Minecraft Enchanting Guide (2026): Best Enchantments for Every Item
Current for Java & Bedrock. Covers the table setup, the must-have enchantments, and the ideal loadout per item.
Setting up the enchanting table
- Table: 4 obsidian + 2 diamonds + 1 book.
- Max power: place 15 bookshelves in a ring one block away from the table (nothing blocking the gap) to unlock level 30 enchants - the best ones.
- Cost: every enchant needs 1-3 lapis lazuli plus XP levels.
- Anvil: combine items + enchanted books to apply specific enchants and merge gear; renaming/repairing also happens here.
The must-have enchantments
| Enchant | Why it's core |
| Mending | Repairs the item with XP - gear lasts forever. The single best enchantment. Only from books (Librarian trades), never the table. |
| Unbreaking III | Multiplies durability - put it on almost everything, even with Mending. |
| Protection IV | General damage reduction - spread across all four armor pieces. |
| Efficiency V | Faster mining - essential on pickaxes/axes/shovels. |
| Fortune III | Multiplies ore/crop drops (diamonds, redstone, coal). Mutually exclusive with Silk Touch. |
| Sharpness V | Flat bonus melee damage to everything - the default sword pick. |
Best loadout per item
| Item | Ideal enchantments |
| Sword | Sharpness V, Looting III, Fire Aspect II, Sweeping Edge III (Java), Unbreaking III, Mending |
| Pickaxe | Efficiency V, Fortune III OR Silk Touch, Unbreaking III, Mending |
| Armor (all pieces) | Protection IV, Unbreaking III, Mending |
| Boots | + Feather Falling IV, Depth Strider III (or Frost Walker II) |
| Helmet | + Respiration III, Aqua Affinity |
| Bow | Power V, Infinity OR Mending, Flame, Punch II, Unbreaking III |
| Trident | Loyalty III + Channeling (or Riptide III), Impaling V, Unbreaking III, Mending |
| Elytra | Unbreaking III, Mending (keep it repaired mid-flight) |
Getting specific enchantments reliably
The enchanting table is random. For a guaranteed enchant - especially Mending, which the table can't give - trade with a Librarian and re-roll the lectern until the book appears. See the villager trades guide for the full method (and zombie-curing for cheap books).
Grinding XP for level-30 enchants is faster on an always-on world. Host your Minecraft server with Supercraft - build an XP farm that runs while you sleep. See also: best Y-levels for ores.