# How to craft in Minecraft

Canonical: https://crafting.recipes/guides/crafting

You can craft your first few items without any equipment. Your inventory has a **2 × 2 grid**; a [Crafting Table](/items/crafting-table.md) gives you **3 × 3 slots**. Start by turning a log into planks, then use four planks to make the table. You can make both planks and the table in your inventory.

## Turn a log into planks

Collect an [Oak Log](/items/oak-log.md), place it in one crafting slot, and take the four [Oak Planks](/items/oak-planks.md) from the output. The log is used up when you take the planks.

## Craft [Oak Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/oak-planks.md)

Use: [Crafting Table](https://crafting.recipes/items/crafting-table.md).

**Output:** 4 × [Oak Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/oak-planks.md)

**Shapeless:** Any arrangement in the crafting grid.

### Ingredients

- 1 × any of ([Oak Log](https://crafting.recipes/items/oak-log.md), [Oak Wood](https://crafting.recipes/items/oak-wood.md), [Stripped Oak Log](https://crafting.recipes/items/stripped-oak-log.md), [Stripped Oak Wood](https://crafting.recipes/items/stripped-oak-wood.md)).

## Make and open a crafting table

Put one plank in each of the four inventory crafting slots. Take the table, place it in the world, and use it to open the larger grid. Any plank type works, and you can mix wood types.

## Craft [Crafting Table](https://crafting.recipes/items/crafting-table.md)

Use: [Crafting Table](https://crafting.recipes/items/crafting-table.md).

**Output:** 1 × [Crafting Table](https://crafting.recipes/items/crafting-table.md)

### Crafting grid (2 × 2)

```text
+---+---+
| A | A |
+---+---+
| A | A |
+---+---+
```

### Ingredients

- **A** — 4 × any of ([Acacia Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/acacia-planks.md), [Bamboo Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/bamboo-planks.md), [Birch Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/birch-planks.md), [Cherry Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/cherry-planks.md), [Crimson Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/crimson-planks.md), [Dark Oak Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/dark-oak-planks.md), [Jungle Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/jungle-planks.md), [Mangrove Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/mangrove-planks.md), [Oak Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/oak-planks.md), [Pale Oak Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/pale-oak-planks.md), [Spruce Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/spruce-planks.md), [Warped Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/warped-planks.md)).

## Make sticks and your first tool

Place two planks one above the other to make four [Sticks](/items/stick.md). This fits either crafting grid.

## Craft [Stick](https://crafting.recipes/items/stick.md)

Use: [Crafting Table](https://crafting.recipes/items/crafting-table.md).

**Output:** 4 × [Stick](https://crafting.recipes/items/stick.md)

### Crafting grid (1 × 2)

```text
+---+
| A |
+---+
| A |
+---+
```

### Ingredients

- **A** — 2 × any of ([Acacia Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/acacia-planks.md), [Bamboo Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/bamboo-planks.md), [Birch Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/birch-planks.md), [Cherry Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/cherry-planks.md), [Crimson Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/crimson-planks.md), [Dark Oak Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/dark-oak-planks.md), [Jungle Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/jungle-planks.md), [Mangrove Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/mangrove-planks.md), [Oak Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/oak-planks.md), [Pale Oak Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/pale-oak-planks.md), [Spruce Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/spruce-planks.md), [Warped Planks](https://crafting.recipes/items/warped-planks.md)).

A [Wooden Pickaxe](/items/wooden-pickaxe.md) needs three planks and two sticks arranged in the crafting table. Follow the [pickaxe guide](/guides/pickaxe.md) for the exact pattern and the path to stone and iron tools. For chopping trees or digging, make a wooden [Axe](/items/wooden-axe.md) or [Shovel](/items/wooden-shovel.md). Each has its own pattern.

## Use the recipe book

Open the recipe book from your inventory or crafting table. Search for an item and select its recipe to see the ingredients and arrangement. If a recipe is missing, turn off the filter that only shows craftable items. You’ll still need to gather any missing ingredients.

The table’s larger grid supports recipes that do not fit in your inventory. [Smelting](/guides/smelting.md), [brewing](/guides/brewing.md), and [netherite upgrading](/guides/netherite-upgrade.md) use different stations rather than the crafting grid.

## Why won’t the recipe work?

| Check | What to change |
| --- | --- |
| The recipe is wider or taller than two slots | Open a crafting table for the 3 × 3 grid. |
| You used logs where the recipe shows planks | Craft the logs into planks first. |
| Ingredients are in the wrong positions | Match the pattern and keep its empty slots empty. |
| One slot contains a stack but another is empty | A stack in one slot only counts once. Put an item in each slot the pattern uses. |
| You substituted a similar-looking item | Check the recipe’s accepted alternatives. Stone is not cobblestone. |
| There is no crafting output for the item | Check its item page: you may need to smelt it, find it, or use another station. |

When a recipe lists several alternatives, choose one for each slot. You don’t need all of them. For a shapeless recipe, the ingredients can go anywhere in the grid; for a shaped recipe, follow the pattern.

Browse [crafting recipes](/recipes/crafting.md) for more projects.