Ladder

For the ladder in Story Mode, see MCSM:Ladder. For the ladder in Minecraft Earth, see MCE:Ladder.

Ladder

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Renewable	Yes
Stackable	Yes (64)
Tool
Blast resistance	0.4
Hardness	0.4
Luminous	No
Transparent	Yes
Waterloggable	Yes
Flammable	No
Catches fire from lava	No
Map color	0 NONE
Note block instrument	Default (Harp)

The ladder is a block used for climbing vertically or horizontally. They can be placed only on the sides of other blocks.

Obtaining

Breaking

The suitable tool to break ladder is axe.

Block	Ladder
Hardness	0.4
Tool
Breaking time (sec)[A]
Default	10.6 (JE) 0.6 (BE)
Wooden	10.3 (JE) 0.3 (BE)
Stone	10.15 (JE) 0.15 (BE)
Copper	10.15 (JE) 0.15 (BE)
Iron	10.1 (JE) 0.1 (BE)
Diamond	10.1 (JE) 0.1 (BE)
Netherite	10.1 (JE) 0.1 (BE)
Golden	10.05 (JE) 0.05 (BE)
Options
Efficiency	000
Haste	001 1JEBE

Legend

• incorrect tool, drops nothing
• correct tool, drops nothing or something other than the block itself
• correct tool, drops the block itself
• italicized can be instant mined

Ladder drops itself when it's destroyed.

Natural generation

Ladders generate naturally in library rooms of strongholds and in intersection rooms with a wooden ceiling. Ladders can also be found in village structures such as plains and taiga temples and many small or medium houses, as well as in churches. They may also be found leading to the basements of igloos, in end ships on the pillar leading up to the crow's nest, and in rail rooms of woodland mansions. Ladders can also generate in ancient cities, trail ruins, trial chambers, and in end cities.

Crafting

Ingredients	Crafting recipe
Stick	3

Usage

Ladders provide a way to cushion a player's impact after a free fall. Upon entering a ladder's area of effect, the player's speed is reduced instantly to normal ladder descent speed and no damage is taken. Falling onto the narrow top surface of the ladder incurs falling damage as normal.

Holding the sneak key while climbing a ladder causes the player to grab hold of the ladder and not fall off. While the player is holding on to a ladder, mining speed decreases.

Any mob can climb a ladder in the same way a player does: by pushing against it. Mobs cannot use ladders deliberately — they do not remain on a ladder to get somewhere, but a ladder directly in their path lets them climb up.

Placement

Ladders can be placed on any full solid block face, except for the top and bottom faces.

Ladders displace lava blocks to create an air pocket and can be used instead of glass to let lava light shine through a ceiling. They also displace flowing water, but a ladder placed inside a water source block becomes waterlogged and does not create an air pocket.

Climbing

A ladder takes effect whenever the player's lower half is in the block occupied by a ladder. These effects are:

• If the player pushes against a wall, the player moves upward at about 2.35 blocks per second instead of horizontally. (Thus inside a 1×1 ladder shaft, the player can use any movement key to move upward.)
• If a player occupies the 1×1 ladder shaft, the player can ascend the ladder by holding jump instead of using a horizontal movement key.
• If a player moving perpendicular to the ladder block enters the ladder block, the player begins to move upward, but then falls off the ladder shortly afterward if the player continues to move horizontally.
• The player's maximum downward speed is reduced to a "descending ladder" speed, at about 3 blocks per second.
• The player's horizontal movement friction is the same as on ice. (That is, moving around in the tiny space the player is in while still hanging on the ladder at the same level.)

Additionally:

• In Bedrock Edition, a player can hold down the jump button while climbing a ladder to make the climbing speed faster.
• Also in Bedrock Edition, waterlogged ladders cannot be climbed.
• In Java Edition, when a trapdoor satisfies the following conditions, it also becomes climbable:
  • The trapdoor is placed directly above a ladder.
  • The trapdoor is opened.
  • The trapdoor and the ladder directly below it face the same direction.
• A player on a slab in front of the ladder must jump to get on the ladder despite being only half a block down.
• Like vines, ladders slow the player down when walked through.
• Consuming food, blocking with a shield or pulling back a bow, do not slow the player down while climbing ladders (unlike when walking, sprinting and swimming).^[1]

Fuel

A ladder can be used as fuel in furnaces, smelting 1.5 items per ladder.

