30 Meaningful Mother/Daughter Tattoo Ideas to Celebrate Your Bond Forever
Show your mother or daughter how much you love her. Permanently.
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It’s a tradition that not every family can get behind, but if you have a brave mom, you might be able to convince her to get matching ink this year for Mother’s Day. It’s an easier sell if you can come to her with some options for Mom tattoo designs, though. These matching mother/daughter tattoo ideas are meaningful, cute, and perfectly way to (permanently) show off your bond forever.
The type of design you pick has a lot to do with the type of mom you have. Minimalist tattoos are trendy, so if you have a mom who’s on the fence, you can go for a simple, one-color line drawing. If there’s a passion you both share — a book, song, movie, or TV show — you can always get one of the lines or lyrics tattooed on yourselves. You can either choose the same words, or have one of you start the line or lyric and have the other one complete it. Elephants are often incorporated into mother/daughter tattoos because of the way mama elephants care so openly for their babies. (And you have to love those hugging trunks!) Or if you’re getting siblings in the action, you can all pick one motif — a word, a shape, or a color — and each do different, individualized takes on the same theme. Here, some inspiration to get you started.
Gilmore Girls
Channel your inner Rory and Lorelai with this adorable message. Just like in the theme song, say "Where you lead, I will follow." It's beyond adorable that this woman's daughter finished the verse in her complementary tattoo.
Sweet Sunrises
She's your sunshine, so why not commemorate your love with a rising sun? These mother-daughter tattoos are slightly rustic and completely timeless.
Stack of Books
Voracious readers, rejoice. If you two are constantly talking about your favorite books, band together with these simple wrist tattoos to share your love for a good read (and each other, of course).
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Wishbones
For those feeling extra lucky for their mom or daughter, celebrate your bond with a simple and delicate wishbone design.
Mama Bear and Her Cubs
We can hardly *bear* the cuteness in these matching tattoos. However many "cubs" you have, remind them that you'll always be their mama bear.
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Minimalist Knots
Minimalism is all the rage right now, whether you're talking home organization or tattoos. We're in love with these minimalist knot tattoos on the mother and daughter's arms. When you take a closer look, it looks like a mother holding a child. Cute!
Geometric Cats
This mom and daughter decided to celebrate the latter's 18th birthday with matching geometric cat tattoos. How purr-fect!
Whimsical Flowers
We're big fans of flowers, and these stunning mother-daughter flower tattoos are no exception.
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Inspiring Ravens
These gorgeously detailed ravens are a meaningful and bold way for mothers and daughters to show some solidarity.
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Hearts with Semicolons
The semicolon on the wrist is a popular tattoo among people who struggle with mental health, and it serves as a reminder that their story will continue even through periods of darkness. Adding a heart and making it a mother-daughter symbol makes it that much more powerful.
Pinky Promise
It doesn't get cuter than this wrist tattoo of two hands making a pinky promise, with the phrase "Like Mother, Like Daughter" split between the two arms.
Lotus Flowers
The lotus flower carries lots of symbolism, making it a perfect mother-daughter tattoo. It's been associated with purity, rebirth, beauty, and faith throughout different cultures. Plus, it's absolutely gorgeous.
Promise of Forever
This cute design, planned for Mom's birthday, features a pinky-promise that's guaranteed to last forever.
Life and Purpose
These tattoos mirror each other perfectly, with the phrase "She gave me life" on the daughter's foot and "She gave me purpose" on Mom's.
Matching Hearts
Sometimes, a sweet and simple heart design is all you need. Let your love for each other speak for itself.
Coordinating Arrows
Here's an idea: You can get the same tattoo, but they don't have to be in the exact same spot. It's the tat equivalent of not being too matchy-matchy.
Bicycles
Mother or daughter, young or old, who wouldn't want a sweet bike tattoo? This pair chose to get the same bike, but in different colors with different details.
Always
If you're a pair of mother/daughter Potterheads, you can also get matching versions of this Harry Potter-inspired tattoo. After all, the quote was about Lily Potter, Harry's mother.
Elephants
Elephants are a recurring motif in mother/daughter tattoos, because elephant moms are known to be very affectionate and caring toward their young. These have sweet entwined trunks.
Simple Elephants
If you don't want to go with a realistic elephant design, you can always opt for the cuter, cartoonier version. The heart in the middle of the trunks is the perfect finishing touch.
Blake Bakkila has been writing about everything from pop culture to lifestyle products for more than eight years. Her work has appeared on GoodHousekeeping.com, WhattoExpect.com, Health.com, and in the print and digital versions of Real Simple and People.
Marisa (she/her) has covered all things parenting, from the postpartum period through the empty nest, for Good Housekeeping since 2018; previously, she wrote about parents and families at Parents and Working Mother. She lives with her toy-collecting husband and daughter in Brooklyn, where she can be found helping out her team at bar trivia or posting about movies on Twitter and Bluesky.
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