Tattoo, tattooing, and permanent makeup: three different things

Q: What's the difference between tattoo, tattooing, and permanent makeup?

Tattooing and permanent makeup are the same thing. "Tattooing" is the old word, "permanent makeup" came later and sounds softer. Masters use both terms, and clients get confused There's also body tattooing — sometimes the name for a light pigment on the body that lasts a couple of years. This request is rare, and a search for it often leads to regular tattoo artists

A client writes "I want eyebrow tattooing" to a tattoo artist who only works on bodies — and both waste their time. People mix up tattoo, tattooing, and permanent makeup so often that they book the wrong master. The difference is simple: depth, duration, and ink

What's the difference between tattoo, tattooing, and permanent makeup?

	tattoo	tattooing and permanent makeup
Depth	deep layers of skin	top layer
Duration	for life	usually one to three years
Ink	permanent pigment	pigment the body clears gradually
Where it's done	body, arms, back	eyebrows, eyelids, lips
Who does it	tattoo artist	permanent makeup artist, often at a beauty salon

Tattooing and permanent makeup are the same thing. "Tattooing" is the old word, "permanent makeup" came later and sounds softer. Masters use both terms, and clients get confused

There's also body tattooing — sometimes the name for a light pigment on the body that lasts a couple of years. This request is rare, and a search for it often leads to regular tattoo artists

What should you ask a master before booking?

Which pigment, whose brand. A master should name the brand without hesitating
Disposable needles get opened in front of you. That's how it works everywhere things are done right
How long this specific pigment lasts on your skin type
What's included in the price: touch-up after a month is often billed separately
Ask to see healed work. Fresh work looks brighter than it will a month later

Why do prices vary so much?

The same line item, "eyebrows," can cost three times more at the master next door. There are usually three reasons: the pigment, the master's experience, and whether touch-up is included. A cheap price without touch-up often ends up costing more, because you'll need the touch-up anyway

How do you choose if you know nothing about this?

Look at healed work and the number of reviews. Star ratings in a directory won't help you: we looked at ratings for 49,038 businesses in Kazakhstan, and three out of four score 4.5 or higher. One in six has five reviews or fewer, and that rating rests on three people

Write to two or three masters and compare how they answer. A master who asks about your skin and past procedures usually works more carefully too

Where the ratings data comes from

Open 2GIS directory, 49,038 active businesses in Kazakhstan's beauty and health categories, counted on August 2026