XP Farming Guide

How XP levels work

In Java Edition, each level costs more XP than the last. Going from level 0 to 30 takes 1,395 total XP, but going from 30 to 50 takes an additional 2,920. This means high enchantments are expensive — and dying at a high level is painful, since you only recover up to 7 levels’ worth of XP. Use the XP Calculator to see exact numbers for any level.

Best XP sources

Mob farms

Spawner-based farms (especially skeleton or zombie spawners) are the easiest early-game XP source. Build a water channel to funnel mobs to a killing point where they take fall damage, leaving them at one-hit-kill health. You get XP only from player kills or tamed wolf kills, so the final hit must come from you.

Enderman farms on the End’s outer islands are the fastest XP source in the game. A simple platform at Y 1 with a 43-block-tall spawning tower can yield 30+ levels in minutes.

Guardian farms

Draining an ocean monument and building a guardian farm gives both XP and valuable drops (prismarine, sea lanterns). These are complex to build but produce enormous XP once running.

Smelting

Furnaces, blast furnaces and smokers store XP every time they smelt an item. The XP is only awarded when you pull items from the output slot. A common trick is to set up an automatic smelter with hoppers but occasionally pull one item manually to collect all the stored XP at once. Cactus and kelp are popular zero-cost smelting fuels for XP banks.

Villager trading

Trading with villagers awards XP per trade. Librarians and clerics are especially good — you can cycle cheap trades (paper, rotten flesh) for steady XP. This also unlocks access to mending books and other high-value enchantments.

Breeding

Breeding animals awards 1–7 XP per baby. It’s not fast, but it’s passive and easy. A large cow or sheep pen can top up your levels while you’re doing other tasks.

Tips for efficient enchanting

• Enchant at level 30, not higher. The cost-to-benefit ratio drops sharply above 30, and you risk losing more XP if you die.
• Use the enchantment guide to check which enchantments conflict before combining on an anvil.
• Mending is almost always better than Unbreaking for your main tools — it converts XP directly into durability, so a good XP farm means your gear never breaks.
• The XP cost on an anvil increases with each repair. Plan your enchantment order to minimise cumulative penalty — combine books together first, then apply to the item in as few steps as possible.