Want to boost your speed, strength, and mining power in Minecraft? A Minecraft beacon can do all that—if you build it right. In this guide, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about beacons—from crafting and activating them to optimizing their effects for maximum efficiency.

What is a beacon in Minecraft?

A beacon in Minecraft is a special block that creates a light beam in the sky and gives helpful effects to players nearby. To work, a beacon must be placed on a pyramid made of iron, gold, emerald, diamond, or netherite blocks. 

What does a beacon do in Minecraft?

A beacon in Minecraft provides special powers to players and acts as a landmark with a tall light beam. When activated, it can give effects like Speed, Haste, Strength, Resistance, Jump Boost, or Regeneration to players within a certain range.

To work, the beacon must be placed on top of a pyramid made of iron, gold, emerald, diamond, or netherite blocks. The larger the pyramid, the stronger the effects and the wider the area they cover. A fully built beacon can reach up to 50 blocks in every direction and last 17 seconds per effect cycle.

Beacons also emit light at level 15, which can help brighten areas and melt snow and ice. Additionally, players can customize the beam’s color by placing stained glass above it. This makes it useful for navigation, marking important locations, and getting helpful boosts while mining, exploring, or fighting.

Minecraft beacon recipe: How to make a beacon in Minecraft?

To craft a beacon, you'll need:

• 1 Nether Star: Obtained by defeating the Wither, a boss mob that players summon using three Wither Skeleton skulls and four soul sand or soul soil. Wither Skeletons spawn in Nether Fortresses, and their skulls drop rarely when killed.
• 3 Obsidian: Created when water touches lava source blocks. Best mined using a diamond or netherite pickaxe. Found naturally in ruined Nether portals, end pillars, and strongholds.
• 5 Glass: Smelt sand in a furnace to create glass. Sand is found in beaches, rivers, and deserts.

How to craft a beacon in Minecraft?

• Open the Crafting Table
• Arrange the materials exactly as follows:
  • First row: 3 Glass
  • Second row: 1 Glass, 1 Nether Star, 1 Glass
  • Third row: 3 Obsidian
• Once correctly arranged, the beacon will appear in the result box. Drag it into your inventory.

How to use a beacon in Minecraft

To use a beacon effectively, you need to activate it with a pyramid, select a power, and understand how to optimize its effects. Here’s a step-by-step guide:

A beacon must be placed on top of a pyramid made of iron, gold, emerald, diamond, or netherite blocks. The bigger the pyramid, the stronger the beacon’s effects.

Minecraft beacon range

A beacon’s range and effects depend on the size of its pyramid. The bigger the pyramid, the stronger the effects.

Choose a power

Once activated, right-click the beacon to open its GUI and select a primary power. You must feed it with:

• Iron ingot
• Gold ingot
• Emerald
• Diamond
• Netherite ingot

Select effects

• Primary Powers (Available on All Levels)
  • Speed I → Increases movement speed.
  • Haste I → Increases mining and attack speed.
• Additional Powers (Requires Higher Levels)
  • Jump Boost I → Higher jumps (Level 2+ required).
  • Resistance I → Reduces damage (Level 2+ required).
  • Strength I → Boosts melee damage (Level 3+ required).
  • Regeneration I → Restores health (Level 4 required).

Every four seconds, the beacon applies status effects that last:

• 5–9 seconds after leaving the beacon’s range.
• 13–17 seconds if using a full pyramid.

Customizing the beacon’s beam

To customize the color of the beam, place stained glass (or panes) on top of the beacon. The more white glass added, the lighter the color.

You can stack multiple glass colors to create unique beam shades. The blending algorithm averages the RGB values of each glass layer.

Multi-beacon setups for maximum power

If you want all six effects at once, build a six-beacon pyramid:

• Requires 244 mineral blocks.
• Base size: 10×11 blocks.

This allows you to activate all buffs simultaneously for ultimate power!

How many blocks do I need for a full beacon?

To build a full beacon, you need 164 blocks made from iron, gold, emerald, diamond, or netherite. The beacon must sit on a pyramid with four layers. The top layer needs 9 blocks, the second needs 25, the third needs 49, and the bottom layer needs 81. You must build the pyramid in the right shape for the beacon to work at full power. A full beacon gives the best effects, like Speed, Strength, Resistance, or Regeneration. You can also activate two powers at the same time when the pyramid is complete.

Does a beacon keep mobs away?

No, beacons do not stop mobs from spawning. The beam only gives you effects. It does not affect zombies, skeletons, spiders, or any other mobs. If you want to stop mobs from spawning near your base, you must place light sources. Use torches, lanterns, glowstone, or other bright blocks. The beacon helps you move faster or mine quicker, but it does not protect your area from enemies.