Minecart

A minecart is a train-like vehicle entity that runs on rails.

Obtaining[]

Minecarts can be retrieved by attacking them for some time. Minecarts can also be retrieved with one attack from a pickaxe provided the player's attack cooldown is reset. A minecart is also destroyed if it makes contact with a cactus, or if shot with a bow and arrow.

Crafting[]

Ingredients	Crafting recipe
Iron Ingot

Entity loot[]

Minecart with command blocks can be given to the player with the /give command or through the creative inventory under certain conditions‌^{[Java Edition only]}; minecart with spawners‌^{[Java Edition only]} are available only via the /summon command. Each drop 1 minecart when broken.

Usage[]

A minecart can be placed in the same manner as most blocks but can be placed only on top of a rail. Once placed, it may be derailed by pushing it off the end of the track. After this, it can be railed again by placing a rail directly below it or pushing it onto a track.

Crafting ingredient[]

Name	Ingredients	Crafting recipe
Minecart with Chest	Chest + Minecart
Minecart with Furnace	Furnace + Minecart
Minecart with Hopper	Hopper + Minecart
Minecart with TNT	TNT + Minecart

Transportation[]

Minecarts can be ridden by pressing the "use" control on them. Once inside, an external impulse may be needed to make the minecart start moving. The player can slowly move the minecart forward while riding it, by pressing forward. If a mob walks in front of an empty minecart, it is pulled into the cart.

After rolling off of the end of a track, a minecart can be pushed around on open blocks. If a minecart is pushed onto or falls onto tracks, it "snaps" to those tracks. When riding a minecart, if the minecart lands on a rail, the player does not take any fall damage.

Unlike with beds, there is no message above the hotbar for attempting to enter a fully occupied minecart.^[1]

Dismounting[]

Players can exit the minecart by pressing sneak. When a player or mob dismounts a minecart, either by choice, by breaking the minecart, or by passing over an activator rail, the minecart tries to find a safe ejection destination one block away. First it checks the eight horizontally adjacent blocks in the following order of priority relative to direction of travel: right, left, rear right, rear left, front right, front left, rear, front. A valid destination has a block underneath with a solid (not necessarily full) top surface and a space with enough headroom and width for the passenger to fit in when standing at the center. The space can even contain liquid or have open trapdoors if the mob is slim enough, and presence of other mobs doesn't matter. If no valid destination exists on same horizontal level, the minecart then checks the blocks one above, then one below. For a player, the minecart also checks for crawlable destinations. If still none, the minecart chooses its own location. Once the minecart picks a destination, it actually ejects the passenger one block up in the air and the passenger settles down on its own. Under a low ceiling this may cause one tick of suffocation damage. The air drop exists to allow passengers to land on carpet or bottom slabs.

Behavior[]

Speed[]

Minecarts have a predefined speed limit of exactly 8 blocks per second. However, this speed limit does not change the minecart's speed value but instead limits how far a minecart can travel each tick to 0.4 blocks. Therefore, a minecart moving from powered rail to normal rail will move at constant speed for some time until decelerating because its internal speed value is over its speed limit of 8.

Powered rails powered by redstone give minecarts a boost of speed. Speed is gradually decreased (due to drag) if there are no powered rails to assist its movement, and an unpowered powered rail slows down a minecart rapidly. The speed decreases at a faster rate when going uphill, compared to when moving horizontally. A minecart does not need powered rails to assist its movement down a hill.

Anything in the way of the minecart brings it to a stop. Once a minecart has left the track, it rapidly decelerates within one or two blocks. When mobs touch a minecart, they affect it in the same way a player would, i.e. mobs that move up against a still cart set it in motion.

If a minecart is moving fast enough, it can skip across one block without a track and reattach to track on the other side, at significantly reduced energy and speed. A minecart's hitbox can skip turns if the minecart is boosted using enough powered rails.^[2]

The speed and momentum of a minecart can differ depending on whether or not it is empty, and in the case where a minecart has a container, the speed can differ depending on the quantity and type of items inside.

Merged minecarts[]

In Java Edition, two or more minecarts can be merged by pushing them into each other so that they overlap. Merged minecarts move as a collective, like a train, and can be useful for long-distance transport because while moving in a straight line, they do not need powered rails to keep their speed.

