How Minecraft banners work
A banner starts as one of 16 colours, crafted from six wool of that colour and a stick. That base colour is fixed. Every pattern you add is a layer: one shape in one dye colour, drawn over everything before it. The last layer sits on top, so order matters. A black border added last frames the whole banner; the same border added first can be covered by later layers.
- Six layers in survival. The loom won't add a seventh, in Java or Bedrock.
- Undo the top layer by using the banner on a cauldron with water in it. Each wash removes the last pattern added.
- More layers only by command. Java commands can add more than six and Java draws up to 16. Bedrock shows at most six, even from outside editors.
How to use a loom
Craft a loom
Two string above two planks of any wood. Looms also stand in village shepherd houses.
Add the banner and a dye
The loom has a slot for the banner, one for the dye and one for a banner pattern item. Each layer uses one dye.
Add a pattern item if the design needs one
Ten patterns only appear with their banner pattern item in the third slot. The item is not used up, so one is enough for every banner.
Pick the pattern and take the banner
Choose the pattern from the list, check the preview and take the result. Repeat for each layer, in the order shown in the loom steps above.
Banner pattern items and where to find them
Six pattern items are crafted from paper and one other item. The other four can't be crafted: they are bought from villagers or found in structures.
| Pattern item | Unlocks | How to get it |
|---|---|---|
| Bordure Indented Banner Pattern | Bordure Indented | Craft: paper + vines |
| Field Masoned Banner Pattern | Field Masoned | Craft: paper + bricks |
| Flower Charge Banner Pattern | Flower Charge | Craft: paper + oxeye daisy |
| Creeper Charge Banner Pattern | Creeper Charge | Craft: paper + creeper head |
| Skull Charge Banner Pattern | Skull Charge | Craft: paper + wither skeleton skull |
| Thing Banner Pattern | Thing | Craft: paper + enchanted golden apple |
| Globe Banner Pattern | Globe | Buy from a master cartographer villager for 8 emeralds |
| Snout Banner Pattern | Snout | Chests in bastion remnants (about 10%) |
| Flow Banner Pattern | Flow | Ominous vaults in trial chambers (15%) |
| Guster Banner Pattern | Guster | Vaults and reward chests in trial chambers (about 4%) |
Java 1.21.2 made Field Masoned and Bordure Indented need their pattern items; before that the loom made them from dye alone. Bedrock has always needed them. On Bedrock, most patterns can also be added at a crafting table with extra dye, except the ones whose pattern item can't be crafted.
How to put a banner on a shield
Put a shield and a finished banner together in a crafting grid. The banner is used up, and the shield keeps its durability and enchantments. The shield must not have a pattern already, and shield patterns can't be washed off, so finish the banner first. Bedrock has allowed banners on shields since version 1.20.0.
Shields have about half the resolution of banners, so thin lines and small charges look softer, as the shield preview above shows. A banner with more than six layers keeps only six on the shield.
How to copy a banner
Put the patterned banner and a blank banner of the same base colour in a crafting grid. You get two identical banners: the copy, plus the original back. The blank one must have no patterns. On Bedrock, place the patterned banner to the left of or above the blank one. Banners with more than six layers, such as the ominous banner, can't be copied this way.
Banner /give commands in Java and Bedrock
Java 1.20.5 moved item data from NBT tags to item components. Patterns now go in banner_patterns, with pattern IDs such as stripe_top and colour names such as red:
/give @p white_banner[banner_patterns=[{pattern:stripe_top,color:red}]]From 1.13 to 1.20.4 the same banner used BlockEntityTag, short pattern codes and numbered dyes (red is 14):
/give @p white_banner{BlockEntityTag:{Patterns:[{Pattern:ts,Color:14}]}}For a shield, give shield and set its colour with base_color=red (or Base:14 before 1.20.5). Chat accepts 256 characters, so long designs need a command block: /give @p command_block, paste the command in and power it with a button.
Bedrock's /give can't carry banner patterns: its components only cover things like where an item can be placed. It can give a plain banner by data value, from 0 for black to 15 for white, so /give @s banner 1 1 is a red banner. Add the layers in a loom.
All Minecraft banner patterns
Every pattern with its Java name, the Bedrock name where it differs, the ID used by 1.20.5+ commands and the short code used by 1.13–1.20.4.
