If you know how to use Enchanted Books in Minecraft, you can add enchantments to items when you’re nowhere near your Enchantment Table.
Instructions in this article apply to Minecraft on all platforms.
How Do You Enchant Books in Minecraft?
Follow these steps to make an Enchanted Book in Minecraft:
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Make a Crafting Table. Use 4 Wood Planks of the same type of wood.
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Make Books. Place your Crafting Table on the ground and open it up. In the top row, put 2 Papers in the first and second boxes. In the middle row, put 1 Paper in the second box. In the bottom row, put 1 Leather in the second box.
To make Paper, put 3 Sugar Cane in the middle row of the Crafting Table. To make Leather, use 4 Hides.
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Craft an Enchantment Table. In the top row, put 1 Book in the second box. In the middle row, put 2 Diamonds in the first and third boxes, then put Obsidian in the middle box. In the bottom row, put 3 Obsidian in all three boxes.
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Collect Lapis Lazuli. Look underground near bedrock. Use a stone pickaxe or stronger. You’ll need one per enchantment.
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Place your Enchantment Table on the ground and interact with it to open it.
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Put a Book in the first slot, then put a Lapis Lazuli in the second slot.
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Select one of the three random enchantments. If you don’t see one you like, drag a different item from your inventory into the first box, then switch it out again for your Book.
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Drag the Enchanted Book back to your inventory.
How Do You Use Enchanted Books in Minecraft?
Once you have an Enchanted Book, you can use it to enchant another item:
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Make an Anvil. In a Crafting Table, place 3 Iron Blocks in the top row, 1 Iron Ingot in the middle box of the middle row, and 3 Iron Ingots in the bottom row.
To make Iron Ingots, place an Iron Block in the crafting grid.
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Place your Anvil on the ground and interact with it to open the anvil menu.
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Put the item you wish to enchant in the first box.
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Put the Enchanted Book in the second box.
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Drag the enchanted item to your inventory.
Using the Anvil, it’s also possible to combine Enchanted Books to make stronger enchantments. However, if the books have different effects, one of them might be lost.
Why Won’t It Let Me Use an Enchanted Book in Minecraft?
When you try to enchant an item, you’ll see an Enchantment Cost. If the number is red, your experience level isn’t high enough. You can collect more points by mining, defeating enemies, breeding animals, and using a furnace.
If you see a red X when you try to enchant an item, the enchantment might not be compatible with the item. For example, Power enchantments only work on bows, and Smite enchantments only work on swords. Tools can’t be enchanted more than once. so you can’t use more than one book per item.
How Do I Make More Powerful Enchantments in Minecraft?
Make bookshelves to upgrade your Enchantment Table and create stronger enchantments. Place bookshelves one block away from the table, leaving an empty space in between. Arrange 15 around the Crafting Table to reach the maximum enchantment level of 30. Without a bookshelf, the available enchantments will not exceed level 8.