Spawning
Naturally
Zombie villagers spawn below light level 8, and have 5% (1% in desert biomes, and variants) chance to spawn in place of a regular zombie.
Villagers killed by zombies
If a zombie killing a villager, there is a chance of the villager turn into a zombie villager, depending on Difficulty:
| Difficulty | Chance of turning into a zombie villager |
|---|---|
| Easy | 0% |
| Normal | 50% |
| Hard/Hardcore | 100% |
Zombie villages
Zombie villagers also spawn in zombie villages, a rare variant of villages without doors and torches.
Behavior
A zombie villager with an enchanted sword.
Zombie villagers attack players within 40 blocks, villagers and villager golems within 42 blocks, opposite to 16 blocks from other hostile mobs. The detection range for zombie villagers is reduced by ½ if the player is wearing a zombie head.[Java Edition only]
Curing
Zombie villagers can be cured by using a golden apple (regular golden apples only work) on them while they have the Weakness status effect, and the effect can be inflicted by:
- A splash potion of weakness thrown on them by a player or a witch.
- A tipped arrow