Ore Levels
A version-aware reference for where every ore generates, the Y level to mine at, and how the distribution is shaped — based on the game's own placement rules.
| Ore | Best Y | Generates | Tip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coal | 96 (or 136+ in mountains) | Y 0 to 319 | Coal peaks at Y 96, and is everywhere above Y 136 on mountains. Any cave near the surface is fine. |
| Iron | 16 (or 232 in mountains) | Y -64 to 319 | Y 16 is the easy answer; if you have tall mountains, the upper batch above Y 128 is far denser (peak Y 232). |
| Copper | 48 | Y -16 to 112 | Copper peaks at Y 47–48. Dripstone caves generate much larger copper blobs. |
| Gold | −16 (badlands: 32–256) | Y -64 to 256 | Gold peaks at Y −16. Badlands get 50 extra blobs per chunk anywhere from Y 32 to 256. |
| Lapis lazuli | 0 | Y -64 to 64 | Lapis peaks at Y 0. The buried batch (Y −64 to 64) never touches air, so mine rather than cave. |
| Redstone | −59 to −58 | Y -64 to 15 | Redstone gets denser the deeper you go; mine at Y −59 (the lowest level not full of bedrock). |
| Diamond | −59 to −58 | Y -64 to 16 | Diamonds get more common all the way down to bedrock. Strip-mine at Y −59 (eye level −58). Most are buried, so branch mine instead of caving. |
| Emerald | 232 (mountains only) | Y -16 to 319 | Emerald only generates in mountain biomes and gets denser with height — mine near the peaks (Y 232 is the peak of the curve). |
| Ancient debrisNether | 15 (peak 16) | Y 8 to 119 | Tunnel at Y 15 so you expose Y 15 and 16 — the peak of the 8–24 triangle is Y 16. Use TNT or beds to uncover more blocks. |
| Nether goldNether | 10–117 (any) | Y 10 to 117 | Evenly spread through the Nether; basalt deltas get twice as much. |
| Nether quartzNether | 10–117 (any) | Y 10 to 117 | Evenly spread; basalt deltas double the count. |
Overworld distribution
- 30×/chunk, blobs of 0–37, Y 136 to 319 (uniform)
- 20×/chunk, blobs of 0–37, Y 0 to 192 (triangle, peak 96) — Half of the blocks exposed to air are skipped.
- 90×/chunk, blobs of 0–13, Y 80 to 319 (triangle, peak 232)
- 10×/chunk, blobs of 0–13, Y -24 to 56 (triangle, peak 16)
- 10×/chunk, blobs of 0–5, Y -64 to 72 (uniform)
- 16×/chunk, blobs of 0–16, Y -16 to 112 (triangle, peak 48)
- 16×/chunk, blobs of 0–52, Y -16 to 112 (triangle, peak 48) — Dripstone caves
- 4×/chunk, blobs of 0–13, Y -64 to 32 (triangle, peak -16) — Half of the blocks exposed to air are skipped.
- 1 in 2 chunks, blobs of 0–13, Y -64 to -48 (uniform)
- 50×/chunk, blobs of 0–13, Y 32 to 256 (uniform) — Badlands
- 2×/chunk, blobs of 0–10, Y -32 to 32 (triangle, peak 0)
- 4×/chunk, blobs of 0–10, Y -64 to 64 (uniform) — Buried: never exposed to air.
- 4×/chunk, blobs of 0–10, Y -64 to 15 (uniform)
- 8×/chunk, blobs of 0–10, Y -64 to -32 (triangle, peak -64) — Defined relative to the world bottom; peaks at Y −64.
- 7×/chunk, blobs of 1–5, Y -64 to 16 (triangle, peak -64) — Half of the blocks exposed to air are skipped.
- 1 in 9 chunks, blobs of 1–23, Y -64 to 16 (triangle, peak -64) — Large blob, once every 9 chunks; 70% of exposed blocks are skipped.
- 4×/chunk, blobs of 1–10, Y -64 to 16 (triangle, peak -64) — Buried: never exposed to air.
- 2×/chunk, blobs of 1–10, Y -64 to -4 (uniform) — Extra batch added in newer versions; half of exposed blocks skipped.
