Can you put Looting on a trident?
No. You can't put Looting on a trident in Java 26.3, not even with an anvil.
Why not
Looting is not on the trident's list. Here is what a trident can take instead: Curse of Vanishing, Riptide, Channeling, Impaling, Loyalty, Unbreaking, Mending.
What that means in practice
A trident's list is short: Riptide, Channeling, Impaling, Loyalty, Unbreaking and Mending. Looting isn't on it. So drowned and guardians killed with a trident drop their normal loot.
What to use instead
Looting only goes on swords and spears. For a trident, Impaling adds damage and Loyalty brings it back. Switch to a Looting sword when drops matter. On a fresh trident, Impaling V costs 10 levels and Loyalty III costs 3 levels as a book.
For drowned farms, most players finish the drowned with a Looting sword at the kill point instead. That way the rare drops get the full Looting bonus.
See Impaling and Loyalty, or the full trident build.
Why the game says no
Looting only goes on sword and spear. A trident is not on that list. That matters because each enchantment's data file lists the items it supports, and the anvil checks that list. So the anvil gives no result, and the enchanting table never offers it.
No survival trick changes that. Combining two items, renaming or using a grindstone first all leave the list the same.
The best trident build instead
So a max trident has Channeling, Impaling V, Loyalty III, Unbreaking III and Mending. In the cheapest order it costs 33 levels over 5 anvil steps, and no step goes above 10. Open it in the calculator.
The best trident enchantments page explains every book, and the trident enchant order shows each anvil step.
Where Looting goes
- Looting goes on sword and spear. The enchanting table can offer it on both. Related questions: Looting on axe, Looting on spear.
Commands and creative mode
The /enchant command refuses too, because a trident can't support Looting. Only /give with the enchantments component can attach it, which makes a command-only item that survival can never produce. The command generator writes the right syntax for your edition.
Java and Bedrock
Impaling, the trident's damage enchantment, only hits aquatic mobs in Java. In Bedrock it hits any mob in water or rain. The anvil also differs: Java charges the full new level of every book. This page follows Java 26.3.
About Looting
Looting makes mobs drop more items and raises the chance of rare drops. Each level adds up to one extra common drop and improves rare and equipment drops.
Looting has a max level of III. If you need a book, you can get it from the enchanting table, librarian villagers, ominous vaults (trial chambers) and enchanted loot from fishing and chests. A librarian sells a Looting III book for 11 to 45 emeralds. Before you buy, read everything about Looting, including what each level does.
What else a trident can take
Instead, a trident can take Riptide, Channeling, Impaling, Loyalty, Unbreaking and Mending. Then the best trident enchantments page ranks them and gives the max build.
Related questions: Mending on trident, Sharpness on trident, Loyalty and Riptide on trident.
Questions
Can you put Looting on a trident?
No. You can't put Looting on a trident in Java 26.3, not even with an anvil.
What else can Looting go on?
sword and spear.
How do I get more drops from drowned?
Finish them with a Looting III sword or spear. Looting raises their common drops and their rare drop chances.
Can a trident have Impaling and Loyalty?
Yes. Impaling conflicts with no other trident enchantment, so it goes with Loyalty, Channeling or Riptide.
What is the best trident build?
Channeling, Impaling V, Loyalty III, Unbreaking III and Mending. Swap Loyalty and Channeling for Riptide if you use it to travel.
Can a trident get Looting from an enchanting table or a villager?
No. The enchanting table only offers enchantments an item supports. A villager's Looting book still can't go on a trident, because the anvil checks the same list.