70 Gangster Quotes to Teach You the Workings of the World

If you’re a fan of movies like The Godfather, you’ll enjoy this collection of the most savage gangster quotes!

Gangsters are what we call individuals who are members of a criminal organization. They have their own hierarchy, and they follow their own rules.

The world of gangsters, mobs, or the mafia is so different from ours, and perhaps this is why we’re so curious about how their world works. Given that, many movies and books allow us to understand their way of life better, albeit we only get to cover the tip of the iceberg!

Pop culture has produced many names we’re all familiar with, like Don Vito Corleone and Michael Corleone from The Godfather. We also have Henry Hill and Tommy DeVito from Goodfellas, Tony Montana from Scarface, and more!

Like all these movies, gangsters don’t fail to teach us a lesson or two about life. Their attitude and mindset are on a different ballgame!

If you’re curious about what you can learn from the people who rule the world of crime, read on. We’ve got the best gangster quotes from authors, characters, rappers, and more!

And don’t forget to check out these Scarface quotes.

Best Gangster Quotes

1. “Gangsters live for the action. The closer to death, the nearer to the heated coil of the moment, the more alive they feel.” – Lorenzo Carcaterra

2. “As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster. To me, being a gangster was better than being president of the United States.” – Henry Hill

3. “I am an undisputed gangster. To me, that means playing by my own rules.” – Katherine Ryan

4. “There’s no such thing as good money or bad money. There’s just money.” – Lucky Luciano

5. “Every human being has a bit of gangster in him.” – Binyavanga Wainaina

6. “Any distraction tends to get in the way of being an effective gangster.” – Terence Winter

7. “A team is where a boy can prove his courage on his own. A gang is where a coward goes to hide.” – Mickey Mantle

8. “No gangster is ever happy when he’s at peace. The main reason he’s in the business is to eliminate his enemies.” – Lorenzo Carcaterra

9. “Listen to me very carefully. There are three ways of doing things around here: the right way, the wrong way, and the way that I do it. You understand?” – Ace Rothstein

10. “A true gangster can smell out a person’s strengths and weaknesses in a matter of minutes, but what they can sense most of all, what their bodies are most attuned to, is the scent of fear.” – Lorenzo Carcaterra

Savage Gangster Quotes Packed With Lessons

11. “I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse.” – Don Vito Corleone

12. “Everybody’s a gangster until a gangster walks in the room.” – Anonymous

13. “Keep your friends close but your enemies closer.” – Michael Corleone

14. ”You can get much further with a kind word and a gun than you can with just a kind word.” – Al Capone

15. “All I have in this world is my balls and my word, and I don’t break them for no one.” – Tony Montana

16. “Revenge is a dish best served cold.” – Don Vito Corleone

17. “They feared me because I feared nothing.” – Lydia Lunch

18. “I asked God for a bike, but I know God doesn’t work that way. So, I stole a bike and asked him for forgiveness.” – Michael Corleone

19. “I never lie because I don’t fear anyone. You only lie when you’re afraid.” – John Gotti

20. “There are only murderers in this room! Michael! Open your eyes! This is the life we choose, the life we lead. And there is only one guarantee: none of us will see heaven.” – John Rooney

Real Gangster Quotes That You Should Reflect On

21. “What do you mean, ‘gangsters?’ It’s business.” – Abraham Polonsky

22. “You can always tell the winners at the starting gate. You can always tell the winners, and you can tell the losers.” – Noodles

23. “I don’t like violence, Tom. I’m a businessman. Blood is a big expense.” – Sollozzo

24. “Be careful who you call your friends. I’d rather have 4 quarters than 100 pennies.” – Al Capone

25. “Everybody who comes from the gangster life—they want what that man in the suburbs wants. Nice family. Nice house. Nice cars. Bills paid. Kids in school. Food on the table. Nothing more.” – Ice Cube

26. “That’s basically the gangster code. Just be yourself. Just be you, dog. The easiest way to get your card plucked around a gangster is to be a fake. If we feel like you’re trying too hard, if you’re trying to act like you’re from the street, you’re in trouble.” – Ice-T

27. “Some of your worst gangsters are guys who were very low-key.” – Mickey Rourke

28. “The gangster is the man of the city, with the city’s language and knowledge, with its queer and dishonest skills and its terrible daring, carrying his life in his hands like a placard, like a club.” – Robert Warshow

29. “And remember, where you have a concentration of power in a few hands, all too frequently, men with the mentality of gangsters get control. History has proven that.” – Lord Acton

30. “I didn’t have to pour it on, but I wanted a reputation. I wanted to be known as the smartest, youngest, and toughest hood.” – Morris Rudensky

Short Gangster Quotes

31. “I’m a gangster, and gangsters don’t ask questions.” – Lil Wayne

32. “Mafia is the best example of capitalism we have.” – Marlon Brando

33. “Once a gangster, always a gangster.” – Gary Glasberg

34. “The classy gangster is a Hollywood invention.” – Orson Welles

35. “You need more than guts to be a good gangster. You need ideas.” – Rocket

36. “The mafia is a question every time an Italian raises his head.” – Mario Cuomo

