How to Make Tools in Minecraft

PDF download Download Article
PDF download Download Article

This wikiHow teaches you how to create tools like pickaxes and shovels in Minecraft. You can craft tools in all versions of Minecraft, including the computer, mobile, and console editions. To craft tools, you will first need to build a crafting table.

Part 1
Part 1 of 3:

Preparing to Craft Tools

PDF download Download Article
  1. Find a tree, point your cursor at a block of wood below it, and hold down your mouse button until the wood breaks and appears in your inventory.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap and hold the block of wood until it breaks.
    • In Minecraft for consoles, point your cursor at the wood and hold the right trigger until the wood breaks.
  2. Press E on a computer to open your inventory. You should see a small grid in the top-right side of the inventory below the "Crafting" heading.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap ⋯ in the lower-right side of the screen, and tap the crafting table tab on the left side of the screen.
    • On consoles, press X (Xbox) or square (PlayStation).
    Advertisement
  3. Click the wood block to grab it, then click a square in the "Crafting" grid to place the block; you'll see four wood planks appear in the square to the right of the crafting grid.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the wood planks icon, then tap 4 x on the right side of the screen.
    • On consoles, select the wood planks icon, then press A or X .
  4. Click the stack of wood planks, then right-click each square in the crafting grid (four total). You'll see the crafting table appear in the square to the right of the grid.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the crafting table icon, then tap 1 x on the right side of the screen.
    • On consoles, select the crafting table icon, then press A or X .
  5. Press ⇧ Shift while clicking the crafting table to transfer it directly into your inventory's quick-access bar.
    • In Minecraft PE and console editions, crafting the wood planks automatically transfers them into your inventory quick-access bar.
    • If your quick-access bar is full, you can replace one of the quick-access items with another item from your inventory (in this case, the crafting table).
  6. Select the crafting table in your quick-access bar to place it in your hand.
  7. Face the ground, then right-click it. This will place the crafting table on the ground in front of you.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the ground.
    • On consoles, face the ground and press the left trigger.
  8. The resources needed for specific tools are as follows:
    • Pickaxe - Two sticks and three wood, stone, iron, gold, or diamonds.
    • Shovel - Two sticks and one wood, stone, iron, gold, or diamonds.
    • Axe - Two sticks and three wood, stone, iron, gold, or diamonds.
    • Sword - One stick and two wood, stone, iron, gold, or diamonds.
    • Hoe - Two sticks and two wood, stone, iron, gold, or diamonds.
  9. You'll need at least one stick for each tool, though most tools mandate two. To craft four sticks, open your crafting menu, place one wood plank in the bottom row of the crafting grid, and place one wood plank directly above the first wood plank. You'll see a stack of four sticks appear to the right of the crafting grid; move them to your inventory before continuing.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap ⋯ , tap the crafting table tab, tap the stick icon, and tap 4 x on the right side of the screen.
    • On consoles, press X (Xbox) or square (PlayStation), then select the stick icon and press A (Xbox) or X (PlayStation).
  10. Right-click the crafting table on a computer, tap the crafting table on Minecraft PE, or face the crafting table and press the left trigger on consoles. You are now ready to begin crafting your tools.
    11. Advertisement
Part 2
Part 2 of 3:

Crafting Basic Tools

PDF download Download Article
  1. Place one stick each in the bottom-middle and center squares of the crafting table grid, then place the wood, stone, iron, gold, or diamond in the top three squares in the crafting grid.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the pickaxe icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the pickaxe icon, scroll down to your selected material (e.g., wood), and press A or X .
  2. Place one stick each in the bottom-middle and center squares of the crafting table grid, then place one wood, stone, iron, gold, or diamond in the top-center square in the crafting grid.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the shovel icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the shovel icon, scroll down to your selected material (e.g., wood), and press A or X .
  3. Place one stick each in the bottom-middle and center squares of the crafting table grid, then place the wood, stone, iron, gold, or diamond in the top-middle, top-left, and left-middle squares of the crafting grid.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the axe icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the axe icon, scroll down to your selected material (e.g., wood), and press A or X .
  4. Place one stick in the bottom-middle square of the crafting grid, then place the wood, stone, iron, gold, or diamond in the middle and top-middle squares of the crafting grid.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the sword icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the sword icon, scroll down to your selected material (e.g., wood), and press A or X .
  5. Place one stick each in the bottom-middle and center squares of the crafting table grid, then place the wood, stone, iron, gold, or diamond in the top-middle and top-left squares of the crafting grid.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the hooked hoe icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the hoe icon, scroll down to your selected material (e.g., wood), and press A or X .
    6. Advertisement
Part 3
Part 3 of 3:

Crafting Advanced Tools

PDF download Download Article
  1. Advanced tools require additional items, such as iron bars or string, that you may not have if you only just created your first round of basic tools.
  2. You can use buckets to gather water and lava. Place one iron bar each in the left-middle, bottom-middle, and right-middle squares of the crafting grid. You can get iron by mining iron ore with a stone pickaxe or higher, and then smelting it in a furnace.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the bucket icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the bucket icon, and press A or X .
  3. Place one stick each in the top-middle, left-middle, and bottom-middle squares of the crafting grid, then place one string in each of the squares in the far-right column. You can get string by killing spiders.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the bow icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the bow icon, and press A or X .
  4. Place a feather in the bottom middle square, a stick in the center square, and a flint in the top square. Flint is an occasional drop from mining gravel, and feathers come from chickens and other birds.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the arrow icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the bow icon, scroll down to select the arrow icon, and press A or X .
  5. Shears can be used to gather wool from sheep. Place an iron ingot each in the middle-left square and the bottom-middle square of the crafting grid.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the shears icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the shears icon, and press A or X .
  6. You can use flint and steel to start fires. Place an iron ingot in the middle-left square of the crafting grid, then place a flint in the center square.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the flint and steel icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the shears icon, scroll up to the flint and steel icon, and press A or X .
  7. Fishing rods are used for catching fish in any body of water. Place a stick each in the bottom-left, center, and top-right squares, then place string in the right-middle and bottom-right squares of the crafting grid.
    • In Minecraft PE, tap the fishing rod icon, then tap 1 x .
    • On consoles, press RB or R1 to select the "Tools" tab, select the fishing rod icon, and press A or X .
    8. Advertisement


Community Q&A

Search
Add New Question
  • Question
    Why do I need a hoe when I can just get meat?
    Community Answer
    You may want to keep chickens alive for eggs, cows alive for milk, etc., so you can make cake or pumpkin pie, which you will also need a hoe for (wheat/pumpkins).
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 12 Helpful 41
  • Question
    How many minutes till nighttime? How minutes till daytime?
    Community Answer
    A day in Minecraft is only ten minutes, so if you are in survival, get coal and food quickly!
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 6 Helpful 30
  • Question
    Is the elytra in Minecraft 19.0 craftable?
    Banana Head
    Top Answerer
    No, it is found in end cities.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 11 Helpful 21
See more answers
Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Submit
      Advertisement

      Tips

      Tips from our Readers

      The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.
      • When you find diamonds, first make a pickaxe. You can use this to mine other diamond ores, but make sure you use up the other pickaxes to save your new pickaxe. Craft all of the tools, and then when you have more diamonds, make armor. It requires 24 diamonds for full armor and tools. Sticks are for tools as always.
      • To craft a double chest, you will need 2 chests which are made up of 6 wooden planks each.
      • Avoid using gold for tools, use it for clocks and rails instead.
      Submit a Tip
      All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published
      Name
      Please provide your name and last initial
      Submit
      Thanks for submitting a tip for review!
      Advertisement

      Warnings

      • Some resources cannot be mined without a certain type of pickaxe. For example, you can't mine diamond with a cobblestone pickaxe.
        Thanks
        Helpful 2 Not Helpful 0
      Advertisement

      You Might Also Like

      How to
      Make a Chest in Minecraft
      How to
      Make Shears in Minecraft
      How to
      Make Flint and Steel in Minecraft
      How to
      Make a Fishing Rod in Minecraft
      How to
      Make a Sword in Minecraft
      The Ultimate Guide to Making a Map in Minecraft
      How to
      Blow Up TNT in Minecraft
      How to
      Make an Armor Stand in Minecraft
      How to
      Make a TNT Cannon in Minecraft
      How to
      Make a Potion of Swiftness in Minecraft
      How to
      Make a Grindstone in Minecraft to Repair Your Tools
      How to
      Make a Book in Minecraft
      How to
      Use Enchanted Books in Minecraft
      How to
      Make Tripwire Hooks in Minecraft
      Advertisement

      About This Article

      In other languages
      Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 478,216 times.

      Reader Success Stories

      • Molly Bowyer

        Jun 17, 2016

        "Brilliant! I had all the tools I needed in a simple, easy-to-use guide. Cheers, guys."
      Share your story

      Did this article help you?

      Advertisement