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For other uses, see Ore (disambiguation).
Ore Layout

All of the current ores.

Ores are uncommon rock-type blocks used to obtain specific resources.

Usage

Extracted Ores

Ores isolated down to bedrock

Ores are primarily collected for crafting purposes, such as for tools and armor. Redstone is obtained from redstone ore, which can be used to create redstone circuits. Ore can also be combined to create a block of the material's type.

PercentOfOreByHeight

This graph shows the actual amount of ores found in a relatively small but untapped world as of Java Edition 1.12.2

Ancient Debris Spawn Rate Per Layer

This graph shows the actual amount of ancient debris found in a relatively small but untapped world as of Java Edition 20w06a

Obtaining resources from ores is as simple as mining them (this is not the case for iron and gold ores, which must be smelted). Coal, diamond, emerald, and nether quartz ores drop 1 unit corresponding raw materials. Redstone ore drops 4-5 redstone dust, and lapis lazuli ore drops 4-9 lapis lazuli. Note this can be increased greatly with Fortune. All ore blocks except iron and gold require a Silk Touch pickaxe to drop themselves.

As a smelting ingredient

Ingredients Smelting recipe
Any raw ore + Any fuel


0.10.70.210.7110.212

Further uses

All mineral blocks except quartz are crafted by putting 9 of the raw material items in a square. Quartz blocks are irreversibly crafted with 4 nether quartz and thus can be crafted in the inventory.

Ingredients Crafting recipe
Any processed ore

All raw materials except quartz can be crafted from their mineral blocks.

Ingredients Crafting recipe
Most mineral blocks

Netherite scraps, obtained by smelting ancient debris, is used alongside gold ingots to create netherite ingots. This is the only mineral used alongside another mineral to create an alloy.

Ingredients Crafting recipe
Gold Ingot, Netherite Scrap

Availability

The following is the distribution of ores according to the altitude (layers are number of blocks above the lowest layer of bedrock). The highest layers that gold, redstone, diamond, and lapis lazuli ore can be found on are two layers lower.[1]

Coal[a] Iron Lapis Lazuli Gold (Badlands) Redstone Diamond Emerald[b] Nether Quartz[c] Nether Gold
[upcoming: JE 1.16]
Ancient Debris
[upcoming: JE 1.16 & BE 1.16.0]
Ore block Coal Ore Iron Ore Lapis Lazuli Ore Gold Ore Redstone Ore Diamond Ore Emerald Ore Nether Quartz Ore Nether Gold Ore Ancient Debris
Refined resource Coal Iron Ingot Lapis Lazuli Gold Ingot Redstone Dust Diamond Emerald Nether Quartz Gold Nugget Netherite Scrap
Mineral block Block of Coal Block of Iron Lapis Lazuli Block Block of Gold Block of Redstone Block of Diamond Block of Emerald Block of Quartz Gold Ingot
Most found in layers... 5-52 5-54 14-16[d] 5-29 5-12 5-29 15-120 [more information needed] 15[e]
Commonly up to layers... 128 64 23 29 76 12 29 120 [more information needed] 21
Rare on layers... 129-131 65-67 31-33 31-33 77-79 13-15 30-32 123-125 [more information needed] 22-119
None at or above... 132 68 34 34 80 16 33 128 117 120
Minimal pickaxe for drop Wooden Stone Iron Wooden Wooden Diamond
Found in... Overworld The Nether
  1. This refers to coal ore blocks spawned in ore veins and not as parts of fossils or mansion forges.
  2. Instead of multi-block veins, emerald ore is placed in scattered blocks.
  3. Nether quartz spawns equally in all parts of the Nether.
  4. Unlike most other ores, lapis lazuli's frequency peaks around layer 15, and slowly tapers off above and below.
  5. Unlike most other ores, ancient debris' frequency peaks at layer 15, and quickly tapers off above and below.

Redstone has the same layer and line-size statistics as Diamond, but is generated 8 times per chunk as opposed to 1.

