Can you put Sharpness on a spear?

How to add it

You can get Sharpness straight from an enchanting table, or combine an enchanted book with the spear on an anvil: Sharpness V costs 5 levels on a fresh spear.

Plan it in the calculator

What it does on a spear

The spear shares Sharpness with the sword, and its melee hits get the same bonus per level. Sharpness V adds +3 damage per hit in Java. It fits alongside Lunge, Looting, Fire Aspect and Knockback, so a max spear has room for all of them. It only excludes the other damage enchantments, Smite and Bane of Arthropods.

Step by step

1. First, get Sharpness V as an enchanted book. Sources: a librarian villager (17–64 emeralds for a top-level book), an enchanting table (on a plain book), fishing, chest loot or gear worn by trial chamber mobs, trial chamber vaults.
2. Then put the spear in the left slot of an anvil and the book in the right slot.
3. Finally, pay the cost shown: 5 levels on a fresh spear, plus any prior work penalty the spear already has.
4. If the spear is getting more books, plan the order first so no step costs 40 levels or more.

Why it works

Sharpness lists spear 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 can also offer Sharpness on a spear directly.

On a spear it rules out Smite or Bane of Arthropods, so choose before you buy books.

What it costs on the anvil

First, the base price: on a fresh spear, Sharpness V costs 5 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 spear already has Lunge III, Fire Aspect II, Knockback II, Looting III, Unbreaking III and Mending, put on in the cheapest order. That took 3 anvil uses, so adding Sharpness last costs 12 levels: 7 for the prior work penalty plus 5 for the book. Planning everything from the start costs 46 levels in total, with no step above 13.

Plan your own version in the calculator or follow the spear enchant order. The prior work penalty calculator shows how the penalty grows.

Where Sharpness goes

• Sharpness goes on sword, axe and spear. The enchanting table offers it on the sword and spear, while the axe needs a book. Related questions: Sharpness on axe, Sharpness on mace, Sharpness on trident.

Commands and creative mode

In creative or with cheats, one command does it: /give @p netherite_spear[enchantments={sharpness:5}]. Holding the item, /enchant @s sharpness 5 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

Sharpness is weaker in Java: +3 at level V, against +6.25 in Bedrock. The anvil also differs: Java charges the full new level of every book. This page follows Java 26.3.

About Sharpness

Sharpness adds melee damage against every mob and player. Level I adds 1 damage and each level after that adds 0.5, for +3 damage at Sharpness V.

Sharpness has a max level of V. If you need a book, you can get it from the enchanting table, librarian villagers, gear worn by trial chamber mobs, trial chamber vaults and enchanted loot from fishing and chests. A librarian sells a Sharpness V book for 17 to 64 emeralds. Before you buy, read everything about Sharpness, including what each level does.

What else a spear can take

Besides Sharpness, a spear can take Lunge, Smite, Bane of Arthropods, Fire Aspect, Knockback, Looting, Unbreaking and Mending. Of those, Smite and Bane of Arthropods conflict with Sharpness. Then the best spear enchantments page ranks them and gives the max build.

Related questions: Mending on spear, Looting on spear.

Related

• Best spear enchantments
• Sharpness
• Mending on spear
• Sharpness on axe
• Sharpness on mace
• Sharpness on trident
• Looting on spear