How to Make Mud in Minecraft

Mud is a versatile block introduced in Minecraft 1.19 during The Wild Update. It is highly valued for its unique texture and its role in making clay renewable for the first time in vanilla gameplay.

If you want to get mud in Minecraft, this guide will show you how to obtain it both naturally in the world and by crafting it yourself.

Builders appreciate mud for its earthy look, while farmers rely on it for producing clay. As a block found abundantly in certain biomes, mud serves a dual purpose, making it one of the most practical blocks in modern Minecraft.

In this guide, we will explain what mud is, how to make it, where to find it, and how to use it effectively for building, farming, and automation.

Mud is a non-full block that measures 0.875 blocks high, making it slightly shorter than a standard block. This subtle difference gives mud unique potential for automation. For example, a hopper placed directly underneath a mud block can collect items dropped onto it, which is especially useful for automated item collection systems and does not work with full blocks.

Falling blocks, such as sand or gravel, will break and drop as items when they land on mud, rather than stacking, and hoppers below can collect these items dropped onto the mud.

Mud also has movement properties. Entities standing on mud sink slightly into the block, mud sinks slightly, and sinks entities, similar to soul sand. Still, it does not slow movement speed significantly unless combined with other effects. This makes mud useful for farms or contraptions where item collection and entity behavior matter.

Note that grass blocks cannot be converted into mud, unlike dirt and other substrates.

Mud generates naturally in the Mangrove Swamp biome, one of the new biomes added in the Wild Update. Within these swamps, you can find different types of mud, highlighting the diversity and ecological significance of mud in these areas. You can identify mud blocks by their darker, wet texture compared to dirt blocks.

Mud can be harvested with any tool, but a shovel is the fastest. Unlike some blocks, mud does not require a tool to drop itself. Even breaking it by hand yields the mud block item, making it accessible early in the game.

Mud also appears in Trail Ruins structures alongside muddy gravel, adding archaeological flavor to exploration.

Mud in Minecraft is most commonly found in the mangrove swamp biome, a lush and waterlogged environment introduced with the Wild Update. This biome is typically located in warmer regions, often bordering jungles or deserts. It is instantly recognizable by its dense mangrove trees and the abundance of mud blocks covering the ground. The unique, dark texture of mud in the mangrove swamp biome makes it perfect for players looking to create realistic swamp landscapes or gather large quantities of mud for building and crafting.

Beyond the mangrove swamp, mud also generates in trial ruins and in the entrance rooms of trial chambers, though these locations are less common and offer smaller amounts of mud. The natural generation of mud in these areas provides players with alternative sources for this versatile block, especially for those exploring new structures or seeking out rare resources. Thanks to its abundance in mangrove swamps, mud is one of the easiest blocks to collect in large quantities, making it a valuable resource for builders and survivalists alike.

Players can create mud manually by using a water bottle, splash water bottle, or lingering water bottle on dirt, coarse dirt, or rooted dirt. To fill bottles, players must first collect water from a water source, such as a river, lake, or cauldron. The dirt block transforms instantly into mud.

For automation, you can use a dispenser filled with water bottles facing dirt blocks. The transformation of dirt into mud using dispensers is a post-generation process that occurs after the initial placement of the blocks. When activated, the dispenser automatically creates mud. In Bedrock Edition, players often build piston-driven tape systems to cycle dirt blocks in front of dispensers, enabling large-scale mud farming for building projects.

To efficiently collect mud blocks in Minecraft, it's best to use a shovel, which breaks mud much faster than other tools or by hand. This makes it much quicker to gather large amounts of mud for projects like crafting packed mud, mud bricks, or even muddy mangrove roots. If you're looking to automate the process, consider setting up a dispenser filled with water bottles to convert dirt into mud, then use a shovel to harvest the new mud blocks.

Mud blocks have unique properties that set them apart from other blocks. When you or other entities walk over mud, you'll notice a slight sinking effect, similar to soul sand, but unlike soul sand, mud does not slow down your movement speed. This makes mud a great choice for creative builds or farms where you want the visual effect without sacrificing mobility. Whether you're collecting mud for crafting, building, or experimenting with its unique sinking mechanic, using the right tools and understanding its properties will help you make the most of mud in Minecraft.

Packed mud is a full block and serves as a crafting ingredient.

• Recipe: Combine 1 mud block and 1 wheat in any configuration in the crafting grid.
• Packed mud has a sturdier texture and is used to craft mud bricks.

Mud bricks are crafted from packed mud.

• Recipe: Place 4 packed mud blocks in a 2x2 crafting table to produce 4 mud bricks.
• Variants: Mud bricks can be crafted into stairs, slabs, and walls using either a crafting table or a stonecutter.

Mud bricks are decorative building blocks with a distinct, earthy texture, offering builders an alternative to stone and clay bricks.

Mud's most important utility is its ability to become clay.

• Place a mud block above a dripstone block with pointed dripstone underneath. Over time, the mud eventually turns into a clay block.

This mechanic makes clay renewable for the first time in vanilla Minecraft, supporting large-scale brick production and villager trading.

No. Mud can only remain mud or eventually become clay.

No. Sugarcane cannot be planted on mud. It requires dirt, sand, podzol, or moss.

Yes. Mud and muddy gravel can appear in Trail Ruins structures.

Yes. Dispensers with water bottles and dripstone setups allow full automation of mud farming and clay production.

Mud is one of the most versatile blocks in Minecraft. It can be found naturally in mangrove swamps, created with water bottles on dirt, and converted into packed mud, mud bricks, or renewable clay. Its unique block height makes it valuable for automation, while its crafting recipes expand building options.

By learning how to make mud in Minecraft and experimenting with automation setups, you can unlock renewable clay farming, decorative mud brick builds, and advanced hopper systems. Mud is not just a building block; its appearance in Minecraft was inspired by mud concept art and pre-release mud textures seen in development images, including those from Minecraft Dungeons, where the same texture and similar visuals were used as a pre-release texture before the official release.