Mending books are enchanted books that add the Mending enchantment to your tools, weapons, and armor. Items with Mending repair themselves while you gather experience. Mending is a level I treasure enchantment, so an enchanting table will never offer it. You have to find the book in the world, reel it in while fishing, or trade for it with a librarian villager. Once Mending is on an item, every point of experience from collected orbs repairs 2 durability points before it reaches your experience total.
Librarians are a dependable option for many players. In ordinary trading, a level I treasure book like Mending costs 10 to 38 emeralds plus one book before discounts. To apply it, combine the book with your item on an anvil. The book is used up in the process.
Key Takeaways
- Mending books repair your tools, weapons, and armor using the experience orbs you collect, at 2 durability points per experience point.
- Mending is a treasure enchantment, so your enchanting table will never offer it, and you must find the book in the world, catch it while fishing, or trade for it with a librarian.
- A master-level swamp librarian sells the Mending book as a trade, but only when the Villager Trade Rebalance experiment is switched on in your world.
- To apply a Mending book, place your damaged item in the left anvil slot and the book in the right slot, then take the result, which uses up the book.
- Put Mending on your main pickaxe first, since that tool wears down fastest, and save your next book for your chestplate and leggings.
What Does a Mending Book Actually Do?
Mending is a level I treasure enchantment that repairs your gear while you play. Instead of spending experience levels at an anvil, the enchantment uses the experience orbs you collect to fix damaged items. Each point of experience repairs 2 points of durability, so a worn pickaxe or sword slowly recovers as you mine, craft, and fight.
The order of operations matters. Repair experience goes to the damaged item first, and only the leftover flows into your experience total. If your diamond sword is badly worn, most of the orbs you pick up will go straight into repairs, and your level bar may barely move. Once the item is fully repaired, every orb goes to your total as normal.
Mending is also a treasure enchantment, so it stays out of the regular enchanting table pool. You can put any amount of lapis lazuli and levels into the table, and it will never offer Mending. That is why you have to find it in the world, catch it while fishing, or get it from a librarian.
Mending does not play well with Infinity in ordinary gameplay. Infinity is the bow enchantment that keeps arrows from being used up when you fire. In normal Java and Bedrock play, you cannot stack both on the same bow, so you will need to choose which one matters more to you. If you rely on a long-range bow, you may pick Mending for durability and skip Infinity. If you fire constantly from a fixed spot, you may prefer Infinity.
Where Can You Find Mending Books in Minecraft?
You can find Mending books in three places: loot chests in non-village structures, fishing, and raid drops in Bedrock Edition. Librarian villagers are covered in the next section. Each of the first three takes a bit of planning.
Structure loot is the classic route. Look for chests inside these non-village locations:
- Stronghold libraries, the rooms full of bookshelves and lecterns deep underground
- Ancient cities, the large settlements in the Deep Dark biome, where you can open chests guarded by sculk
- Other non-village structures with loot chests, which you can explore when you come across them while traveling
Chests are random, so a single visit may give you a few useful items and no Mending book at all. Plan several trips to the same structures instead of counting on one lucky chest. Keep a rough list of where you have already looted so you don’t waste time reopening empty rooms.
Fishing is a steadier option. Cast your rod over open water and watch for a treasure catch, which is where enchanted books like Mending can appear. Giving your rod the Luck of the Sea enchantment raises your odds of landing treasure, so it is worth enchanting if you plan to fish for books. Fishing doesn’t guarantee a book, so keep casting over several sessions.
Raid drops are the extra source, but they only apply in Bedrock Edition. Defeating raiders during a raid can drop a Mending book, so Bedrock players can add raids to their search. Java Edition players will need to rely on the other sources.
Whichever route you pick, expect several attempts before you see a book. Once you have one, you can move on to the librarian trades that follow.
Do Librarians Still Give Mending Books?
Yes, librarians can still sell Mending books, but where you find one depends on whether the Villager Trade Rebalance experiment is switched on in your world. Ordinary trading prices are the starting point, not always what you pay.
Villager discounts can bring that price down. Villagers give discounts to players they have traded with often, so the more you trade with the same librarian, the better your deal can get. Always check the price in the trade window before you confirm, because a discount can save you a good number of emeralds.
The Villager Trade Rebalance is an optional experiment, so it stays off unless you turn it on. You enable it in the Experiments menu when you create a new world, so check that setting before you start building your base.
With the experiment active, Mending becomes the special book trade for a master-level swamp librarian. Master level is the top tier of a librarian’s trade list, so you need a swamp librarian who has traded enough to reach that stage. Look for a librarian in a swamp village and make sure they have a lectern they can use for their job.
Mojang’s Java Edition 26.1 notes record a recent change to master librarians’ book-trade availability when the experiment is active. If a master librarian in your Java world is not offering Mending, read those notes before you decide the trade is gone. The change affects which master librarians have access to the book.
When you do find the right trade, bring plenty of emeralds and one spare book. The trade uses up one book, and you’ll want a backup if you plan to apply Mending to more than one piece of gear.
How to Apply a Mending Book With an Anvil
Applying a Mending book takes one trip to an anvil, and the setup is simple once you know which slot does what. Anvils have two input slots, and putting items in the wrong one is the most common early mistake.
