Tagz Tattoo Shop

Tattoo Shop Near Tempe, AZ: Custom Realism at Tagz Tattoo Shop

Custom black & grey realism, sleeves, and large-scale work. Walk-ins welcome, financing available.

  • 4.9 on Google · 88 reviews
  • Free consultations
  • Open since 2025
  • 18+ with a valid photo ID
  • 2735 E Main St #9, Mesa
Call / Text the Shop

4.9 on Google · 88 reviews

Free consultation: tell us your tattoo idea

Consultations are free.

Reviewed and updated August 6, 2026

  • Sun 12–6 · Mon–Thu 12–8 · Fri–Sat 12–10
  • Light rail from Mill Ave
  • Black & grey realism
  • Walk-ins welcome

We are Tagz Tattoo, a short drive east of Tempe at 2735 E Main St, Suite 9 in Mesa, open every day. Custom black and grey realism, sleeves, and large-scale work, with walk-ins taken daily and free consultations for the bigger plans.

Reviews from our Google listing

Read the reviews on Google →

  • Absolutely amazing group of people, and ver knowledgeable. No shortage of talent in the shop,
    Colter CollinsGoogle review
  • I had a great first tattoo experience and met a lot of cool artists
    Orin CFirst tattooGoogle review
  • … Putting a TEAM or Artist together to bring the best work to the Valley. Pairing Up with a TOP barber makes this spot a one stop shop. …
    Chad DunnGoogle review
  • Priscilla is an absolute artist. The detail and quality of her work blew me away, and what really impressed me was how quickly she executed it without sacrificing a single bit of precision. Truly talented.
    Sander AGoogle review

A selection of reviews from the shop’s public Google listing, copied word for word, typos and all.

Recent work from our Mesa shop, near Tempe

Black and grey realism, sleeves, chest pieces and hand work done in the shop. Our owner posts more, healed and fresh, on TikTok and YouTube at @agtattoos.

  • Fine line illustrative calf tattoo, Tagz Tattoo, Mesa, AZ
  • Fine line anime style forearm tattoo, Tagz Tattoo, Mesa, AZ
  • Fine line bat tattoo on the forearm, Tagz Tattoo, Mesa, AZ
  • Fine line jester tattoo on the inner arm, Tagz Tattoo, Mesa, AZ
  • Small black and grey rose tattooed behind the ear at Tagz Tattoo in Mesa, AZ
  • Black and grey Anubis lower leg piece tattooed at Tagz Tattoo in Mesa, AZ
  • Black and grey forearm quarter sleeve, a crescent moon over clasped hands and a blimp reading The World Is Yours, Tagz Tattoo, Mesa, AZ
  • Color realism eye on the forearm beside the black and white reference photo, Tagz Tattoo in Mesa, AZ

Fresh ink always looks crisp. Healed work is what tells you the truth, so scroll @agtattoos before you come in.

Ready to talk through your piece?

Call or Text the Shop or request a free consult
  • Free consultationSit with the artist who would do the work. You pay nothing at the consultation.
  • Same-day walk-insWhen a chair is open, walk in off East Main and get started that day.
  • Get Tatted NOW, Pay LATERFinancing on bigger work. It is a soft pull, so it does not touch your credit score.

Have a reference in mind? Call or text the shop →
or request a free consult

Bring the idea, get a real number

Consults are free, so you hear the figure and the plan before you are on the hook for anything. Same-day walk-ins when a chair is open.

Call or text (480) 670-1037 or request a free consult
Read more about Tattoo Shop Near Tempe, AZ

Is there a good tattoo shop near Tempe, AZ?

We are a short drive from Tempe, in Mesa at 2735 E Main St, Suite 9. We specialize in black and grey realism, sleeves and cover-ups, take walk-ins and booked appointments, and run free consultations seven days a week with financing available. Mesa sits on Tempe's eastern edge, and our door is about 9.9 miles east of Tempe's city center in a straight line. That is the gap between two map points and says nothing about drive time.

Quick answers

Our custom tattoo shop is at 2735 E Main St, Suite 9 in Mesa, AZ, east of Tempe by a short drive. Hourly work starts around $125 and the shop minimum is $150. Free consultations run seven days a week.

