Tattoo removal · Cost factors

Tattoo removal price in Singapore:
ink colours, size, depth, skin type and staged visits

Medically reviewed by Dr Sin Yong · Last reviewed · Jump to questions

Tattoo removal Singapore price: the short answer

Tattoo removal Singapore price: the fee follows the colours in the ink and the wavelengths they need, the size and location of the tattoo, how dense and deep the ink sits, whether it is layered, scarred or cosmetic, your skin type, and how the staged visits are reviewed. No figure appears here; a written quote follows Dr Sin Yong’s evaluation.

A raised or scarred tattoo is assessed before it is quoted; how a true tattoo removal scar differs from texture or pigment change is explained separately.

Published 20 October 2026 · Reviewed by Dr Sin Yong

Illustrative image for laser tattoo removal — not a patient

How much is tattoo removal? The cost is set by the colours in the ink and the wavelengths they need, the size and location of the tattoo, how dense and deep the ink is, whether it is layered, scarred or cosmetic, your skin type, and how the staged plan is reviewed. Singapore's rules restrict how fees may be advertised, so no figure appears here; a written quote follows Dr Sin Yong's evaluation.

Part of Tattoo Removal →

Key facts
Fee basis
A written quote after the tattoo has been evaluated in person; a photograph cannot show ink depth, density or scarring
Colours
Each ink colour absorbs a different wavelength, so a multi-coloured tattoo may need more than one and takes longer to clear
Size and site
A larger tattoo takes more laser time per visit; some locations clear more slowly than others
Staging
No number of visits is fixed in advance; the plan is revised at each review from how the ink and the skin look
Skin type
Wavelength and energy are chosen for the melanin in your skin, which changes the plan rather than the aim
On this page
  1. Why is there no tattoo removal price figure on this page?
  2. How do ink colours and wavelengths change the fee?
  3. How do size, location, ink density and depth set the quantity?
  4. Does skin type change the plan, and therefore the fee?
  5. How are staged visits quoted, and how should you compare quotes?
  6. Frequently Asked Questions
  7. Related
  8. Speak With Dr Sin Yong
In brief

The tattoo removal price in Singapore follows what the tattoo needs, so no figure is published here. The cost is set by the ink colours and wavelengths, size and location, ink density and depth, your skin type and the staged plan. A photograph cannot show depth or scarring, so a written quote follows Dr Sin Yong's evaluation.

Why is there no tattoo removal price figure on this page?

Singapore's rules for medical advertising restrict how doctors may publish fees, and with laser tattoo removal a figure given before the tattoo has been seen would describe a plan that does not exist. A picosecond laser fragments ink into particles small enough for the immune system to clear between treatments; how many treatments that takes depends on what is in the skin and on the skin itself, and cannot be fixed in advance for any tattoo. Complete clearance cannot be promised either, which is why the quote is built around a staged plan rather than a package. The practice-wide rules are on how fees are quoted.

Illustrative image — Why is there no tattoo removal figure on this page?; not a patient
Illustrative image — not a patient.

How do ink colours and wavelengths change the fee?

Ink colour decides the wavelength, because each colour absorbs light differently. Black and dark blue respond to the longer 1064 nm wavelength and tend to respond most readily. Red, orange and purple absorb the shorter 532 nm wavelength. Green and some blues respond to 785 nm picosecond on the DEKA TORO, and yellow and white are poorly absorbed by most, which is why they are the most difficult to clear. A single-colour black tattoo is planned with one wavelength; a multi-coloured piece may need more than one, and some colours may be expected to lighten rather than clear.

That changes the fee in two ways: more wavelengths in a visit means more laser work per visit, and stubborn colours extend the staged plan. Cosmetic tattoos are a special case. Eyebrow, eyeliner and lip pigments often contain iron oxide or titanium dioxide, which can darken or turn grey under laser, so a small test area is treated and reviewed first, and that test is itemised before any wider treatment is quoted.

