Iron Ore — Minecraft block

Iron Ore

Iron Ore is the mid-game backbone of Minecraft — mine it with a stone pickaxe, smelt the raw iron, and craft tools, armour, buckets and rails.

Block ID minecraft:iron_ore
Mod Vanilla
Game versions
1.21

Description

Iron ore is the second-tier crafting material in Minecraft and the workhorse of mid-game progression. It generates between Y=-64 and Y=320 in the Overworld, with peak density around Y=15 and a smaller secondary peak in mountain biomes above Y=80. A stone pickaxe or better is required to mine it; wooden tools yield nothing. Mining iron ore drops raw iron, which must be smelted in a furnace or blast furnace to produce iron ingots. Iron is required for buckets, anvils, hoppers, minecart rails, shears, flint and steel, iron pickaxes/swords/armour, and dozens of other recipes.

Java & Bedrock Guide

How to get Iron Ore in Minecraft

  1. 1

    Craft a stone pickaxe

    Mine cobblestone with a wooden pickaxe, then craft a stone pickaxe or better. Wooden and golden pickaxes destroy the ore without dropping anything.

  2. 2

    Dig down to Y=16

    Iron ore is most common around Y=16 in the Overworld, with a second peak in mountain biomes above Y=80. Check your Y level on the F3 debug screen.

  3. 3

    Mine the ore to get raw iron

    Break the block to collect raw iron. Below Y=0 you find the deepslate iron ore variant, which is slower to mine.

  4. 4

    Smelt raw iron into ingots

    Place raw iron in a furnace or blast furnace with any fuel. A blast furnace smelts twice as fast, and each unit yields one iron ingot.

Tip

The Fortune enchantment increases raw iron drops, and an Iron Golem farm provides unlimited renewable iron from the mid-game onward.

Used in crafts

Related blocks

Frequently asked questions

Can you craft Iron Ore?

No. Iron ore only generates naturally in the Overworld and cannot be crafted. You obtain it by mining ore blocks with a stone pickaxe or better.

What pickaxe do you need for Iron Ore?

A stone, iron, diamond or netherite pickaxe works. A wooden or golden pickaxe breaks the block but drops nothing.

What does Iron Ore drop?

It drops one piece of raw iron, which you smelt into an iron ingot. The Fortune enchantment can increase the raw iron yield.

Where do you find Iron Ore?

It spawns from Y=-64 to Y=320, peaking around Y=16 and again in mountain biomes above Y=80. Below Y=0 it appears as deepslate iron ore.

Is Iron Ore in Java and Bedrock Edition?

Yes. Iron ore exists in both editions with the same generation rules, and the raw iron drop was introduced in version 1.17.

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