  • Do I need an appointment coming from Tempe, or can I walk in? Same-day walk-ins from Tempe work when a chair is open.
  • Who does black and grey realism for clients coming from Tempe? Our owner does. That is his lane and it is the bulk of what we do, for Tempe clients as much as anyone.
  • How many sessions will a sleeve take for a Tempe client? More than one, so plan on several trips from Tempe. The first sitting is usually linework to map the flow, then shading and saturation come in later passes.

We are Tagz Tattoo, a tattoo studio at 2735 E Main St #9, Mesa, AZ 85213.

We provide custom tattoos for clients in Tempe, Arizona.

We specialize in black and grey realism, sleeves, cover-ups and custom tattoo design.

We take walk-ins and booked appointments, and consultations are free.

We tattoo clients aged 18 and over with valid photo ID.

Last updated

Tagz Tattoo for the Tempe crowd

Tempe is a Mill Avenue town. The identity of the place is that walkable ASU strip where people bike or walk to coffee, a show, or a beer instead of driving. Students, faculty, and young professionals set the rhythm, and the whole city bends around the ASU calendar, from game days at Sun Devil Stadium to the turnover every semester.

So Tempe already knows tattoos. Living Canvas has been at 930 S Mill since 1993, right across from campus. Ink and Eagle sits upstairs at 414 S Mill.

Club Tattoo started here on Rural Road and grew into a national name. The bar for ink in this town is high, and people who grew up around Mill know good black and grey when they see it.

We are Tagz Tattoo, 2735 E Main St, Suite 9, in Mesa. The drive from Tempe is short and it is easy. Hop the Loop 202 along the north bank of the Salt River and run east, or take Rural Road down to the US-60.

If you would rather not drive at all, the Valley Metro A Line connects Mill Ave/3rd St with Main Street in downtown Mesa. So you can get most of the way here without a car.

The line ends at Gilbert Road, and we are a short drive east from there, in the Magnificent Mile antique stretch. Parking is easy and the door faces Main.

On the A Line, the Tempe stops after Mill Avenue/3rd Street are Veterans Way/College Avenue and University Drive/Rural, and then the train runs down Apache Boulevard past Dorsey, McClintock, Smith-Martin and Price-101 Freeway. Apache turns into Main Street in Mesa, which has seven stations on Main, Sycamore through Gilbert Road. Valley Metro's S Line streetcar runs three miles and 14 stops through Tempe, past Mill Avenue and the ASU campus, and it meets the A Line at Mill Avenue/3rd Street, so someone near the lake can start on the streetcar. Times are on Valley Metro's site and they change, so look before you go.

AG owns our shop. He started it and put the team together. His work is black and grey realism, and that is what most people come here for.

He posts it on TikTok and YouTube, @agtattoos, healed and fresh both. Watch a little of that before you book, because healed work is the honest measure, not something fresh and swollen an hour off the needle.

A barber shares the building with us, so a tattoo and a fresh cut can happen on one trip. A single Google review puts it as a one stop shop.

It is a big shop too, several rooms, one we call The Big Room. If you are coming over from Tempe for a long sitting, you are not crammed into a corner for it.

The roster shifts month to month, while our owner is always here. Over time Presley, Carlos, Tanner, Priscilla, Steve, Alex, Cam and Eddy move through.

Black and grey realism is the core, and there is color, fine line, and traditional in the building too. Nobody blinks at a full sleeve, a chest piece, a back, or a leg. Because the roster rotates, call first and see who is booking your style before you make the trip.
Color raven and moon tattoo on the upper arm, Tagz Tattoo, Mesa, AZ

Same day from Tempe, or worth a consult

Good to walk in on versus worth booking a consult
Same dayGood to walk in on Plan it outWorth booking a consult
Small to medium black and grey Full and half sleeves
Lettering and script Chest pieces and back pieces
Fine line and simple color Cover-ups and realistic portraits
Anything you can finish in one sitting A specific artist or style you want

How a big piece actually goes for Tempe clients

A large tattoo moves through a few clear stages, and knowing them up front makes the whole thing easier to plan.