“The laser does not remove ink. It fractures it small enough for your immune system to carry away, which is why nobody can honestly quote you a count before the tattoo has been seen.”

Dr Sin YongOn how tattoo removal is quoted

Does T2 Laser Tattoo Removal on the DEKA TORO change the tattoo removal price?

The tattoo removal price follows the plan, and this is how Dr Sin Yong delivers that plan: a staged protocol in which each ink colour is treated at its own wavelength on one platform. Black and dark inks are treated at 1064 nm and red, orange and purple at 532 nm, both with Q-switched nanosecond pulses, and green and blue at 785 nm with picosecond pulses.

So the questions that set the fee are the same ones listed on this page: how many colours the tattoo holds and which wavelengths they need, how large and dense the ink is, where it sits, whether it is layered, scarred or cosmetic, and how your skin type shapes the settings. A single-colour black tattoo needs one wavelength; a multi-coloured piece may need several in a visit. Matching the wavelength to the colour makes removal of a multicoloured tattoo faster than on a single-wavelength laser, but no number of visits is promised, and complete clearance cannot be promised for any tattoo.

How each ink colour behaves is explained on colour tattoo removal, and the protocol itself on T2 Laser Tattoo Removal. A written quote follows the evaluation, as described on how fees are quoted.

How do size, location, ink density and depth set the quantity?

Size is the plainest driver: a larger tattoo takes more laser time at each visit, and the quote is built on the area treated rather than on a flat fee for any tattoo. Location matters too, because some sites clear more slowly and some need more care per pass. Density and depth are what a photograph cannot show: dense professional ink, placed deeply and evenly, is among the hardest cases for any laser, and a cover-up or layered tattoo can hold several pigments at different depths, each responding on its own schedule.

Illustrative image — How do size, location, ink density and depth set the quantity?; not a patient
Illustrative image — not a patient.

Scarring from the original tattooing changes how the ink and the skin behave, and a raised or scarred tattoo is assessed before any plan is made. Small tattoos where a linear scar would be acceptable may be better removed surgically, in which case you are referred to a plastic surgery specialist rather than quoted for laser. Fading before a cover-up is a planned, shorter course than removal and is quoted as such.

What the evaluation findsEffect on the planEffect on the fee
Small, single-colour black tattoo on intact skinOne wavelength, staged, reviewed each timeLeast laser time per visit; the count still follows review
Several colours, or a cover-up over an older tattooMore than one wavelength; layers respond on their own scheduleMore work per visit and a longer staged plan
Cosmetic eyebrow or lip pigmentTest area first, then reviewThe test is itemised before any wider treatment
Raised, scarred or keloid-prone tattoo; small tattoo suited to excisionAssessed first; may be referredNot quoted for laser if surgery is the right route

Does skin type change the plan, and therefore the fee?

The laser has to pass through the melanin in the epidermis to reach the ink, so skin type changes the settings and the pace. In medium and darker skin, including Fitzpatrick III to V, the treated area can temporarily darken, known as post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, or lighten, and lightening can be slow to recover. Wavelength and energy are chosen with that in mind, and the interval between visits is set so that the skin has healed before the next one. Freshly tanned skin, broken or infected skin over the tattoo, pregnancy, recent isotretinoin, photosensitising medicines and a tendency to keloid all change timing or suitability, and are reviewed before a quote is given.

How are staged visits quoted, and how should you compare quotes?

Removal is staged because the body clears fragmented ink slowly and the skin must recover between treatments; treating again too soon raises the risk of scarring and pigment change without clearing more ink. No number of visits is fixed in advance. The plan is revised at each review from how the tattoo and the skin look, so the quote is built around the plan rather than sold as a fixed package.

Not on the quote: packages that fix a count before the tattoo has been seen, tattoo removal creams, which laser replaces here because there is no reliable evidence that they remove ink from the dermis, and any promise of complete clearance. When comparing with a quote from elsewhere, check which laser and wavelengths are named, whether the area or a flat fee is quoted, whether a test area is planned for cosmetic pigment, who performs the treatment, and whether review before each next visit is included. What each visit involves afterwards is on the tattoo removal aftercare page, and the glossary explains the picosecond laser.

