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The Ultimate Guide to Finding Iron in Minecraft Download Article Where to find iron and the best ways to use it Co-authored by Zac Churchill and Hannah Dillon
Last Updated: December 6, 2025 Fact Checked
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Getting Iron
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Iron Crafting Uses
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Other Iron Uses
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This article was co-authored by Zac Churchill and by wikiHow staff writer, Hannah Dillon. Zac Churchill is a Minecraft Specialist based in Davidson, North Carolina. Zac has played Minecraft for over 10 years and has extensive knowledge of how to play Minecraft and how the game has changed over the different versions. Specifically, Zac has expert experience in survival worlds, large builds on creative mode, and server design/upkeep. He graduated in 2023 with a BA in Sociology and English from Tufts University. There are 10 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 818,003 times.
After stone, iron is the next tier of tools and weapons, specifically swords. It is relatively common, making it an adequate and preferred material for tools and weapons. Not only that, but iron is also used in many crafting recipes later in the game. Without iron, you cannot progress to the next tiers. Here is a simple guide on how to get iron in Minecraft, plus all the ways you can use Iron Ingots.
Where do I find iron in Minecraft?
With a Stone Pickaxe, go into caves and start searching for Iron Ore. Search between vertical levels 1 through 63, using torches to light up the cave and repel monsters. Once you've mined Iron Ore or Raw Iron, smelt it into Iron Ingots with a fuel in a Furnace.
Steps
Section 1 of 3:
Getting Iron
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1 Get yourself a Wooden Pickaxe. The first pickaxe you will craft will be made out of wood, which will be used to mine stone.
2 Get yourself a Stone Pickaxe. The stone will be necessary to break the iron blocks down in order to get the material. To craft one, place three cobblestones (mined from stone with a wooden pickaxe) on the top row of the crafting table, and place 2 sticks below it, resembling the shape of a pickaxe.[1]XResearch source
If your pickaxe has the Silk Touch enchantment, you'll get Iron Ore when you break an Iron Ore block. If you don't have Silk Touch, you'll get Raw Iron. Both of these items can be used to smelt Iron Ingots in the same way, however, so it isn't necessary to get Silk Touch right away.[2]XResearch source
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3 Get torches. You will need to bring some torches with you, as it can get dark and impossible to see. To do this, you place one Stick on your crafting area/table and one piece of Coal or Charcoal above it.[3]XResearch source
4 Get a lot of Dirt. You might not always need it, but if you're ever in a sticky situation while mining, you're going to need cheap and abundant Dirt to get yourself out of it.
5 Find a suitable cave. Caves are the best way to find iron.[4]XResearch source They usually appear in veins at a time. Stop wasting your time digging down from the surface, as this will only yield a small chance of success.
6 Investigate all blocks surrounding any iron you find. Iron occurs in veins, or groups, so if you find one, there is likely more nearby. Check diagonal blocks as well. The usual size of a vein is 2x2x2 blocks.
Iron looks like peach or pinkish splotches on grey stone.
7 Place torches as necessary. Recover them when you can, but only if it's a one-time mining trip. Otherwise, keep it there, or else monsters will spawn in the dark.
8 Mind your vertical level. Using your map or the debug mode, check out the "Y" axis: this indicates your elevation. Remember that Iron Ore only occurs from levels 1-63.
9 Use a furnace to turn the Iron Ore or Raw Iron into ingots. Iron Ore and Raw Iron are almost of no benefit to you, and only the Iron Ingots are useful. You can use a Furnace to create Iron Ingots. Combine one Iron Ore or Raw Iron with one fuel in a Furnace to create an Iron Ingot.[5]XResearch source
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Iron Crafting Uses
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Iron Ingots are used to make many items. Iron Ore and Raw Iron are only really used to make Iron Ingots, so they're a little bit useless on their own. However, once you convert these raw materials to Iron Ingots, you can make a ton of items:[6]XResearch source
There are many other uses for Iron Ingots. Iron Ingots are a very valuable resource in the game, and they're used for many other things besides crafting. Here's what else you can do with Iron Ingots:
Trading: You can trade Iron Ingots with Apprentice-level Armorers, Toolsmiths, and Weaponsmiths for emeralds.[7]XResearch source
Repairing: Iron Ingots are used to repair all iron armor, weapons, and tools, as well as chainmail armor.[8]XResearch source
Iron golems: An Iron Ingot will restore 25 hearts to an iron golem.[9]XResearch source
Beacons: Iron Ingots can be used to select powers from a beacon.[10]XResearch source
Smithing: Iron Ingots can be used with any armor trim and any armor piece to add a gray-colored trim to the armor.[11]XResearch source
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Community Q&A
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Question Why do I have to make an iron tool? Why can't I make armor instead? Community Answer Armor is usually made when you have a good amount of iron to spend, as armor needs a lot of Iron. Also, certain ores (such as the valuable diamond) need an Iron tool in order to be mined. 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 47 Helpful 197
Question Can iron be found near lava with diamonds? Community Answer Yes, iron can be found at Levels 1-63. It can therefore be found near lava with diamonds. 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 41 Helpful 163
Question How do I make a compass in Minecraft? Gerbillover Community Answer Craft it by placing a piece of redstone in the middle of your crafting table and iron at the sides, top and bottom (but not the corners). 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 37 Helpful 129
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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.
