the ultra lightweight formula promises to help soothe and heal the skin while enhancing your tattoo’s lines and color. Pop it in your bag to apply it on the go, just make sure you clean any healing tattoos first.
Price at time of publish: $26
Active Ingredients: Caprylic/capric triglyceride, grape seed oil | Skin Type: All | Size: 0.5 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Multitasker
Dr. Rogers RESTORE Healing Balm - Winter Stone
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Courtesy of Amazon
Super hydrating
Short, simple ingredient list
No petroleum
Expensive for a small bottle
Consider this healing balm the ultimate multitasker. It can be used to heal and soothe dry skin and lips, eczema rashes, and burns and scrapes, and also makes a great quick fix for taming flyaways and unruly eyebrows. It’s also especially nice for healing a fresh tat. The simple formula contains only castor oil and glycerin meant to help draw moisture to the skin while repairing damage, and doesn’t contain any unnecessary fillers or fragrance. It’s no wonder this one is backed by celebrity tattoo artist Winter Stone.
Price at time of publish: $30
Active Ingredients: Castor oil | Skin Type: All | Size: 0.5 fl. oz | SPF: None | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Final Verdict
When it comes to the very best products for healing tattoos, we’re giving top honors to the classic Aquaphor Healing Ointment. Highly recommended by many tattoo artists, it absorbs the skin’s natural moisture while creating a protective (but breathable) barrier over your new ink. If you’re looking for a product that’s specifically formulated for tattoos, Tattoo Goo is another classic that keeps your tattoo moisturized, prevents scabbing, speeds up healing, and keeps colors vivid.
Meet the Expert
The tattoo-artist known as Olive, owns and operates the Oregon-based tattoo studio Damn Zippy.
Harper Rose is a Melbourne-based hand-poke artist behind the studio Pocaharper.
What to Look For in a Tattoo Lotion
Naturally-Derived Ingredients
Rose recommends looking for tattoo aftercare products with naturally-derived ingredients. “They tend to have anti-inflammatory and healing properties that are healthier for your skin than those of non-organic ingredients. They also don’t contain synthetics and chemicals that may cause irritation to the tattoo.” A fresh tattoo is essentially an open wound and will feel quite irritated following your session, so anti-inflammatory, non-irritating properties are a major plus.
You can’t go wrong with a pure product like Nutiva Virgin Coconut Oil, which can be used for a slew of different purposes in addition to healing a fresh tattoo.
Tubes or Dispensable Packaging
When it comes to how your aftercare product is packaged, Olive recommends reaching for products that come with a dispenser (or, alternatively, a squeezable tube). “Something you have to continuously dip your hand into may harbor bacteria from the hands.” That doesn’t mean balms and creams that come in a pot are a no-go, just be sure to thoroughly wash your hands with soap and warm water before scooping out any product.
Fragrance-Free
Some of the aftercare products on this list do contain some fragrance, but both Olive and Rose recommend avoiding fragrance if possible, especially if the tattoo is extremely fresh or if your skin is on the sensitive side. “It can irritate the tattoo, which can affect the healing process,” says Rose.
How We Researched & Tested
To compile this list, our team of editors and contributors spent hours researching the best products on the market in this category, evaluating their key features—like ingredients, shade range, or design—in addition to reviews from customers and other trusted sources. Our team also incorporated their own personal experiences testing products in their own lives. We then used these insights from our research and testing to assign a star rating from one to five (five being the best; one being the worst) to certain products on the list.
According to our Diversity Pledge, 15% of products in our newly-published market roundups will feature Black-owned and/or Black-founded brands. At the time of publishing, we were not able to find any tattoo lotions from a Black-owned and/or Black-founded business. If you know of one we should consider, please email us at contact@byrdie.com and we will evaluate the product ASAP.
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