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Minecraft players utilize every aspect of the popular sandbox game in a different way, whether it's building in creative mode, making adventure maps and levels, or tweaking Minecraft's inner workings with the help of mods and data packs.
Nevertheless, progressing through the game’s main questline in Survival Mode while collecting metal ores from beneath the surface of the Overworld and Nether has to be one of the most satisfying ways to play Minecraft.
On the topic of metal ores, there are eleven primary options in the game that players can use to make refined ingots and other purified metals. Eight of these ores are found in the Overworld’s cave systems, while the other three are only found inside the Nether dimension. Here’s a look at every ore in Minecraft and what levels they spawn at.
Note: This article only features ores found in the Overworld.
Minecraft: Where to look for the most profitable amounts of ores
1) Coal ore
Coal ore is one of the first ores that players are likely to find in Minecraft. It generates in two sections, the first being 0 to 37 blocks long and generating between Y levels 136 to 320, and the second batch falling under the same parameters of the amount of coal ore blocks and generating from Y level 0 to 190.
Currently, the most profitable level for coal ore is Y level 95. When coal ore is mined, it drops pieces of coal. This substance, as many players may already be aware, is used as a fuel source to power furnaces, smokers, blast furnaces, and other blocks that require power. Coal can also be used as a crafting ingredient for a block of coal, which is quite effective as far as fuel sources are concerned.
2) Iron ore
Iron ore is the first tier of metals in Minecraft that can be smelted and turned into its pure form of iron ingots. Iron ore is found in three distinct batches in the Overworld.
The first batch is 0-13 blocks large and generates between Y levels 128 to 320. The second batch is also generated in blobs with blocks ranging from 0-13 between Y levels -24 to 54, while the third batch generates in multiple sets of 0-5 iron ore blocks from Y levels -63 to 72.
Iron ore is generally used to make iron ingots, which, in turn, serves as one of the most effective crafting ingredients in Minecraft. Players can craft items such as buckets, blocks of iron, iron armor sets, weapons, tools, shears, and many other items from iron ingots. Iron should be treated as a tier-1 resource from the very start of the game until the endgame.
3) Emerald ore
Emerald ore is a rare green-colored ore that's only found in the mountains, frozen peaks, and windswept hill biomes. To get the most out of an emerald ore expedition, Minecraft players must remember to look for them between Y levels -16 to 320. The most profitable level for emeralds is Y level 256.
Emeralds are primarily used as a mode of currency that players can use to obtain valuable items like armor, tools, weapons, food, etc, through villager trading. They can then use this currency to buy items like enchanted tools and weapons.
4) Gold ore
Gold ore has four chances to be generated in every chunk of a Minecraft world. Each batch contains nine gold ore and has an equal chance of spawning from Y levels -64 to 32. Unfortunately, they're also less likely to be exposed to air.
The most profitable level for gold ore is -16. When generating in the Badlands biome, the chance of gold ore generating per chunk goes up to 50 times instead of four, and its spawning levels change to Y levels 32-256.
Minecraft's gold ore can be used to make gold ingots, which can be converted into weapons, tools, and armor with greater attack speed or efficiency in comparison to tools made from other ores. Simultaneously, this contributes to an extremely low durability. Players can also make other items with gold, such as clocks, golden apples, etc.
5) Diamond ore
One of the most valuable ores in Minecraft, diamond ore generates deep within the underground cave system of the overworld and generally has players searching for it as soon as they get a set of iron tools and armor. Like most other ores, diamond ore can be found in blobs.
Normally, three batches of this ore are spawned as the player descends through the overworld. The first batch generates between Y levels 14 to -63, the second also between Y levels 14 to -63 but with potentially more ore blocks, and the third batch near areas that aren't exposed to air.
Diamond ore is used to make armor, weapons, tools, and enchanting tables, and is most commonly found at Y level -57.
6) Lapis Lazuli ore
Lapis Lazuli is generally used to fuel an enchanting table in Minecraft, along with its secondary use as a dye. The ore for this mineral can be found in two batches that generate in each chunk. The first batch can be found between Y levels -32 to 30, while the other batch can be found between Y levels -64 to 64.
The most profitable level for Lapis Lazuli ore is Y level -1.
7) Copper ore
Copper ore is the latest ore to be introduced in Minecraft. It was added to the game with the first part of the Minecraft 1.17 update, granting players access to multiple new block types and some brand new items. Besides block designs like cut copper and oxidized copper, players can use copper to make spyglasses and lightning rods as well.
Copper ore can be found in blobs of 0-16 blocks per chunk. The level that these blocks spawn at can be anywhere between Y levels -16 to 112, with the most profitable layers for copper ore spawing being levels 47 and 48. Minecraft players are more likely to find large copper veins when mining inside dripstone caves.
8) Redstone ore
Redstone is a special mineral that allows Minecraft players to power most of their useful creations, essentially working as a form of electricity or power. Each chunk has redstone ore generating in two batches, with the first one spawning between Y levels -63 to 15, and the second one between levels -63 to -34.
Some of the many items that players can create from redstone are compasses, clocks, detector rails, dispensers, droppers, pistons, etc. Redstone is also used as a brewing ingredient to increase the duration of many different potions.
Ores are a vital key to progression in Minecraft. They help players obtain new and improved armor to keep them safe from the game's hostile mobs, weapons to kill them, and tools to farm materials as efficiently as possible. Therefore, players are highly advised to make the most of every mining trip and enchant their gear to get the most amount of ore possible.