| Pattern | Looks like | ID | Code | Needs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BaseBedrock: Base Fess | Bottom stripe | stripe_bottom | bs | Dye |
| ChiefBedrock: Chief Fess | Top stripe | stripe_top | ts | Dye |
| Pale Dexter | Left stripe | stripe_left | ls | Dye |
| Pale Sinister | Right stripe | stripe_right | rs | Dye |
| Pale | Centre stripe, vertical | stripe_center | cs | Dye |
| Fess | Middle stripe, horizontal | stripe_middle | ms | Dye |
| Bend | Diagonal stripe from the top left | stripe_downright | drs | Dye |
| Bend Sinister | Diagonal stripe from the top right | stripe_downleft | dls | Dye |
| Paly | Four thin vertical stripes | small_stripes | ss | Dye |
| Saltire | Diagonal cross (X) | cross | cr | Dye |
| Cross | Plus-shaped cross | straight_cross | sc | Dye |
| Per Bend SinisterBedrock: Per Bend Inverted | Top-left half, cut diagonally | diagonal_left | ld | Dye |
| Per BendBedrock: Per Bend Sinister Inverted | Top-right half, cut diagonally | diagonal_right | rud | Dye |
| Per Bend InvertedBedrock: Per Bend Sinister | Bottom-left half, cut diagonally | diagonal_up_left | lud | Dye |
| Per Bend Sinister InvertedBedrock: Per Bend | Bottom-right half, cut diagonally | diagonal_up_right | rd | Dye |
| Per Pale | Left half | half_vertical | vh | Dye |
| Per Pale Inverted | Right half | half_vertical_right | vhr | Dye |
| Per Fess | Top half | half_horizontal | hh | Dye |
| Per Fess Inverted | Bottom half | half_horizontal_bottom | hhb | Dye |
| Base Dexter Canton | Bottom-left corner | square_bottom_left | bl | Dye |
| Base Sinister Canton | Bottom-right corner | square_bottom_right | br | Dye |
| Chief Dexter Canton | Top-left corner | square_top_left | tl | Dye |
| Chief Sinister Canton | Top-right corner | square_top_right | tr | Dye |
| Chevron | Triangle rising from the bottom | triangle_bottom | bt | Dye |
| Inverted Chevron | Triangle hanging from the top | triangle_top | tt | Dye |
| Base Indented | Sawtooth along the bottom | triangles_bottom | bts | Dye |
| Chief Indented | Sawtooth along the top | triangles_top | tts | Dye |
| Roundel | Circle in the middle | circle | mc | Dye |
| Lozenge | Diamond in the middle | rhombus | mr | Dye |
| Bordure | Plain border | border | bo | Dye |
| Gradient | Fades out from the top | gradient | gra | Dye |
| Base Gradient | Fades out from the bottom | gradient_up | gru | Dye |
| Field | Covers the whole banner | base | b | Commands only |
| Bordure Indented | Zigzag border | curly_border | cbo | Dye + Bordure Indented pattern |
| Field Masoned | Brick wall | bricks | bri | Dye + Field Masoned pattern |
| Flower Charge | Flower | flower | flo | Dye + Flower Charge pattern |
| Creeper Charge | Creeper face | creeper | cre | Dye + Creeper Charge pattern |
| Skull Charge | Skull and crossbones | skull | sku | Dye + Skull Charge pattern |
| Thing | The old Mojang logo | mojang | moj | Dye + Thing pattern |
| Globe | A globe | globe | glb | Dye + Globe pattern |
| Snout | A piglin snout | piglin | pig | Dye + Snout pattern |
| Flow | A square spiral | flow | flw | Dye + Flow pattern |
| Guster | A breeze | guster | gus | Dye + Guster pattern |
Tips for banner designs
- Strong contrast reads from far away. Dark patterns on a light base, or the other way round, beat two similar colours.
- A border in the base colour, added last, trims stripes into letters and frames. The Letter A and Letter H presets work this way.
- Plan the six layers before you start. Washing only removes the top layer, so a mistake at layer two costs every layer above it.
- Want the design bigger than a banner? Turn it into pixel art from the PNG, or hang it on a wall as map art.
- Running a server? Put the same emblem in your server icon so players recognise it in the multiplayer list.
Minecraft banner questions
How many layers can a Minecraft banner have?
Six in survival, in both Java and Bedrock: the loom won't add a seventh. Java commands can add more, and Java draws up to 16. Bedrock never shows more than six.
How do you make a banner in Minecraft?
Craft six wool of one colour with a stick for the base banner. Then add patterns one layer at a time in a loom, with one dye per layer.
Which banner patterns need a banner pattern item?
Ten: Field Masoned, Bordure Indented, Flower Charge, Creeper Charge, Skull Charge, Thing, Globe, Snout, Flow and Guster. The item stays in the loom and is never used up.
Where do you get the Globe, Snout, Flow and Guster patterns?
Globe is sold by master cartographer villagers for 8 emeralds. Snout is in bastion remnant chests. Flow comes from ominous vaults and Guster from vaults in trial chambers.
How do you remove a pattern from a banner?
Use the banner on a cauldron with water in it. Each wash removes the top layer, so repeat to go further back. Patterns on a shield can't be washed off.
How do you copy a banner in Minecraft?
Craft the patterned banner with a blank banner of the same base colour. You get the copy and the original back. Banners with more than six layers can't be copied.
Does the banner maker work for Bedrock Edition?
Yes. Patterns, dyes and loom steps are the same on Bedrock, and the maker shows Bedrock's names where they differ. Bedrock commands can't add patterns, so use the loom.
How do I use the banner /give command?
Copy the command for your Java version and paste it into chat in a world with cheats on, or as an operator. Commands over 256 characters need a command block.