Finding the Right Spot: Tips for Locating Safe and Reliable Piercing Studios Near Me

Finding the best piercing spot near you can sometimes be tough with the vast number of piercing spots available. Here are a few things that you should look for when you’re trying to find the best piercing spot near you.

Licensing and Certification

Specific licensing varies by county, but all piercing studios, at minimum, should have a valid business license to operate as well as a current certificate of health from their local health department. In some counties, like Los Angeles, artists are required to keep current registration with their local health department as well. 

These credentials should be posted in a conspicuous place in the lobby or procedure area. Don’t be afraid to ask to see them!

Hygiene and Cleanliness

All studios should spore test their autoclaves on a regular basis and have spore test records available to review at your request. Studios should also have a record of their sterilization cycles and proof that they were successful for each cycle. Your piercer should show you the proof of sterilization, wash their hands before donning gloves, and dispose of used items in a clearly labeled trash can, biohazard container, dirty tool bin, or sharps container after use of each tool. 

Tools should only be opened from their sterile package immediately before use and disposed of in the trash or a dirty tool bin designated for them after use. Needles should be disposed of immediately following a single use, and all tools that are re-sterilised are thoroughly cleaned of debris and body fluids, sanitized, dried, and then packaged and sterilized using an autoclave. 

Experience and Training

A professional piercer, ideally, will have completed an apprenticeship underneath a senior piercer until they have demonstrated competence. Part of being a piercer is being able to help you heal, so your piercer should have a good understanding of ideal placement for your anatomy, proper angles, appropriate jewelry styles, etc. Your piercer should also be able to assist you with any problems that arise with your piercing.

Assessing the expertise of a piercer before getting pierced can be tricky! One of our recommendations is to look for photos of healed piercings that the piercer has performed. Don’t be afraid to ask questions about the piercing that you want to get, and ask about their comfort level if you seem uncertain. 

Online Reviews and Social Media

When it comes to online reviews, the biggest thing to consider is whether or not others have had a good experience. If you see a lot of negative reviews pointing to poor business practices, that’s probably not a great body piercing shop for you to visit.

As far as social media goes, you want to make sure to see quality implant grade jewelry. Good angles are important too. What that means is that the jewelry will lay parallel to the skin that is pierced in most cases, and that the part of the piercing that goes through the skin will be perpendicular in most cases. It’s also good to see a mix of new as well as healed piercings. This shows that the piercer’s clients are willing to come back for assistance with long term healing and to get more piercings done! 

Word of Mouth

In addition to quality work with good jewelry, good manners and customer service are incredibly important! We feel best recommending a professional experience based on how supported we feel through the process, and it’s important to feel safe and supported when receiving a piercing. 

A couple of things that our clients usually call out are customer service, support through the healing process, bedside manner, cleanliness, clarity on aftercare, and willingness to answer questions and explain answers when asked. These are all things that we see highlighted in reviews for popular, reputable piercers. 

Safety Practices and Aftercare

The most important safety practice that should be discussed during a consultation is lifestyle. We always recommend considering lifestyle because for most ear piercings specifically, it is very important to avoid trauma. We recommend that anyone who plays sports or rides motorcycles with helmets abstain during the initial healing process. To avoid a higher risk of infection, we also suggest keeping the healing piercing away from shared bodies of water for the first 6-8 weeks, as well as other peoples body fluids, pet dander and saliva, and dusty environments. 

Studios should support you through the healing process, including consulting on concerns when necessary, checkups to ensure healing is going well, jewelry changes to better support healing, and support in changing the jewelry even after the piercing is healed. 

Studio Visit

Potential piercees should look for current business licensing and a current health department certificate at least during their first visit to a piercing studio. Some counties require individual piercers to register, so if you don’t see any kind of certification, don’t be afraid to ask! All studios should also have an autoclave or equivalent, such as a statim, to sterilize your tools and jewelry used for your procedure and make sure everything is safe for use. 

Specialty Piercings

There are no special certifications for specialty or advanced piercings in most regions, so it’s important to do your research and talk to your piercer at length about healing concerns and anatomy when it comes to advanced piercings.

When it comes to customization, we feel that it’s great to have more options to maximize the ability to curate to your tastes, and most people appreciate having more options.

Using Technology to Find Studios

There are a few effective online tools or apps for finding highly-rated piercing studios. We love the “Find a member” tool on Safepiercing.org! Every studio and member promise to carry and use implant grade jewelry for piercings, and have a high standard for aseptic technique and cleanliness. We also love using Google, Yelp, and Instagram!

We love when clients use these tools to cross-reference reputable studios. You can look at Google and Instagram photos and check for jewelry quality and how frequent and recent reviews are, look for pictures of the piercings you want fresh and healed on their Instagram, and use Instagram to browse their jewelry options and look at individual piercer’s work on instagram to see if there is anyone specific I feel would fit my needs. 

Regulatory Compliance and Safety

Any reputable studio should comply with all local laws and standards governing body piercing, ideally! At minimum, the studio should have a valid business license and approval to operate by the local health authority. 

One of the biggest red flags when you’re choosing a piercing studio is poor jewelry quality! Some studios unfortunately do not invest in implant jewelry and will carry externally threaded jewelry, or use an inappropriate jewelry style for fresh piercings. Keep an eye out and don’t be afraid to do research and ask questions.