What are the best uses for axes in Minecraft?

Axes are a common weapon in Minecraft that can be very resourceful for players. Not only can they be found inside chests or as drops from mobs, but players can also easily craft them.

These tools are crafted using three pieces of any material the player chooses (limited to wood, stone, iron, gold and diamond). They will then need to combine the material with two sticks.

There are nine enchantments that can be placed on axes. These enchantments can be used to make the axes stronger. The following is a list of all the enchantments that can be placed on axes:

• Bane of Arthropods
• Curse of Vanishing
• Efficiency
• Fortune
• Mending
• Sharpness
• Silk Touch
• Smite
• Unbreaking

Another new enchantment for the axe, called "Cleaving", will also be coming in one of the next big updates. However, this enchantment will only be available in Java Edition.

The main question is, what are axes really used for in Minecraft? In this article, players will learn the best uses for an axe in the game.

---

Main uses for axes in Minecraft

1) Cutting wood

Preparing to chop some wood using an axe (Image via Minecraft)

Axes are mainly used to cut wooden blocks faster in Minecraft. Other tools can be used to break wood; however, an axe will do it much faster. It will use one durability when every one block is broken.

Trees, bookshelves and wooden fences are just three examples of items that can be broken faster using an axe in the game. Each rarity of the axe will break wood faster than the last.

For example, a stone axe will break a wood block twice as fast as a wooden axe, and an iron axe will break a wood block 30% faster than a stone axe.

---

2) As a weapon

The sword is actually less powerful than the axe in Minecraft (Image via Minecraft)

Another main use for axes in Minecraft is as a weapon. Players can place Sharpness on the axe, which will enable it to do additional damage to mobs and other players.

Axes are better to use than swords are in Java Edition. The wooden axe deals the same damage as a diamond sword. Therefore, imagine how powerful an iron axe enchanted with Sharpness would be. However, Bedrock players should instead use the sword as axes deal less damage in Bedrock Edition.

Although the axe can be a great weapon, it has a few disadvantages. Attacking with an axe will cause it to lose two durability whenever the player uses it as a weapon. This will cause the axe to break much faster unless the player equips it with Unbreaking or Mending.