- 100×/chunk, blobs of 0–3, Y -16 to 319 (triangle, peak 232) — Meadow, cherry grove, grove, snowy slopes, jagged / frozen / stony peaks, windswept hills / forest / gravelly hills
Nether distribution
- 1×/chunk, blobs of 1–3, Y 8 to 24 (triangle, peak 16)
- 1×/chunk, blobs of 1–2, Y 8 to 119 (uniform)
- 10×/chunk, blobs of 0–10, Y 10 to 117 (uniform)
- 20×/chunk, blobs of 0–10, Y 10 to 117 (uniform) — Basalt deltas
- 16×/chunk, blobs of 0–14, Y 10 to 117 (uniform)
- 32×/chunk, blobs of 0–14, Y 10 to 117 (uniform) — Basalt deltas
Charts show the expected number of ore placement attempts per chunk at each Y (relative scale per ore), assuming terrain exists at that height. Dark band = bedrock layers; dotted blue line = sea level (Y 63).
How it works
How ore placement works
Each ore has one or more “batches”. A batch tries to place a blob a fixed number of times per chunk, picking a Y from either a uniform range (every level equally likely) or a triangle range (most likely at the middle, tapering to the ends). Some batches skip blocks that would touch air, which is why deep ores are best found by mining rather than caving.
Why diamonds are best at −59, not the middle of their range
The main diamond batches are defined relative to the bottom of the world: a triangle from 80 blocks below to 80 blocks above the floor (Y −144 to 16), peaking exactly at Y −64. Only the upper half exists in the world, so the density keeps rising all the way down until bedrock (Y −64 to −60) gets in the way — leaving Y −59/−58 as the richest minable layers. Redstone’s lower batch works the same way.
1.17 and older
Before the Caves & Cliffs height change, the world ran from Y 0 to 255 and most ores used simple uniform ranges: diamonds and redstone at Y 0–15, gold at 0–31 (badlands 32–79), iron at 0–63, coal at 0–127, lapis in a triangle from 0–30 peaking at 15, and emerald as single blocks at Y 4–31 in mountains. Copper (1.17 only) spread from Y 0–96 peaking at 48.
Bedrock Edition
Since 1.18 Bedrock uses the same height ranges, with slightly different blob sizes (e.g. iron blobs of 0–16 instead of 0–13), an extra mountain coal batch, and ancient debris in uniform batches from Y 8–23 and 8–119.
FAQ
What is the best Y level for diamonds?
In 1.18 and newer, diamonds are most common at Y −59 to −58 — the deeper the better, right down to the bedrock layer. Strip-mine with your feet at Y −59. Diamond ore mostly generates buried (not exposed to air), so branch mining beats caving. In 1.17 and older, diamonds generated evenly from Y 0 to 15; Y 11–12 was the sweet spot because lava lakes stop above Y 10.
What is the best Y level for iron in 1.18+?
Iron peaks twice: around Y 16 (the batch from Y −24 to 56) and around Y 232 in tall mountains (the batch from Y 80 to 384, which is far denser but needs terrain up there). For a normal mine, Y 16 is the answer; if you have jagged or frozen peaks nearby, mine the mountain interior instead.
Where do I find gold, copper and coal?
Gold peaks at Y −16 (and badlands get a huge extra batch anywhere from Y 32 to 256). Copper peaks at Y 48, with much bigger blobs in dripstone caves. Coal peaks at Y 96 and is everywhere above Y 136 on mountains; any surface cave works.
Where do lapis, redstone and emerald generate?
Lapis peaks at Y 0, with a buried batch anywhere from Y −64 to 64. Redstone gets denser the lower you go, so Y −59 is best — the same trip as diamonds. Emerald only generates in mountain biomes (meadow, cherry grove, grove, snowy slopes, jagged/frozen/stony peaks and the windswept biomes) and gets more common with height, peaking around Y 232.
What is the best Y level for ancient debris?
Ancient debris generates in the Nether from Y 8 to 24 in a triangle peaking at Y 16, plus a rare second batch from Y 8 to 119. Tunnelling at Y 15 exposes Y 15 and 16, which is why “Y 15” is the classic answer; in 1.16–1.17 the main batch peaked at Y 15 exactly. It is never exposed to air, so use TNT or beds to uncover it.