To summarize:

• Minecarts can also be merged by dropping a minecart on another minecart.
• Merged minecarts do not lose speed while traveling on straight rails
• Corners in the rails might cause merged minecarts to unmerge.
• Minecarts with chest (even fully filled) can also be merged and also do not require powered rails.

Distance traveled by empty carts starting on a downward slope[]

This table shows the distance traveled by an unoccupied minecart on a downward slope, with a boost (or no boost). The most efficient way is to use only 1 boost at the bottom of the incline on the flat surface. Using 2 increases distance by about 20% or 1.5 blocks. All distance trends based on the height seem to be logarithmic. The carts started from rest, on a slope Height blocks up.

Height	No Boost	Bottom	Bottom and Top	All boosts on incline and bottom
1	2.77m	8.77	10.8	10.8
2	4.59m	9.59	10.83	13.37
3	5.81m	9.81	11.66	15.12
4	7.04m	10.04	12.46	16.95
5	7.87m	10.87	12.29	17.95
10	11.65m	13.38	15.12	21.68
100	15.87m	17.05	17.54	25.34

Collision[]

Minecarts are about the same size as a block (1×1). Because of this, a ladder, door, or trapdoor prevents it from falling down a 1×1 hole. Carts on rails also ignore collision in certain situations. A cart traveling uphill, downhill, or on a curve with a block placed in front of it, goes through the block.^[3]

A minecart that reaches the end of a rail up against an opaque solid block bounces back, but if the block is transparent then it stops. The minecart can even bounce against an opaque block from a standstill if the rail underneath is powered. A player or mob riding in a minecart does not collide with or suffocate in any transparent blocks but suffocates inside opaque blocks.

Minecarts are completely unaffected by ice, packed ice, and blue ice^[4]; they can also be destroyed by coming in contact with lava or fire. Minecarts can even be pushed by flowing water.

Mobs[]

Mobs can ride minecarts, but cannot control them. Mobs cannot exit the minecart unless the minecart is destroyed or moves onto an active activator rail.^[5] However, in Bedrock Edition, endermen are able to teleport out of minecarts.^[6]

A mob can ride a minecart when pushing by a moving minecart on rails in Java Edition or when colliding with a minecart in Bedrock Edition. It is easier to pick up a mob when a minecart is turning. In Bedrock Edition, armor stands can also be picked up.

Most mobs can be picked up by minecarts, except ender dragons, wardens, and withers. In Java Edition, iron golems cannot be picked up either.

A jockey riding a minecart automatically accelerates the minecart.^[7] Mobs in minecarts don't despawn, and don't count towards the mob cap.‌^{[Java Edition only][8]}

Boats[]

Due to the bug MC-113871, boats can be captured by minecarts. When a boat is placed in a minecart, the minecart travels faster on rails, approximately as fast as on powered rails. The movement in the boat minecart is glitchy and moving forward with the W key moves the cart backward relative to the player, and vice versa for moving backward with the S key. The minecart also moves on the rail-less ground at a crawling speed, but it does not float in the water despite being in a boat.

Using this glitch can be far more resource-efficient since the boat minecart can move at the speed of a powered rail track on flat ground and on slopes. Another physics glitch with the boat minecart is the extreme reduction in friction when the minecart is on rails, which is similar to the lack of friction when a boat is riding on ice. This glitch can be done in Survival without cheats simply by pushing a minecart into a boat on the track. This bug is now patched.

Sounds[]

Java Edition:
Minecarts use the Friendly Creatures sound category for entity-dependent sound events.^{[sound 1]}

Sound	Subtitles	Source	Description	Resource location	Translation key	Volume	Pitch	Attenuation distance
	None[sound 3]	Friendly Creatures [sound 1]	While the player is inside of a moving minecart	entity.minecart.inside	None[sound 3]	0.0-0.75 [sound 2]	1.0	16 (technical) / rider only (effective)
	None[sound 4]	Friendly Creatures [sound 1]	While inside of a moving minecart when the player's eye level is underwater	entity.minecart.inside.underwater	None[sound 4]	0.0-0.75 [sound 2]	1.0	16 (technical) / rider only (effective)
	Minecart rolls [sound 5]	Friendly Creatures [sound 1]	While a minecart is moving	entity.minecart.riding	subtitles.entity.minecart.riding	0.0-0.35 [sound 6]	0.0-1.0 [sound 7]	16

Bedrock Edition:

Sound	Source	Description	Resource location	Volume	Pitch
	Friendly Creatures	While the player is inside of a moving minecart	minecart.inside	?	?
	Friendly Creatures	While a minecart is moving	minecart.base	?	?