  1. Free consult. Sit with the artist who would do the work, not a front desk. Bring references or just the idea, and talk size, placement, and style.
  2. Stencil. The artist draws it up and pulls a stencil. You check the flow in the mirror and move it until it sits right, before anything goes in.
  3. Linework. The first session maps the outline so the piece reads as one thing instead of a stack of separate tattoos crowded together.
  4. Shading and saturation. Later sittings build the depth in passes, with healing time between, so the skin takes each pass clean.

The reason it takes more than one sitting is simple. Skin only takes so much in a day.

Push past that and it heals rough and the ink drops out, and then you are paying to fix it. Spacing the sessions and letting each one heal is how the work holds up.

Placement changes the day too. Over bone and thin skin the needle is sharper. Ribs, inner arm, the elbow ditch, hands, the back of the knee, those bite.

Fleshier spots are easier to sit through. If it is your first tattoo, say so at the consult and we will pick a spot and a size that lets you get through the session without white-knuckling it. First-timers and cover-ups are both normal here, single needle up to full sleeve.

Aftercare in the Arizona heat for Tempe clients

The National Weather Service counts an average of 21 days a year at 110°F or hotter in Phoenix (1991-2020), and a fresh tattoo does not mix well with that heat. Direct sun and the pool both have to wait while it settles. South Tempe has a pool in nearly every backyard and Tempe Town Lake has miles of open water, so staying dry takes some planning.

A new piece needs a couple of weeks before it goes back into the sun or the chlorine. Plan the tattoo around that, not the other way around.

Tempe Town Lake is nearly two miles long and about 1,200 feet wide, and it averages 16 feet deep. Inflatable rubber dams hold the water in the Salt River bed. Rowing regattas run on it, and the swim for Ironman Arizona happens there in November. If you paddle or swim there, book the tattoo well ahead. We tell people to stay out of the pool while a piece heals, and open water is the same story. In July, a fresh piece should not spend the walk back to the car in direct sun.

Black and grey forearm sleeve with a top hatted figure, pocket watch, cards and poker chips, Tagz Tattoo in Mesa, AZ

Prices, deposits and financing for Tempe clients

What you pay comes down to the piece and the artist, so phone us for a real figure. A consult is free. Bring a reference or only an idea, and you hear the number first with nothing owed.

A deposit holds your appointment and then gets subtracted from the balance. Larger work can go through Get Tatted NOW, Pay LATER, which is a soft pull and leaves your credit score alone.

Pay it monthly or every couple weeks. Once you are approved there is no deposit.

Same-day walk-ins when a chair is open. Consults are free, so for a cover-up or a custom idea, come in and we will talk placement first. Hours are Sunday noon to 6, Monday through Thursday noon to 8, and Friday and Saturday noon to 10.

We do private events too. A lot of people say the same thing, that the nerves went away once they were in the chair, and that the place is clean and the crew is professional.

Coming from Tempe

Whether you are a student walking off campus, a professor in one of the old Maple-Ash bungalows, or a family out by Warner Ranch and Corona del Sol, the trip over is the same easy run east. Watch our owner at @agtattoos, call to see who is booking your style, and come get it done. Call (480) 670-1037 or come by 2735 E Main St, Suite 9.