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  3. 3. A plan in writingWhat he would do, what he would not, the fee factors, and the option of no treatment.

Every treatment is performed by Dr Sin Yong personally. Singapore Medical Council registered · invited to share his clinical expertise internationally for CLASSYS, DEKA, Fotona, Hironic and Ilooda.

Bring the tattoo uncovered and untanned, and say whether you want it gone or faded for a cover-up. How consultations work.

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Frequently Asked Questions

A tattoo is rarely removed in one session, because the laser only fragments the ink and the body’s immune system clears those fragments gradually between visits. How many visits a tattoo needs cannot be fixed in advance: it depends on the colours, depth, density and location of the ink and on your skin type, and complete clearance cannot be promised. That is why tattoo removal is quoted as a staged plan, not a package.
Laser tattoo removal is usually felt as a sharp snapping or flicking as each pulse lands, and how much it is felt depends on the site, the size and how dense the ink is. Cooling or a topical anaesthetic is used as planned for the size and site of the tattoo and your tolerance. Do not apply numbing products bought yourself before the visit without asking first.
Tattoo removal for appearance is not claimable under MediSave or MediShield Life, and most private insurance plans exclude it. If you have a question about your own policy, check with your insurer before booking. The fee itself is set out in writing after the tattoo has been evaluated, as explained on how fees are quoted.
A photograph shows the colours and the outline, but not how deep or dense the ink sits, whether it is layered, or whether the skin beneath is scarred. Those decide how much laser work each visit needs and how the staged plan is built. Some tattoos are better suited to excision and are referred rather than quoted for laser. A written quote follows an in-person evaluation by Dr Sin Yong.
No figure is given, for two reasons. Singapore’s rules on medical advertising restrict how fees are published, and a number quoted before the tattoo has been seen would describe a plan that does not exist yet. The price depends on the ink colours and the wavelengths they need, the size, location, density and depth of the ink, any layering or scarring, your skin type and how the staged plan is reviewed. A written quote follows the evaluation.

Singapore's rules restrict how fees may be advertised, so no figure is given here. The fee follows the colours and wavelengths needed, the size and location, ink density and depth, layering or scarring, your skin type and how the staged plan is built and reviewed. A written quote follows an in-person evaluation of the tattoo by Dr Sin Yong.

Often, because each colour absorbs a different wavelength. Black and dark blue respond most readily to 1064 nm; red needs 532 nm; green and some blues need other wavelengths; yellow and white are poorly absorbed by most. More wavelengths mean more laser work per visit, and stubborn colours extend the staged plan.

A cover-up or layered tattoo holds several pigments at different depths, each responding on its own schedule, so it usually needs more than one wavelength and a longer staged plan than a single-layer tattoo of the same size. The evaluation looks at layering and any scarring from the original work before a plan is quoted.

It is a different plan rather than a cheaper version of the same one. Fading aims to lighten the tattoo enough for a tattoo artist to cover it, so it is a planned, shorter course than removal. The same factors of colour, density, location and skin type apply, and the tattoo is still evaluated first.

The tattoo removal Singapore price is quoted per visit because ink colour, depth, size and skin type decide how many staged sessions are needed, and that is only clear after the first one or two. Dr Sin Yong examines the tattoo, tests a small area if the ink is coloured, and gives the fee in writing.
References

The Kirby-Desai Scale: A Proposed Scale to Assess Tattoo-removal Treatments. Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology (Kirby W et al.), 2009. source

Laser tattoo removal strategies: Part II: A review of the methods, techniques, and complications involved in tattoo removal. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology (Kassirer S et al.), 2025. source

Picosecond laser. DermNet, 2023. source

About this page: written and medically reviewed by Dr Sin Yong, MBBS (NUS), MRCS (Edinburgh) · Last reviewed 6 November 2026 · Illustrative images only, not patients · Editorial policy

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