Sounds

Java Edition:

ladder sound type
Sound	Closed captions	Source	Description	Identifier	Translation key	Volume	Pitch	Attenuation distance
	​Block broken	Blocks	Once the block has broken	block.ladder.break	subtitles.block.generic.break​	1.0	0.8	16
	​Block placed​[until: JE 26.4]	Blocks	When the block is placed	block.ladder.place	subtitles.block.generic.place​	1.0	0.8	16
	​Block breaking	Blocks	While the block is in the process of being broken	block.ladder.hit	subtitles.block.generic.hit​	0.25	0.5	16
	​Something falls on a block	Entity-Dependent	Falling on the block with fall damage	block.ladder.fall	subtitles.block.generic.fall​	0.5	0.75	16
	​Footsteps	Entity-Dependent	Walking on the block	block.ladder.step	subtitles.block.generic.footsteps​	0.15	1.0	16

Bedrock Edition:

ladder sound type
Sound	Closed captions	Source	Description	Identifier	Translation key	Volume	Pitch
	​ ?	Blocks	Once the block has broken	dig.wood	​ ?	1.0	0.8–1.0
	​ ?	Blocks	When the block is placed	dig.wood	​ ?	1.0	0.8–1.0
	​ ?	Blocks	While the block is in the process of being broken	hit.ladder	​ ?	0.25	0.5
	​ ?	Players	Falling on the block with fall damage	fall.ladder	​ ?	0.4	1.0
	​ ?	Players	Walking on the block	step.ladder	​ ?	0.3	1.0
None	None​[sound 1]	None	Undefined sound event	jump.ladder	None​[sound 1]	0.12	1.0
	​ ?	None	Undefined sound event	land.ladder	​ ?	0.22	1.0

Data values

ID

Java Edition:

Name	Identifier	Form	Block tags	Translation key
Ladder	ladder	Block & Item	climbable	block.minecraft.ladder

Bedrock Edition:

Name	Identifier	Numeric ID	Form	Item ID[i 1]	Translation key
Ladder	ladder	65	Block & Giveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	tile.ladder.name

Block states

Java Edition:

Bedrock Edition:

History

Java Edition

Java Edition Infdev
20100607							Added ladders. In an interview with Rock, Paper, Shotgun, Notch stated that he never originally wanted to add ladders because they are never fun, and that the fans convinced him to do it.[2]
							Ladders can be placed on every other block and still be climbable because the player can climb a ladder when any part of the body was on it, not just the lowest part.
							The crafting recipe of ladders produces one ladder per 7 sticks.
20100617-1531							Ladders are no longer destroyed by water.
20100618							The texture of ladders has been darkened.
Java Edition Beta
1.4							Pressing the sneak key now stops the player from moving down the ladder.
1.5							The player can no longer climb ladders spaced every other block.
							The crafting recipe now produces 2 ladders, thus the changes do not change the number of sticks needed to make a ladder of a given height.
1.6			Test Build 3				Ladders can no longer be placed on glowstone.
1.8			Pre-release				Ladders now generate in villages and strongholds.
Java Edition
1.1			12w01a				The collision boxes for ladders have now been removed.
1.2.1			12w03a				The collision boxes for ladders have now been re-added.
			1.2				The crafting recipe now produces 3 ladders per 7 sticks, as opposed to 1 from Infdev until Beta 1.4_01 and 2 from Beta 1.5 until 1.1.
1.4.2			12w38a				Added a sound for climbing up ladders.
1.5			13w02a				Added death messages for ladders: "Player fell off a ladder".
1.8			14w04a				If a ladder is set to render as the block inside of a minecart via commands or map editing, it now appears as this (previously it would be entirely invisible).
			14w10a				The back faces of ladders now render.[3]
			14w31a				Ladders are now mined faster using axes.
1.9			15w31a				The ladder's bounding box is now 3⁄16 block (formerly 2⁄16).
							An open trapdoor may now be climbed like a ladder if it is directly above a ladder and on the same side of the block.
							Ladders are now generated in end ships.
			15w43a				A length of ladder generates as part of the shaft from igloos leading to their basements.
1.11			16w33a				Ladders can now be used to fuel furnaces.
			16w39a				Ladders now generate in woodland mansions.
1.13			18w10d				Water can now be placed on the same block as ladders.
1.14			18w43a				The texture of ladders has been changed.
			18w45a				Ladders can now also be climbed by pressing the jump key.
			19w13a				Ladders can now be placed on glowstone.
1.16			20w10a				Ladders can now be placed on blocks of redstone, observers, and targets.[4]
1.17			21w13a				The model of the ladder has been changed so that the back texture is mirrored.
1.19			22w13a				Ladders now generate in ancient cities.
1.20			23w12a				Ladders now generate in trail ruins.
1.20.3 Experiment Update 1.21			23w45a				Ladders now generate in trial chambers.

