But he decided to choose a lion and admitted "it's going to hurt" before booking the session with his pal, celebrity tattooist Kevin Paul.
Ed, 24, already has dozens of tattoos, many of which done by Kevin, from a ketchup bottle to a teddy bear, each marking career high points.
Sharing a snap of his new tattoo today with his 4.5m Instagram followers and 14.8m Twitter fans, Ed wrote: "Halfway and ouch", before adding: "Lion is courtesy of @kp_est78, who puts up with me complaining about the pain