How to Craft Candles in Minecraft

Last Updated: August 27, 2021 References

Candles are a new lightsource added in the 1.17 update that are crafted using string and honeycomb. They are used as an alternate source of light and can be used to spruce up uneaten cakes.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Gathering Materials

1
Find at least 1 string. Each candle needs 1 piece of string to craft. String can be obtained by: killing spiders, striders, and cats; or by breaking cobwebs or the tripwires that naturally generate in jungle temples. String can also be found in chests in dungeons, desert temples, pillager outposts, woodland mansions, and bastions.^{[1]
X
Research source}
2
Get 2 iron ingots. Iron ingots are primarily obtained by mining iron ore and smelting either the ore block or the raw iron that comes from it. Iron ore can be found from Y-levels 0-63 in all biomes.^{[2]
X
Research source} Iron ingots may also be found in chests in mineshafts, dungeons, buried treasure, desert temples, jungle temples, shipwrecks, pillager outposts, villages, woodland mansions, strongholds, end cities, nether fortresses, and bastions.^{[3]
X
Research source}

Advertisement
3
Craft a pair of shears. Open a crafting table or your inventory and place the 2 iron ingots diagonally next to each other.
4
Find a bee nest. Bee nests can generate in plains, sunflower plains, flower forests, forests, wooded hills, birch forests, and birch forest variants.^{[4]
X
Research source} Look for bees flying around in these biomes and follow them back to their nest.
5
Craft a campfire. Campfires are used to make the bees non-aggressive so you won't be attacked for harvesting honeycomb. To make a campfire, you'll need 3 sticks, a piece of coal or charcoal, 3 logs, and a crafting table. Open a crafting table and place the 3 logs in each slot in the bottom row, then put the coal or charcoal in the middle of the middle row. Place a stick on either side of the coal/charcoal and put the final stick above the coal/charcoal.
6
Place the campfire below the bee nest. It doesn't have to be directly below the nest, but the smoke has to be able to reach the nest. Make sure there are no blocks covering it that prevent smoke from coming through.
7
Wait for the bees to fill the nest. The bees that live in the nest will come out during the day to get pollen from nearby flowers. They will then go into the nest and gradually fill it up with honey. You'll know the nest is full and ready to harvest when you see yellow honey coming out.
8
Use the shears on the nest. Once the nest is full, hold the shears in your hand and use them on the nest. This will give you 3 honeycombs.

Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Crafting and Using Candles

1
Craft a candle. Open a crafting table or your inventory and place the honeycomb and string in the crafting grid. Make sure the string is directly above the honeycomb.
2
Dye candles. You can make different colored dyes by placing flowers, cocoa beans, lapis lazuli, bonemeal, beetroot, and ink sacs in a crafting space. You can also get dyes by smelting cacti or sea pickles, or by combining different dyes in a crafting table. To dye candles, place a candle and dye in a crafting space. You'll need 1 dye for each candle you want to color.
3
Use candles as a lightsource. Unlike torches or other light sources, candles aren't lit up when placed, you'll need to use a flint and steel or fire charge to light them. A flint and steel can be crafted using flint, which is obtained by mining gravel, and an iron ingot, which is obtained by smelting iron ore or raw iron. Once you have a flint and steel, place up to 4 similar colored candles on a solid block and use the flint and steel on them.
- A single lit candle emits a light level of 3, and each candle placed and lit on the same block increases the light level by 3, leading to a maximum light level of 12.^{[5]
  X
  Research source}
- Candles can be extinguished using water or by interacting with them again. You can also throw water bottles on candles to extinguish them.
4
Place candles on a cake. If you hold a candle in your hand and use it on an uneaten cake, the candle will be placed on the cake.^{[6]
X
Research source} You can then use a flint and steel on the cake to light the candle.
- If you eat or destroy the cake, the candle will be dropped.

Community Q&A

Question

Can I use candles as a torch?

Seasalt25

Top Answerer

Yes, you can use candles as an alternative to torches. However, you cannot place candles on walls, only on solid blocks, and you have to light them using a flint and steel unlike torches.
Question

Which kind of Minecraft can this work on cause it is not working for me?

Seasalt25

Top Answerer

You can craft and use candles on Minecraft version 1.17 or above. In any other version, candles do not exist.
Question

Can candles be used as decor?

Seasalt25

Top Answerer

Yes, candles make a great decoration in Minecraft. As well as being practical for lighting purposes, you can use them to decorate cakes, or to decorate builds where torches or other light sources don't fit well.