Can you put Mending on a bow?
Yes. You can put Mending on a bow in Java 26.3.
How to add it
Mending is a treasure enchantment, so the enchanting table never offers it. Instead, combine an enchanted book with the bow on an anvil: Mending costs 2 levels on a fresh bow.
/give @p bow[enchantments={mending:1}]What it does on a bow
A bow loses 1 durability per shot. With Mending, the experience from your kills goes into the bow first, so a bow you use at a farm stays full. A bow has 384 durability, and 192 experience points repair it from almost broken to new. There is one catch: a bow with Infinity can't take Mending, so you pick one of the two.
Step by step
- First, get Mending as an enchanted book. Sources: a librarian villager (10–38 emeralds for a top-level book), fishing, chest loot or trial chamber vaults.
- Then put the bow in the left slot of an anvil and the book in the right slot.
- Finally, pay the cost shown: 2 levels on a fresh bow, plus any prior work penalty the bow already has.
- If the bow is getting more books, plan the order first so no step costs 40 levels or more.
Why it works
Mending lists bow among its supported items. That matters because each enchantment's data file lists the items it supports, and the anvil checks that list. The enchanting table never offers Mending on a bow, so it has to come from a book.
On a bow it rules out Infinity, so choose before you buy books.
What it costs on the anvil
First, the base price: on a fresh bow, Mending costs 2 levels. Java charges the full new level of each book, so upgrading later costs the whole level again. Each anvil use also raises the item's prior work penalty for the next step.
Order matters. Say your bow already has Power V, Flame, Punch II and Unbreaking III, put on in the cheapest order. That took 3 anvil uses, so adding Mending last costs 9 levels: 7 for the prior work penalty plus 2 for the book. Planning everything from the start costs 26 levels in total, with no step above 9.
Plan your own version in the calculator or follow the bow enchant order. The prior work penalty calculator shows how the penalty grows.
Where Mending goes
- Mending goes on helmet, chestplate, leggings, boots, elytra, sword, axe, spear, mace, trident, bow, crossbow, pickaxe, shovel, hoe, fishing rod, shears, brush, flint and steel, shield, carrot on a stick and warped fungus on a stick. The enchanting table never offers it, so every one of them needs a book. Related questions: Mending on elytra, Mending on shield, Mending on trident, Mending on spear, Mending on mace, Mending on crossbow, Mending on fishing rod, Mending on shears, Mending on pickaxe, Mending on helmet, Mending on flint and steel, Mending on brush.
Commands and creative mode
In creative or with cheats, one command does it: /give @p bow[enchantments={mending:1}]. Holding the item, /enchant @s mending 1 works too. Creative mode also ignores the anvil's 40-level limit. The command generator writes the right syntax for your edition.
Java and Bedrock
As far as the item list goes, the answer is also the same in Java and Bedrock. The anvil differs, though: Java charges the full new level of every book. This page follows Java 26.3.
About Mending
Mending repairs an item with experience orbs. When you pick up experience while holding or wearing a Mending item, the XP goes into repairing it first, at 2 durability per XP point.
Mending has a max level of I. If you need a book, you can get it from librarian villagers, trial chamber vaults and enchanted loot from fishing and chests. A librarian sells a Mending book for 10 to 38 emeralds. Before you buy, read everything about Mending, including what each level does.
What else a bow can take
Besides Mending, a bow can take Power, Flame, Punch, Unbreaking and Infinity. Of those, Infinity conflicts with Mending. Then the best bow enchantments page ranks them and gives the max build.
Related questions: Mending and Infinity on bow, Fire Aspect on bow.
Questions
Can you put Mending on a bow?
Yes. You can put Mending on a bow in Java 26.3.
What else can Mending go on?
helmet, chestplate, leggings, boots, elytra, sword, axe, spear, mace, trident, crossbow, pickaxe, shovel, hoe, fishing rod, shears, brush, flint and steel, shield, carrot on a stick and warped fungus on a stick.
Can a bow have Mending and Infinity?
No. Infinity and Mending are incompatible, so a bow can only have one of them.
Does Mending repair a bow in my inventory?
No. Mending only repairs items in your hands or armor slots. Hold the bow, or put it in your offhand, while you collect experience.
How many levels does Mending cost on a bow?
Mending costs 2 levels as a book on a fresh bow. Earlier anvil work adds its prior work penalty on top.