How to Make Iron Bars in Minecraft: 16 Bars From 6 Ingots
Six iron ingots in two rows make 16 iron bars. How to make iron bars in Minecraft, how they connect, where they help in builds, and the curing myth.
Fill two full rows of a crafting table with iron ingots (6 total) and you get 16 iron bars. Top two rows or bottom two rows both work. That’s the whole recipe, and it’s one of the better deals in the game: under half an ingot per bar.
If you’re short on ingots, our guide on finding iron covers the best Y levels. Once you have an iron farm, bars cost you nothing.
How iron bars connect
Iron bars behave like glass panes. A single bar placed alone is a thin cross; place another next to it and they join into a flat grille. They also connect to solid blocks, glass panes and walls, but not to fences. To get a single straight post, place it between two blocks or accept the cross shape.
They’re thin to look at but solid to walk into: neither mobs nor players can pass through, and you can stand on top of a row of them.
What to build with them
- Windows with character. Bars over a window look like a prison, a castle or a shop grille. Put glass behind them for a weatherproof version.
- Cages and zoos. You can see animals clearly and they can’t escape. Mobs can see you too, though.
- Farm viewing windows. Bars keep mobs contained while you watch a farm work, and they look less flat than a wall of glass.
- Detail work. Kitchen vents, stable windows, jail cells and sewer grates all look right in iron bars.
Iron bars aren’t a hiding spot. Mobs can see you through them, so a skeleton across the room will keep tracking you. Use solid blocks when you want to be out of sight.
Iron bars in the End
You’ll see iron bars before you ever craft one if you fight the Ender Dragon. Two of the obsidian pillars have iron bar cages around their end crystals. The cage shields the crystal from arrows, so you’ll need to pillar up, break a few bars, and destroy the crystal from there.
The zombie villager question
Iron bars near a curing zombie villager do speed up the cure, along with beds, but only a little. With 14 qualifying blocks within 4 blocks of the villager, the cure is about 4% faster on average. Build the curing cell for safety and convenience, and don’t bother lining it with bars just for speed.
More building material guides are in the guides hub.
Common questions
Do iron bars speed up curing a zombie villager?
Slightly. Iron bars and beds within 4 blocks of the zombie villager shave a few percent off the cure time, about 4% at most. It is not worth building around.
Can mobs see you through iron bars?
Yes. Mobs can see through iron bars just like through glass, so hostile mobs keep tracking you. Use solid blocks if you want to stay hidden.
What do I need to mine iron bars?
A pickaxe. Without one, iron bars break slowly and drop nothing.
Sources & verification
Facts on this page are checked against these references and in-game behavior for the stated edition(s). how we verify.
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