Bedrock Edition

Pocket Edition Alpha
Demo							Added ladders. Their back faces do not render.
v0.3.0							Survival players no longer start out with an infinite amount of ladders in the inventory.
v0.9.0			build 1				The back faces of ladders now render.
			build 10				The ladder collision box has been made slightly thinner.
v0.11.0			?				Mobs can now climb ladders.
v0.12.1			build 1				Added a sound for climbing up ladders.
							With sneaking added, it is now possible to sit on a ladder without moving.
Pocket Edition
1.0.0			alpha 0.17.0.1				A length of ladder generates as part of the shaft from igloos leading to their basements.
1.1.0			alpha 1.1.0.0				Ladders now generate in woodland mansions.
Bedrock Edition
1.4.0			beta 1.2.14.2				Water can now be placed on the same block as ladders.
1.10.0			beta 1.10.0.3				The texture of ladders has been changed.
1.11.0			beta 1.11.0.1				Ladders can now also be climbed by pressing the jump key.

Legacy Console Edition

Legacy Console Edition
Xbox 360	Xbox One	PS3	PS4	PS Vita	Wii U	Switch
TU1	CU1	1.00	1.00	1.00	Patch 1	1.0.1	Added ladders.
TU9							The collision boxes for ladders have now been removed.
TU10							The collision boxes for ladders have now been re-added.
TU12							The crafting recipe now yields 3 ladders instead of 2.
TU43	CU33	1.36	1.36	1.36	Patch 13		A length of ladder generates as part of the shaft from igloos leading to their basements.
TU46	CU36	1.38	1.38	1.38	Patch 15		An open trapdoor may now be climbed like a ladder if it is directly above a ladder and on the same side of the block.
							Ladders are now generated in end ships.
TU53	CU43	1.49	1.50	1.49	Patch 23	1.0.3	Ladders can now be used to fuel furnaces.
TU54	CU44	1.52	1.52	1.52	Patch 24	1.0.4	Ladders now generate in woodland mansions.
			1.90				The texture of ladders has been changed.
			1.91				Ladders can now also be climbed by pressing the jump key.

New Nintendo 3DS Edition

New Nintendo 3DS Edition
0.1.0							Added ladders.

Data history

Java Edition
1.8			14w07a				Ladders with metadata values 0-1 and 6-15 now have no model.
1.13			17w47a				Prior to The Flattening, this block's numeral ID was 65.

Issues

Issues relating to "Ladder" are maintained on the bug tracker. Issues should be reported and viewed there.

Trivia

• It is possible to use ladders one block apart in a corner by placing every other ladder on the alternating side of the corner. This method requires jumping and shifting sides constantly.
• By holding the jump key, players can still use water ladders that have ladders placed every other block.
• Attempting to place a ladder on a spot another ladder occupies may instead place the ladder somewhere nearby (because of the ladder's hitbox).
• It is possible to remove a ladder while standing on a ladder and holding the sneak key, but it can take a long time because the countdown for breaking the ladder often resets.
• In Java Edition, sticks can be crafted into ladders to gain a slight bonus in fuel efficiency. While 7 sticks can smelt 3.5 items, if they are crafted into 3 ladders, 4.5 items can be smelted.

Gallery

Renders

• 
  A ladder facing east
• 
  A ladder facing west
• 
  A ladder facing north

Screenshots

• 
  Opened ceiling on water
• 
  Tunnel through water
• 
  Ceiling lit by ladder-suspended lava
• 
  Naturally occurring ladders in a stronghold
• 
  A mineshaft has intersected with a stronghold resulting in floating ladders
• 
  In versions prior to Beta 1.5, spacing ladders was a way to climb, without wasting ladders
• 
  No air-pocket is made in Java Edition 1.13

References

External links

• "Taking Inventory: Ladder" by Duncan Geere – Minecraft.net, January 4, 2019.