Best Bow Enchantments in Minecraft 2026, Ranked

The best bow is Power V, Unbreaking III, Flame, and either Mending or Infinity, with Punch II as an optional extra. The only real decision is Mending versus Infinity, because the two can’t share a bow.

Ranked

Rank	Enchantment	What it does
1	Power V	+150% arrow damage: 15 per full shot instead of 6
2	Mending or Infinity	Never breaks, or never runs out of normal arrows
3	Unbreaking III	Bow lasts about four times as long
4	Flame	Sets targets on fire; lights TNT from range
5	Punch II	Pushes targets about 8.8 blocks back

Mending or Infinity?

You can’t have both. Our recommendation:

• Start with Infinity. Before you have a skeleton farm or a fletcher, running out of arrows is the bigger problem. Infinity also rolls on the enchanting table, so it’s easy to get.
• Switch to Mending later. Arrows become cheap once you can farm or buy them, but a bow without Mending still wears out, and anvil repairs get more expensive each time. Mending also lets you fire tipped arrows freely without worrying about durability.

Plenty of players keep one of each: Infinity for everyday shooting, Mending for tipped arrows and long sessions.

Punch: in or out?

Punch is great in PvP and for keeping melee mobs off you. It’s worse in caves (pushing skeletons out of range) and near mob farms. If you mostly shoot at range, include it; if you mostly fight in tight spaces, skip it.

Builds

All-round PvE: Power V, Unbreaking III, Mending, Flame.

PvP: Power V, Punch II, Flame, Unbreaking III, Mending.

Early-game: Power IV or V, Infinity, Unbreaking III. Add Flame if the table offers it.

Bow or crossbow?

Bows hit harder per arrow thanks to Power V, and a full draw is quicker than a crossbow reload without Quick Charge. Crossbows load slower but can fire fireworks, three arrows at once, or arrows that pierce shields. Compare with the best crossbow enchantments. For the recipe, see how to make a bow.