Iron is good for making armor, tools, and iron blocks. Look in mountains, cliffs, and caves, or dig down until you find some.
If you are strip mining, get a bunch of torches. Stacks of torches will prevent monsters from spawning.
Bring a chest or an ender chest when mining in caves. Monsters could spawn any second!
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!
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Co-authored by: Zac Churchill Minecraft Specialist This article was co-authored by Zac Churchill and by wikiHow staff writer, Hannah Dillon. Zac Churchill is a Minecraft Specialist based in Davidson, North Carolina. Zac has played Minecraft for over 10 years and has extensive knowledge of how to play Minecraft and how the game has changed over the different versions. Specifically, Zac has expert experience in survival worlds, large builds on creative mode, and server design/upkeep. He graduated in 2023 with a BA in Sociology and English from Tufts University. This article has been viewed 818,003 times. How helpful is this? Co-authors: 50Updated: December 6, 2025 Views: 818,003 Categories: Minecraft MiningArticle SummaryX
1. Get a wooden pickaxe. 2. Get a stone pickaxe. 3. Get some torches. 4. Get a lot of dirt. 5. Go to a cave and investigate blocks for iron. 6. Place torches as necessary. 7. Look for iron between levels 1-63. 8. Use a furnace to turn iron ore to ingots. Did this summary help you?YesNo
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Brooklynn Workman
Jul 21, 2019
"It actually worked! We found a lot of coal (which was good for getting iron ingots!), and then I found some iron. The other player and I were happy!"..." more
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"It actually worked! We found a lot of coal (which was good for getting iron ingots!), and then I found some iron. The other player and I were happy!"..." more Share yours!
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Download Article Where to find iron and the best ways to use it Co-authored by Zac Churchill and Hannah Dillon 
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Co-authored by: Zac Churchill Minecraft Specialist This article was co-authored by Zac Churchill and by wikiHow staff writer, Hannah Dillon. Zac Churchill is a Minecraft Specialist based in Davidson, North Carolina. Zac has played Minecraft for over 10 years and has extensive knowledge of how to play Minecraft and how the game has changed over the different versions. Specifically, Zac has expert experience in survival worlds, large builds on creative mode, and server design/upkeep. He graduated in 2023 with a BA in Sociology and English from Tufts University. This article has been viewed 818,003 times. How helpful is this? Co-authors: 50 Updated: December 6, 2025 Views: 818,003 Categories: Minecraft Mining Article SummaryX
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1 Get yourself a Wooden Pickaxe. The first pickaxe you will craft will be made out of wood, which will be used to mine stone. 
2 Get yourself a Stone Pickaxe. The stone will be necessary to break the iron blocks down in order to get the material. To craft one, place three cobblestones (mined from stone with a wooden pickaxe) on the top row of the crafting table, and place 2 sticks below it, resembling the shape of a pickaxe.[1] 
3 Get torches. You will need to bring some torches with you, as it can get dark and impossible to see. To do this, you place one Stick on your crafting area/table and one piece of Coal or Charcoal above it.[3] 
4 Get a lot of Dirt. You might not always need it, but if you're ever in a sticky situation while mining, you're going to need cheap and abundant Dirt to get yourself out of it. 
5 Find a suitable cave. Caves are the best way to find iron.[4] They usually appear in veins at a time. Stop wasting your time digging down from the surface, as this will only yield a small chance of success. 
6 Investigate all blocks surrounding any iron you find. Iron occurs in veins, or groups, so if you find one, there is likely more nearby. Check diagonal blocks as well. The usual size of a vein is 2x2x2 blocks. 
7 Place torches as necessary. Recover them when you can, but only if it's a one-time mining trip. Otherwise, keep it there, or else monsters will spawn in the dark. 
8 Mind your vertical level. Using your map or the debug mode, check out the "Y" axis: this indicates your elevation. Remember that Iron Ore only occurs from levels 1-63. 
9 Use a furnace to turn the Iron Ore or Raw Iron into ingots. Iron Ore and Raw Iron are almost of no benefit to you, and only the Iron Ingots are useful. You can use a Furnace to create Iron Ingots. Combine one Iron Ore or Raw Iron with one fuel in a Furnace to create an Iron Ingot.[5] Advertisement 
Community Answer Armor is usually made when you have a good amount of iron to spend, as armor needs a lot of Iron. Also, certain ores (such as the valuable diamond) need an Iron tool in order to be mined. 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 47 Helpful 197 
Community Answer Yes, iron can be found at Levels 1-63. It can therefore be found near lava with diamonds. 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 41 Helpful 163 
Gerbillover Community Answer Craft it by placing a piece of redstone in the middle of your crafting table and iron at the sides, top and bottom (but not the corners). 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 37 Helpful 129 
