Once you reach the mid-late game part of Minecraft, you’ll be able to craft an Enchanting Table and begin upgrading armor, weapons and tools. It’s recommended that you’re at least level 30 though before you start to do this, that way you’ll get the highest possible enchantments.
Even though in this list we’re going to talk about the best bow enchantments, there is no guarantee you will get them. The Enchanting Table provides completely random enchantments and you can’t just keep re-rolling, sadly.
Hovering over an Enchantment in the table will tell you one Enchantment that you’re guaranteed to get. However, there’s always a chance you’ll receive more than 1 Enchantment, possibly even 4 per item.
Below is our list of the enchantments you should be looking for when upgrading a bow. If you want to check out how to upgrade some other tools, make sure to take a look at our Minecraft Enchantment Guides.
The Best Bow Enchantments
There are 6 different enchantments available for the bow in Minecraft. Some of them are unique to the bow, whilst others can be applied to other tools that you own. Here’s a complete list of them:
- Infinity (I): You only require a single arrow in your inventory, which can be used indefinitely.
- Flame (I): The bow will shoot flaming arrows, which deal extra damage over time. Can also be used to ignite blocks and remotely detonate TNT.
- Power (V): Increases initial damage dealt by arrows. This enchantment will make it slightly easier to kill enemies, and requires less arrow usage.
- Punch (II): Increases knock-back of arrows. When you shoot an enemy, they will be knocked further away, giving you more time to react.
- Unbreaking (III): Increases item durability, so you will be able to use the bow for a longer duration before it breaks.
- Mending (I): When you collect experience orbs in Minecraft, the orbs will go towards repairing your bow instead of towards increasing your character level. However you can’t obtain Mending from an Enchanting Table.
- Curse of Vanishing (I): Item destroyed on death. After dying in Minecraft, any item with this enchantment will not drop on the ground, instead it will be destroyed. This enchantment can only be applied from an anvil.
We’ll talk about each Enchantment a little more below, and what makes them the best for your bow. Enchanting Tables aren’t the only way to receive Enchantments either, as you can obtain Enchanted Books from many locations in Minecraft.
Enchantment Breakdown
Now, which ones are the best options? Well, the ‘Infinity‘ enchantment is probably going to be the best Enchantment available for your bow, especially during the early part of Minecraft where arrows are scarce. Owning the Infinity enchantment means that you only need to keep a single arrow in your inventory.
‘Flame’ is also a great enchantment, causing your bow to fire flaming arrows. Flaming arrows deal an additional 2 hearts of damage over 5 seconds. You can also ignite TNT and Campfires with flaming arrows. However they will not set items on fire such as trees.
Having the ‘Power’ enchantment which goes up to Level 5 is another great Enchantment. It will massively increase the damage your bow does, allowing you to 1 hit most mobs in Minecraft. At full charge, a Power V enchantment will deal an additional 11.5 hearts worth of damage, going up to 12.5 with a critical attack.
Finally, ‘Unbreaking’ and ‘Punch’ are also good, but they don’t massively change the performance of a Minecraft bow. Punch will increase the knock-back of enemies hit with a bow, whilst Unbreaking will make a bow last longer before breaking. However with Mending, you can repair a bows durability automatically anyway.
How to Apply Enchanted Books
As previously mentioned, you won’t only obtain Enchantments from an Enchanting Table. You can also find already-enchanted books from multiple locations.
They have a small chance of spawning in Loot Chests firstly. Fishing can also give you Enchanted Books, as they’re considered treasure, having a higher ‘Luck of the Sea’ fishing rod enchantment will increase your chances of finding them. Librarian Villagers will also sell you Enchanted Books as part of their trades.
Once you have an Enchanted Book, take your Bow and Book into an Anvil, placing the Bow in the left slot. Place the Book in the middle, and you will be able to take out your Bow with the Enchantment applied. This is also a good opportunity to give your bow a new name if you please.
