The first time you get a diamond pickaxe in Minecraft, it’s a big deal. The first time you enchant that pickaxe, though, it’s a gamechanger–and it’s tough to go back to generic tools once you’ve seen their true potential. Here’s everything you need to know to enchant your tools to make them more effective and minimize the grind you’ll need to engage with as you explore the world.
Note: This guide focuses on the Bedrock version of Minecraft, available on Windows 10, Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, and mobile.
We’ve got even more Minecraft enchanting guides to help you maximize your gear–check them out below.
How Enchanting Works In MinecraftBest Weapon EnchantmentsBest Armor EnchantmentsEnchantment Definitions
All The Best Tool Enchantments
Knowing how best to enchant your gear, however, isn’t always obvious. These are the enchantments you want to apply to each of your Minecraft tools and why. For the particulars of what each enchantment does, though, make sure to refer to our guide on Minecraft enchantment definitions.
Minecraft tools differ from other enchantable item types in that you’re going to be using mostly the same enchantments on an optimal build.
For the pickaxe, shovel, and axe, you’ll want these enchantments:
Fortune I – III – Increases drops of certain blocks (Ores, diamond, etc)Efficiency I – V – Increases tool speed.Unbreaking I – III – Reduces the frequency with which items degrade when used.Mending – Repairs held item using experience
This collection of enchantments will get you a durable, self-repairing pickaxe that mines incredibly fast and nets you bonus ore–making everything you do afterward come that much more quickly.
To really build out your toolkit, it’s smart to have a Pickaxe with Silk Touch (and ideally Unbreaking and Mending) as well to take care of those destructible blocks like beehives. Because Fortune is all about breaking blocks and Silk Touch is the opposite, though, you can’t have both on a single tool.
You can skip enchanting most of the other tools. Enchanting Shears, Hoes, and flint-and-steel isn’t really worth the time or experience–though an Unbreaking set of shears isn’t a bad idea if you’re planning to knock a truly monumental amount of leaves off of trees, so even that would have its use. It just shouldn’t be first, second, or even tenth on your list of things to enchant, while enchanting your primary tools will completely change the way you play Minecraft.