Sharpness vs Smite vs Bane of Arthropods

The difference

All three are melee damage enchantments, and only one can go on a weapon. Sharpness helps against everything. Smite and Bane of Arthropods add 2.5 damage per level, but only against undead or arthropods. Arthropods are spiders, cave spiders, silverfish, endermites and bees. Bane also slows the arthropods it hits. Still, few arthropods are dangerous, so it is the weakest pick of the three.

Level by level

The pattern is the same at every level. Smite and Bane deal 6.25 more than Sharpness against their own targets at level V. Against all other mobs they deal 6.25 less.

Which to pick, situation by situation

• Main weapon. Sharpness, every time. It is the only one of the three that helps against creepers, endermen, players and bosses.
• Undead farm or wither fight. Smite. Zombies, skeletons, drowned and the wither are all undead, and Smite V adds 12.5 per hit.
• Cave spider spawner. Bane of Arthropods is a fair choice here. Cave spiders come in a steady stream, and Bane also slows them as they bite.
• Strongholds and silverfish. Sharpness is fine. Silverfish have very little health, so the extra Bane damage is wasted on them.
• Early game. Take whatever damage enchantment the enchanting table offers on your first sword. Then replace it with Sharpness when you can.
• PvP. Sharpness. Players are neither undead nor arthropods.

Max build with each

Here is what a full sword costs with each option, books combined in the cheapest order on a fresh sword:

Open the Sharpness build or the Smite build or the Bane of Arthropods build in the calculator. The sword enchant order walks through every anvil step. The best sword enchantments page explains each book in the build.

Which items take each

• Sharpness goes on sword, axe and spear. Books on an anvil work on all of them. Related questions: Sharpness on axe, Sharpness on mace, Sharpness on trident, Sharpness on spear.
• Smite goes on sword, axe, spear and mace. Books on an anvil work on all of them. Related questions: Smite on axe, Smite on mace.
• Bane of Arthropods goes on sword, axe, spear and mace. Books on an anvil work on all of them.

What each one does

Sharpness

Sharpness adds melee damage against every mob and player. In Bedrock Edition each level adds 1.25 damage, for +6.25 at Sharpness V.

• Sharpness, Smite and Bane of Arthropods exclude each other: Sharpness is the all-round choice.
• It works on swords, axes and spears. The mace uses Density or Breach instead.

Smite

Smite adds a lot of damage against undead mobs: zombies, skeletons, the wither, phantoms, drowned, zombie piglins and more. Each level adds 2.5 damage against them.

• Smite V adds 12.5 damage against undead, twice what Sharpness V adds in Bedrock.
• A Smite sword or mace is the classic choice for the wither fight.

Bane of Arthropods

Bane of Arthropods adds damage against spiders, cave spiders, silverfish, endermites and bees, and slows them down when hit. Each level adds 2.5 damage against them.

• It is the least useful of the three damage enchantments, since few arthropods are dangerous.
• Use it only on a dedicated spider-farm weapon.

Where to get them and what they cost

• Sharpness: max level V, from the enchanting table, librarian villagers, gear worn by trial chamber mobs, trial chamber vaults and enchanted loot from fishing and chests. Once you have one, a max book costs 5 levels on a fresh item.
• Smite: max level V, from the enchanting table, librarian villagers, ominous vaults (trial chambers) and enchanted loot from fishing and chests. Once you have one, a max book costs 5 levels on a fresh item.
• Bane of Arthropods: max level V, from the enchanting table, librarian villagers, trial chamber vaults and enchanted loot from fishing and chests. Once you have one, a max book costs 5 levels on a fresh item.

All three can go on the sword, axe and spear. Whichever you pick, combine the books in the cheapest order with the enchantment calculator or follow the sword enchant order.

Good to know

Bane's slowness is a nice extra at a spider farm, because the spiders crawl slower while they take hits. Still, it is no reason to choose Bane for a main sword. All three also fit with Fire Aspect, Looting, Unbreaking and Mending, so the rest of the build stays the same.

Common mistakes

• Keeping a Bane sword from the table. If the table gives you Bane, use that sword as a spare. Then enchant a fresh one for your main weapon.
• Thinking Bane helps against creepers. Creepers are not arthropods. Bane does nothing to them, or to endermen and slimes.
• Using Smite against spiders. Spiders are arthropods, not undead. So Smite adds nothing to them.

Switching from one to the other

An anvil never swaps Sharpness for Smite or Bane of Arthropods. If the book only holds the conflicting enchantment, the anvil has nothing to add. So the only way to switch on the same item is a grindstone. It strips every enchantment except curses, then you enchant the item again from scratch.

If an enchanting table gives you Bane of Arthropods, keep that sword as a spare and enchant a fresh one for your main weapon.

Java and Bedrock differences

In Bedrock 26.60, Sharpness, Smite and Bane of Arthropods are incompatible. Sharpness is stronger in Bedrock: 1.25 per level, so +6.25 at level V, against +3 in Java. Smite still adds 12.5 at level V in both. Bedrock has no Sweeping Edge, so a Bedrock sword has one book fewer than a Java one. The anvil also differs between the editions. Bedrock only charges for the levels a book adds and nothing for a conflicting enchantment it skips. Commands work differently too: Bedrock's /give can't add enchantments, so you hold the item and run /enchant once per enchantment. This page shows the Bedrock 26.60 numbers.

More comparisons

• Sharpness vs Smite
• Mending vs Infinity
• Density vs Breach
• Fortune vs Silk Touch
• Fortune vs Looting
• Protection vs Fire Protection
• Protection vs Blast Protection
• Loyalty vs Riptide
• Multishot vs Piercing
• Depth Strider vs Frost Walker