Work through these steps in order each time you combine a book with gear.
- Open your inventory and check the item’s current enchantments, so you know whether Infinity is already on it.
- Stand at an anvil and place the damaged item, such as your iron pickaxe, in the left slot.
- Place the Mending book in the right slot.
- Look at the result slot to confirm that Mending appears on the item and that the experience cost is one you can pay.
- Click the result slot to take the enchanted item, which uses up the book.
Compatibility is the first thing to confirm. Mending works on tools, weapons, and armor, along with items like fishing rods, shears, and elytra. If the result slot stays empty, the item or the book is probably not compatible, so double-check both before you try again.
Infinity is the trap to watch for. A bow that already has Infinity cannot take Mending in ordinary play, so the anvil won’t produce a result. You’ll need to decide which enchantment you want on that bow, because the book cannot be combined with the bow once Infinity is there.
Damaged items can still be enchanted, so you don’t need to repair your gear first. Each time you use an anvil on the same item, the experience cost goes up. For that reason, apply Mending early, before you pile on other enchantments, so you pay the lowest cost.
If the anvil shows a “Too Expensive” message, you need more experience levels before you can finish the job. Keep a few levels in reserve whenever you plan an anvil session. Also remember that the book is gone after one use, so keep a spare if you want Mending on more than one item.
Which Gear Is Worth Putting Mending On First?
The gear worth enchanting first is whatever you use every day, because Mending pays off most on items that lose durability fastest. Start with your main pickaxe. Mining stone, deepslate, and ores wears it down faster than almost anything else in your inventory, so it gets the most value from the repairs.
Tools used for farming are close behind. A hoe that you use to till soil for wheat, carrots, or potatoes takes steady wear every planting season, and it’s easy to forget until it breaks in the middle of a harvest. If you run a sugarcane or kelp farm, the tool you use to clear and replant it deserves the same attention.
Armor is the next priority. Every hit from zombies, skeletons, or creepers chips away at your helmet, chestplate, leggings, and boots. Mending on a chestplate or leggings helps during long fights and raids, because those pieces take the most hits and recover while you keep moving. You won’t have to stop halfway through a trip to craft replacements.
- Main pickaxe for mining stone, ores, and deepslate
- Hoe for tilling soil on a farm
- Chestplate and leggings for long fights and raids
- Elytra for long glides across open terrain
Think carefully before you apply the book, because it is used up the moment you take the enchanted item from the anvil. Putting Mending on a sword you rarely swing or a helmet you only wear in the Nether wastes a book that could have protected your daily tools. Decide on your main gear first, then spend the book there. That one choice can decide whether your favorite pickaxe keeps working for months or needs replacing after a few caves.
How Java and Bedrock Differ for Mending Books
Your edition changes where Mending books come from, so check it before you follow any plan. Structure loot and fishing work the same way on Java Edition and Bedrock Edition. A chest in a stronghold library or an ancient city can hold a Mending book on either version, and so can a treasure catch while you fish over open water.
Bedrock players have one extra route. Raid drops can give you a Mending book, so if you are already fighting raiders at a village, keep an eye out for the loot they leave behind. If you play Java, that route isn’t available, so plan your search around chests and fishing instead.
Trading needs attention on both editions. The Villager Trade Rebalance experiment only changes the trade when it is switched on in your world. The version you’re running also determines which master librarians offer the book, so if a tutorial sends you to a swamp librarian and your trade list looks different, the edition or version may be the reason.
Before you start a farming run or a trading trip, open your game and confirm both the edition and the version. That quick check saves you from walking a long way for a trade that doesn’t exist in your world.
Your Next Steps for Getting Mending Books
If you have no emeralds to spare, start with fishing or structure loot. Cast over open water on several play sessions, and check the chests in stronghold libraries and ancient cities whenever you travel. Each book you collect is one you won’t have to buy.
If you have emeralds and can reach a swamp librarian, go for the trade. Make sure the Villager Trade Rebalance is switched on in your world, then look for the master-level Mending offer.
Whichever route gets you a book, take it to an anvil and apply it to your most-used tool first, such as your main pickaxe. After that, move on to your chestplate, leggings, and other gear, in order of how often each piece takes a beating.
Choosing Your Route to a Mending Book
If you’re starting with no emeralds, pick one route and give it a few play sessions. Java players should cast a fishing rod over open water and check the chests in stronghold libraries and ancient cities on every trip. Bedrock players can add raid fights to that plan, since raids can drop a Mending book. Keep a short list of the chests you’ve already opened so you don’t waste time on empty rooms.
If you have emeralds and can reach a swamp village, look for a master-level librarian. Before you travel, open the Experiments menu for your world and confirm the Villager Trade Rebalance is switched on, because Mending only appears as the master-level offer when that setting is active. Java players who cannot find the trade should read the update notes for their version before assuming it is gone. Bring up to 38 emeralds, the top of the ordinary price range, plus one spare book.
Once you have a book, stand at an anvil tonight and apply it to your most-used pickaxe. Put the pickaxe in the left slot, the book in the right slot, and take the result. Then save the next book for your chestplate, and you’ll be mining with a tool that repairs itself while you work.