History

classic
May 21, 2009Notch shows interest in adding ore.
0.0.14aCoal Ore JE1 BE1 Iron Ore JE1 BE1 Gold Ore JE1 Added coal, iron, and gold ores.
These ores could be found exposed only in amounts ranging from roughly 10 to 30 in a vein.
October 24, 2009A texture change for gold ore has been teased by Notch.
0.27 SURVIVAL TESTGold Ore JE2 BE1 The texture of gold ore has been changed.
Mining an ore now gives the corresponding block of it.
indev
0.312010-01-29Diamond Ore JE1 BE1 Added diamond ore.
infdev
March 20, 2010Random ore is now placed randomly around the terrain.
March 27, 2010Ores now replace stone upon a world reload.
March 30, 2010The ore change of replacing stone upon a world reload has been reverted.
alpha
v1.0.1Redstone Ore JE1 BE1 Added redstone ore.
beta
1.2Lapis Lazuli Ore JE1 BE1 Added lapis lazuli ore.
1.8?The highest layer for some ores has been lowered by 2.
Java Edition
1.0.0Beta 1.9 Prerelease 4Coal, lapis lazuli, redstone, and diamond ore now also drop as ore blocks with Silk Touch.
May 21, 2012The week before the release of 12w21a, Jeb released a screenshot of himself testing the trading system.[2] At this time, what would become emerald ore was ruby ore.[3]
1.3.112w21aFile:Ruby Ore.png For the release of 12w21a, the block was changed to an emerald ore. The texture for emerald ore remained unchanged, as Jeb forgot to commit the new texture in the snapshot.[4]
12w21bFile:Emerald Ore JE1 BE1.png The texture of emerald ore has been changed.
12w22aAll ores except iron and gold (which give experience when smelted) now drop experience points when mined.
Emerald ore veins now always consists of single blocks.
1.513w01aNether Quartz Ore JE1 BE1 Added nether quartz ore.
1.814w29aOre now generates faster.
1.1418w43aCoal Ore JE2 BE2 Iron Ore JE3 Lapis Lazuli Ore JE2 BE2 Gold Ore JE3 BE2 Redstone Ore JE2 BE2 Diamond Ore JE2 BE2 File:Emerald Ore JE2 BE2.png Nether Quartz Ore JE2 The textures of all ores have been changed.
18w50aNether Quartz Ore JE3 BE2 The texture of nether quartz ore has been changed.
19w08aDiamond Ore JE3 BE3 The texture of diamond ore has been changed.
1.14.1Pre-Release 1Iron Ore JE3 The texture of iron ore has been changed.
Upcoming Java Edition
1.1620w06aAncient Debris JE1 BE1 Added ancient debris.
20w11aNether Gold Ore Added nether gold ore.
20w12aNether gold ore now drops gold nuggets instead of itself and smelting also gives you gold nugget instead of gold ingot.
Pocket Edition Alpha
0.1.0Coal Ore JE1 BE1 Iron Ore JE1 BE1 Lapis Lazuli Ore JE1 BE1 Gold Ore JE2 BE1 Redstone Ore JE1 BE1 Diamond Ore JE1 BE1 Added coal, iron, lapis lazuli, gold, redstone and diamond ores.
0.3.0Coal ore now drops coal.
0.3.2Diamond ore now drops a diamond.
Iron and gold ores are now smeltable into ingots.
0.4.0Lapis lazuli ore now drops lapis lazuli .
0.8.0build 2Redstone ore now drops redstone dust.
0.9.0build 1File:Emerald Ore JE1 BE1.png Added emerald ore.
0.12.1build 1Nether Quartz Ore JE1 BE1 Added nether quartz ore.
Mining ores now gives experience.
Bedrock Edition
1.10.0beta 1.10.0.3Coal Ore JE2 BE2 Iron Ore JE2 BE2 Lapis Lazuli Ore JE2 BE2 Gold Ore JE3 BE2 Redstone Ore JE2 BE2 Diamond Ore JE2 BE2 File:Emerald Ore JE2 BE2.png Nether Quartz Ore JE3 BE2 The textures of all ores have been changed.
1.11.0beta 1.11.0.5Diamond Ore JE3 BE3 The texture of diamond ore has been changed.
Upcoming Bedrock Edition
1.16.0beta 1.16.0.51Ancient Debris JE1 BE1 Added ancient debris.
Legacy Console Edition
TU1CU1 1.00 Patch 11.0.1Coal Ore JE1 BE1 Iron Ore JE1 BE1 Lapis Lazuli Ore JE1 BE1 Gold Ore JE2 BE1 Redstone Ore JE1 BE1 Diamond Ore JE1 BE1 Added coal, iron, lapis lazuli, gold, redstone, and diamond ores.
TU7All ores except iron and gold (which give experience when smelted) now drops experience points when mined.
TU14 1.04 File:Emerald Ore JE1 BE1.png Nether Quartz Ore JE1 BE1 Added emerald and nether quartz ores.
1.90 Coal Ore JE2 BE2 Iron Ore JE3 Lapis Lazuli Ore JE2 BE2 Gold Ore JE3 BE2 Redstone Ore JE2 BE2 Diamond Ore JE2 BE2 File:Emerald Ore JE2 BE2.png Nether Quartz Ore JE3 BE2 The textures of all ores have been changed.
New Nintendo 3DS Edition
0.1.0Coal Ore JE1 BE1 Iron Ore JE1 BE1 Lapis Lazuli Ore JE1 BE1 Gold Ore JE2 BE1 Redstone Ore JE1 BE1 Diamond Ore JE1 BE1 File:Emerald Ore JE1 BE1.png Nether Quartz Ore JE1 BE1 Added coal, iron, lapis lazuli, gold, redstone, diamond, emerald and nether quartz ores.

Gallery

References

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