While styles and trends come and go in the world of permanent body art, one constant factor in all tattoos is pain. Tattoos hurt. Whether it’s the first tattoo or the fiftieth piece of artwork, once you’re in the chair and that tattoo needle starts buzzing, expect some pain.

However, tattoo shops are offering a variety of different numbing agents to ease the pain and discomfort that goes hand in hand with the tattoo process.

While some old school purveyors of ink feel that the pain of a tattoo is part of the act of earning your tattoo art, plenty of other people love the look of tattoos, just not the pain.

Here we’ll examine the best tattoo numbing creams and what makes them work.

Best Tattoo Numbing Creams

1. Uber Numb Lidocaine Cream

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One product that has earned a solid reputation as a go-to numbing agent for tattoo artists around the country, Uber Numb is a fast-acting topical anesthetic produced by UberScientific LLC.

Utilizing lidocaine as the active ingredient, Uber Numb steps up the average 4% to the FDA non-prescription limit of 5% ensuring that the product effectively reduces sensation in the area of application.

Uber Numb lidocaine tattoo numbing cream does take a little while to kick in and should be applied to the desired area an hour ahead of the scheduled tattoo session. Once applied, this product will typically help with pain relief for about an hour, although some people have claimed that the product continued to work for over three hours.

Uber Numb also utilizes propylene glycol which increases skin penetration and ensures that the deeper nerves in the dermis, where the ink is applied, fully absorb the active ingredient, lidocaine.

Another factor that has added to the appeal and helped make Uber Numb one of the most popular numbing agents among tattoo artists is its non-oily consistency. Other products can leave an area of skin slick, creating a more difficult canvas on which to apply tattoo ink. U