Minecraft Crafting Recipes for Beginners: Tools, Armor, Torches and More

Crafting is how you turn raw blocks into tools, armor and everything else in Minecraft. This page lists the recipes you will use in your first few days of survival, with the exact layout and how many items each one makes. If you have just started a new world, pair it with our first night survival guide, which tells you the order to craft things in.

How Crafting Works

Your inventory has a small 2 by 2 crafting grid. A crafting table gives you the full 3 by 3 grid, which most recipes need. Some recipes are shaped (the position of each item matters) and some are shapeless (any position works).

• Both Java and Bedrock have a recipe book that shows recipes you have unlocked and can fill the grid for you.
• In the layouts below, rows are written top to bottom, and “empty” means leave that slot blank.

Wood Basics

• Planks: 1 log anywhere in the grid makes 4 planks.
• Sticks: 2 planks stacked vertically make 4 sticks.
• Crafting table: 4 planks filling the 2 by 2 grid.
• Chest: 8 planks around the edge of the 3 by 3 grid, center empty.
• Door: 6 planks in two columns, makes 3 doors.
• Ladder: 7 sticks in an H shape, makes 3 ladders.
• Boat: 5 planks in a U shape.

Tool Recipes

Every tool uses sticks for the handle and one material for the head. The material can be planks, cobblestone, iron ingots, gold ingots or diamonds.

• Pickaxe: 3 material across the top row, 2 sticks down the middle column.
• Axe: 2 material in the top row and 1 below on the same side, with 2 sticks down the middle.
• Shovel: 1 material on top, 2 sticks below it.
• Sword: 2 material stacked, 1 stick below.
• Hoe: 2 material in the top row, 2 sticks down the middle.
• Shears: 2 iron ingots placed diagonally.
• Fishing rod: 3 sticks in a diagonal line and 2 string hanging down from the top stick.

Upgrade from wood to stone as fast as you can. Stone tools are cheap and last much longer.

Armor Recipes

Armor can be made from leather, iron ingots, gold ingots or diamonds. The shapes are the same for every material:

• Helmet: 5 material: a full top row plus one on each side of the middle row.
• Chestplate: 8 material: everything except the top middle slot.
• Leggings: 7 material: a full top row and both side columns.
• Boots: 4 material: two on each side of the bottom two rows.

A full iron set costs 24 iron ingots. Make the chestplate first, because it gives the most protection.

Survival Essentials

• Furnace: 8 cobblestone around the edge, center empty. Cobbled deepslate and blackstone work too.
• Torch: 1 coal or charcoal on top of 1 stick, makes 4 torches.
• Bed: 3 wool across the top row and 3 planks across the middle row.
• Bucket: 3 iron ingots in a V shape.
• Shield: 6 planks with 1 iron ingot in the top middle slot.
• Bow: 3 sticks in a curve on one side and 3 string in a line on the other side.
• Arrow: 1 flint on top, 1 stick in the middle and 1 feather at the bottom, makes 4 arrows.
• Compass: 4 iron ingots around 1 redstone dust in the center.

Food Recipes

• Bread: 3 wheat in a row.
• Cooked meat: smelt raw beef, pork, chicken or mutton in a furnace or smoker.
• Mushroom stew: 1 red mushroom, 1 brown mushroom and 1 bowl.
• Bowl: 3 planks in a V shape, makes 4 bowls.

Smelting Is Crafting Too

The furnace turns one item into another using fuel such as coal, charcoal, planks or logs.

• Raw iron becomes an iron ingot.
• Sand becomes glass.
• A log becomes charcoal.
• Cobblestone becomes stone.

For a few extra recipes such as smooth stone, concrete and the blast furnace, see the quick how-tos in our Minecraft guide.

Tips for Faster Crafting

• Shift click the result to craft as many as your materials allow.
• Keep a crafting table and a furnace next to your main chest so you do not walk back and forth.
• Carry a spare crafting table (4 planks) when you explore, so you can repair or replace tools anywhere.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you make a crafting table in Minecraft?

Put 4 planks in the 2 by 2 crafting grid in your inventory. One log gives 4 planks, so you only need 1 log.

How many iron ingots do you need for full iron armor?

24 in total: 5 for the helmet, 8 for the chestplate, 7 for the leggings and 4 for the boots.

How do you make torches without coal?

Smelt a log in a furnace to get charcoal, then put the charcoal on top of a stick. It makes 4 torches, just like coal.

What is the difference between shaped and shapeless recipes?

In a shaped recipe the items must be in a set pattern. In a shapeless recipe, such as planks or mushroom stew, the position does not matter.

Last updated: October 18, 2026