37. “If you find a trustworthy friend like Gustavo, you will be rich like Pablo.” – Anonymous

Gangster Quotes About Money

38. “Playing the game, and unfortunately, playing the gangster game is very profitable.” – Quincy Jones

39. “Behind every successful fortune, there is a crime.” – Anonymous

40. “The lawyer with the briefcase can steal more money than the man with the gun.” – Mario Puzo

41. “From now on, nothing goes down unless I’m involved. No blackjack, no dope deals, no nothing. A nickel bag gets sold in the park, I want in. You guys got fat while everybody starved on the street. Now it’s my turn.” – Frank White

42. “There’s too much money out there to be hating or stressing on how someone else is getting paid.” – Anonymous

43. “Getting money and taking care of your family—that’s gangsters’ ese.” – Anonymous

Cold Gangster Quotes for a Glimpse of Their Warnings and Threats

44. “I don’t wanna kill anybody. But if I gotta get out that door, and you’re standing in my way, one way or the other, you’re gettin’ outta my way.” – Mr. Pink

45. “Somebody messes with me, I’m gonna mess with him.” – Al Capone

46. “Who cares about sh*t people say that they don’t have the balls to say to your face?” – Tony Soprano

47. “Don’t mistake my kindness for weakness. I am kind to everyone, but when someone is unkind to me, weak is not what you are going to remember about me.” – Al Capone

48. “I’m not mad; I’m proud of you. You took your first pinch like a man, and you learned the two greatest things in life: never rat on your friends and always keep your mouth shut.” – Jimmy Conway

49. “War is a thug’s game. The thug strikes first and harder. He doesn’t go by the rules, and he isn’t afraid of hurting people.” – Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Gangsta Quotes to Raise Your Energy

50. “Thug life hit me like the Holy Ghost.” – Tupac Shakur

51. “Gangsta rappers can’t fight, so they rap about guns.” – Sean Price

52. “In my world, of course, it don’t matter. You could be a gangster with a dress; you could be a gangster with baggy pants.” – Young Thug

53. “Shoot first, ask questions last. That’s how these so-called gangsta’s last.” – Waka Flocka Flame

Gangster Quotes About Their Loyalty for the Ones They Love

54. “Blood makes you related, and loyalty makes you family.” – Anonymous

55. “Loyalty is neither gray; it is black and white. You are either loyal completely, or you are not loyal at all.” – Anonymous

56. “I’ll do whatever it takes to protect her. I’d take down the whole Chicago PD if I had to. I’d murder every man in this city, one by one.” – Sophie Lark

57. “When you love someone, you’ve gotta trust them. There’s no other way. You’ve got to give them the key to everything that’s yours. Otherwise, what’s the point? And for a while, I believed that’s the kind of love I had.” – Ace Rothstein

58. “Some say life is a game that means love is a casino.” – Kevin Gates

59. “A gangster must always be prepared to kill a friend. It is one of the many open secrets of the business since it is the truest test of his ability to rule and command the respect of his crew.” – Lorenzo Carcaterra

60. “A guy told me one time, don’t let yourself get attached to anything you are not willing to walk out on in 30 seconds flat if you feel the heat around the corner.” – Neil McCauley

Gangster Captions for Instagram

61. “My lips are the gun; my smile is my trigger; my kisses are the bullets. Label me a killer.” – Anonymous

62. “Attitude is attitude, whether you’re a West Coast gangster or East Coast gangster, you know?” – Paul Walker

63. “When I say I’m going gangster, I’m working really hard at something.” – Lisa Lampanelli

64. “I’ve got songs that’ll make a gangster cry.” – E-40

65. “Every man is a mob, a chain gang of idiots.” – Jonathan Nolan

66. “A thug only understands you when you speak his language.” – Alexander Lukashenko

Funny Gangster Quotes That’ll Make You Think Twice

67. “Alright, you proved your point. You broke into my vault. Congratulations, you’re a dead man.” – Terry Benedict

68. “The only difference between the government and the mafia is that the mafia actually turns a profit.” – Anonymous

69. “A gangster doesn’t think of himself as a hustler. I assume he thinks of himself as a businessman.” – Delroy Lindo

70. “You can subdivide human beings into three classes: those billed to death, those who are worried to death, and those who are bored to death.” – Anonymous

Did You Find Your Favorite Savage Gangster Quotes From This Collection?

The world of gangsters is alien to most people. After all, what else do we know apart from their crimes, violent tendencies, and hierarchy?

In truth, books and movies don’t even scratch the surface of what they’re all about. However, they still provide an excellent example of lessons we can learn from them.

Firstly, we learn that there is a sacrifice and a price to pay for the power, money, and influence they hold. Yes, they seem to rule their worlds, but at what cost?

Their lives are in constant danger, and they’ll never know when they’ll take their last breath. What’s even more heartbreaking is that people will target their loved ones to hurt them; this alone is one of the highest prices they’d have to pay to remain at the top.

Fear is what keeps their world going. While it’s scary, this is also how gangsters teach us about the importance of loyalty and love.

Gangsters might appear violent on the outside, but they still teach us lessons about what we should focus on in life. With that, we hope we were able to give you new insights into this way of life through the collection above!

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