Tattoo shop near Tempe FAQ

Do I have to be 18 to get tattooed at Tagz, driving in from Tempe?
Yes. Tempe clients follow the same rule as everyone else: you must be 18 or older with a valid photo ID. We don't tattoo anyone under 18, even with a parent's consent.
Do you do piercings for Tempe clients?
No. We are a tattoo-only studio, so we don't do piercings of any kind, for Tempe clients or anyone else. For piercings you'll want a dedicated piercing studio.
Do I need an appointment coming from Tempe, or can I walk in?
Same-day walk-ins from Tempe work when a chair is open. For a bigger custom piece or a cover-up, a free consult first is the better move so we can talk placement and see who on the roster is the right fit. The lineup rotates month to month, so call ahead at (480) 670-1037 if you want a specific artist or style.
Who does black and grey realism for clients coming from Tempe?
Our owner does. That is his lane and it is the bulk of what we do, for Tempe clients as much as anyone. Watch his healed and fresh work at @agtattoos on TikTok and YouTube before you book. There is color, fine line, and traditional in the building too, so ask when you call.
How many sessions will a sleeve take for a Tempe client?
More than one, so plan on several trips from Tempe. The first sitting is usually linework to map the flow, then shading and saturation come in later passes. Skin only takes so much in a day, and letting each session heal is what keeps the ink sharp instead of blowing out. Your artist will give you a real plan at the consult.
Can I finance a big piece booked from Tempe?
Yes. We run Get Tatted NOW, Pay LATER, and it works the same for a Tempe booking. It is a soft credit pull, so it will not touch your score, and you pay monthly or every couple weeks. Once you are approved there is no deposit.
What is the aftercare like in the Tempe and Mesa summer heat?
Keep it out of direct sun and out of the pool while it settles, which is roughly a couple of weeks. Phoenix averages 111 days a year at 100°F or hotter (National Weather Service, 1991-2020), so plan your Tempe Town Lake days and sun around the healing, not the other way around.

Getting to the shop from Tempe and the towns nearby

We are at 2735 E Main St #9, Mesa, AZ 85213. The distances below are straight-line, measured between published town-centre coordinates and the shop address, so read them as how far apart the places sit, not as drive time. The roads listed are the main ones on an OpenStreetMap driving route from each town centre to our door.

On an event weekend, check the official Tempe, AZ city website before you leave.

  • Tempe to Scottsdale

    Straight-line distance
    5.6 miles, Tempe centre to Scottsdale centre
    Straight-line distance to the shop
    10.4 miles from Scottsdale to Tagz Tattoo in Mesa
    Roads we run
    Scottsdale to the shop: Scottsdale Road, McKellips Road, Gilbert Road and Main Street
    Landmarks on the way
    Gilbert Road/Main Street light rail station
    Scottsdale tattoo shop page

  • Tempe to Chandler

    Straight-line distance
    10.0 miles, Tempe centre to Chandler centre
    Straight-line distance to the shop
    8.7 miles from Chandler to Tagz Tattoo in Mesa
    Roads we run
    Chandler to the shop: Chandler Boulevard, Gilbert Road, Ray Road and Lindsay Road
    Tattoos for Chandler clients

  • Tempe to Guadalupe

    Straight-line distance
    3.4 miles, Tempe centre to Guadalupe centre
    Straight-line distance to the shop
    11.5 miles from Guadalupe to Tagz Tattoo in Mesa
    Roads we run
    Guadalupe to the shop: US 60 (Superstition Freeway), Gilbert Road and Main Street
    Landmarks on the way
    Gilbert Road/Main Street light rail station

More tattoo services for Tempe clients

More of what we do in Mesa.

Real work, done in-house in Mesa

Custom black and grey, sleeves, chest and hand pieces, all tattooed by our own artists at 2735 E Main St. Come see the room before you book.

4.9★Google rating
88Google reviews
7 daysOpen every day
Call / Text the Shop

Inside our Mesa tattoo studio

A look inside the shop and a few recent pieces. See more, healed and fresh, on TikTok and YouTube at @agtattoos.

  • Main floor of the Tagz Tattoo shop in Mesa, AZMain floor of the Tagz Tattoo shop in Mesa, AZ
  • AG tattooing a client at Tagz Tattoo in Mesa, AZAG tattooing a client at Tagz Tattoo in Mesa, AZ
  • The Big Room at Tagz Tattoo in MesaThe Big Room at Tagz Tattoo in Mesa
  • Black and grey archangel forearm tattooBlack and grey archangel forearm tattoo
  • Private tattoo room at Tagz TattooPrivate tattoo room at Tagz Tattoo
  • Realistic black widow spider leg tattooRealistic black widow spider leg tattoo
  • Tattoo stations inside the Tagz Tattoo studioTattoo stations inside the Tagz Tattoo studio
  • Black and grey clown leg tattoo with cards and cashBlack and grey clown leg tattoo with cards and cash
  • Black and grey butterfly tattoo on the upper armBlack and grey butterfly tattoo on the upper arm

What clients say about Tagz Tattoo in Mesa

4.9★ average from 88 Google reviews

Just had my upper arm done with AG at TAGZ!!! It was an incredible experience. AG is an incredible artist, and was absolutely amazing. I am so happy with my piece. The shop is clean, and well layed out. TAGZ has thought of everything. Amazing experience. I will never go anywhere else for my future work.
Sherrod MartinUpper arm piece by AGGoogle review
Couldn’t say enough good things about this shop. From the environment to the artist, this shop is great. My artist was Eddy and he gave me a tattoo I’ve been waiting to get cause I needed the right person and the right Shop to do it since this piece was very important to me. It came out perfect. Couldn’t ask for a better experience.
Issac BencomoGoogle review
This shop is top notch and full of amazing Artists and you will not be disappointed! ! Yesterday was my 3rd Session with Pricilla to finish my three quarter outdoor arm sleeve. This project a year and half ago and all I had was an idea in my mind and she put it to skin!
Matthew HarveyThree quarter outdoor arm sleeveGoogle review
Best tattoo shop in AZ ! The quality, style and art work is immaculate! I had the pleasure of meeting AG (owner) and his style of work is magnificent. All the artist in shop have their own style so if you looking for talent, go to TAGZ TATTOO. I also noticed AG has a barbershop on the opposite side of the building and the haircuts are very professional and stylish. I would say this tattoo/Barbershop is A1! I highly recommend getting a tattoo from AG or any of the artists in house. Be a part of the family and join AGs movements.
Mark AnthonyGoogle review

Read all 88 reviews on Google →

Driving Directions

Driving directions to Tagz Tattoo from the Tempe area

Our shop sits at 2735 E Main St #9, Mesa, AZ 85213, on East Main just past Lindsay Rd. Tap any card below for turn by turn directions from nearby East Valley towns.

From Scottsdale

Roads we run
Scottsdale Road, McKellips Road, Gilbert Road, Main Street
Landmarks on the way
Gilbert Road/Main Street light rail station
Straight-line distance
10.4 miles to the shop, not a drive time
Our Scottsdale pageGet Driving Directions

From Chandler

Roads we run
Chandler Boulevard, Gilbert Road, Ray Road, Lindsay Road
Straight-line distance
8.7 miles to the shop, not a drive time
Our Chandler pageGet Driving Directions

From Guadalupe

Roads we run
US 60 (Superstition Freeway), Gilbert Road, Main Street
Landmarks on the way
Gilbert Road/Main Street light rail station
Straight-line distance
11.5 miles to the shop, not a drive time
Get Driving Directions

Roads come from an OpenStreetMap route between each town centre and our door. Distances are straight-line, so read them as how far apart the places sit, not as drive time.

Finding the shop in Mesa, and what we work with

We are at 2735 E Main St, Suite 9, Mesa, AZ 85213, in Maricopa County. The suite sits on the East Main corridor a short block west of Lindsay Road, with Val Vista Drive about a mile further east. The door faces Main and parking is out front.

If you are not driving, the Valley Metro light rail runs the length of Main Street and ends at the Gilbert Road station, roughly a mile west of the door, so the last stretch is a short ride or walk east along Main.

  • Aftercare we actually stock. Mad Rabbit foam wash, glide, soothing gel and patches are sold at the front counter, so you can walk out with the same aftercare your artist tells you to use.
  • Shop Pay. The Get Tatted Now, Pay Later plans run on Shop Pay at checkout, which is why the payment split happens on the product page rather than through a separate lender in the shop.
  • Arizona age law. A.R.S. §13-3721 is the statute that governs tattooing anyone under eighteen in this state. We go further than the statute does: eighteen and over with a valid photo ID, no exceptions.
  • Valley Metro. Route and station times for the Main Street line are on the Valley Metro maps and schedules page at valleymetro.org if you are planning the trip in from Tempe or west Mesa.

Ready to book your piece?

4.9 on Google · 88 reviews

Call / Text the ShopRequest a free consult
Call (480) 670-1037Free consult