Data values[]

ID[]

Java Edition:

Item	Identifier	Form	Translation key
Minecart	minecart	Item	item.minecraft.minecart

Entity	Identifier	Translation key
Minecart	minecart	entity.minecraft.minecart

Bedrock Edition:

Item	Identifier	Numeric ID	Form	Translation key
Minecart	minecart	370	Item	item.minecart.name

Entity	Identifier	Numeric ID	Translation key
Minecart	minecart	84	entity.minecart.name

Entity data[]

Minecarts have entity data associated with them that contain various properties of the entity.

Java Edition:

Bedrock Edition:

See Bedrock Edition level format/Entity format

Achievements[]

Icon		Achievement	In-game description	Actual requirements (if different)	Gamerscore earned	Trophy type (PS4)
PS4	Other
		On A Rail	Travel by minecart to a point at least 500m in a single direction from where you started.	Travel by minecart 500 blocks in a straight line away from the player's starting point.	40G	Gold

History[]

Java Edition Infdev
20100618					Added minecarts.
					Minecarts are not rideable but instead are used to store things in.
					Right-clicking minecarts opens them like a chest (with the container called "Minecart". Filling them up makes the dirt layer inside them rise.
20100624					The entity model and item texture of minecarts have been changed.
					The minecart mechanics have been changed to being rideable, removing their ability to store items.
					Minecarts now render a chest inside for unknown reasons.
Java Edition Alpha
v1.0.4					Removed the phantom chest from minecarts.
					A sitting animation for riding minecarts has been added.
v1.0.14					Minecarts are now used to craft minecart with furnace and minecart with chest.
v1.2.2					Minecarts now appear to other players and can be ridden in multiplayer.
					Minecarts are no longer fully solid - they no longer block movement, and can no longer be stood on top of.
Java Edition Beta
1.5					Minecarts now break faster with hands.
					Powered rails have been introduced, which enables minecarts to move automatically, although previous methods of boosting no longer works, or does not work as effectively.
					The detector rails have been introduced for use in detecting minecarts. Prior to this update, carts were detected by using pressure plates in line with cart tracks. This had the often undesirable effect of dramatically slowing or even stopping the minecart, which limited the use of this design mostly to boosters.
1.6		Test Build 3			A minecart now transfers any fall damage it suffers onto its rider and is not destroyed upon impact.
1.8		Pre-release			If the player punches a minecart when descending from a jump, it shows the critical hit animation. This also happens if the player punches the cart while still in it.
Java Edition
1.0.0		Beta 1.9 Prerelease			C418 posted a sound showing the sound that minecarts make.
		Beta 1.9 Prerelease 6			The texture of minecarts has changed slightly.
1.3.1		12w15a			Minecarts can now be shot out from dispensers.
		12w21b			The player no longer spawns on top/inside of the minecart after getting out. Instead, the player gets out a few blocks away. Also, the player can nudge a stationary minecart while inside it to move onto a powered rail, etc.
1.4.2		12w38b			Sounds for minecarts have been added.
1.5		13w02a			Minecarts can now be edited with a third-party program to show any block inside of it (it does not take on the characteristics of this block), as well as make it take on the characteristics of any cart.
					Minecart types no longer all share the same entity ID – Minecart – and are no longer distinguished by a Type field. They have been given separate entity IDs.
					Minecarts are now used to craft TNT minecarts.
		13w03a			Minecarts are now used to craft hopper minecarts.
		13w06a			Added minecart with spawner.
1.6.2		release			A player in a moving minecart no longer turns with the minecart.
1.7.2		13w39a			Added minecart with command block.
1.8		14w11a			Minecart physics have been changed - they now go faster and further, can derail at corners if going too fast and refuse to go uphill and they can also (if going fast enough) go over 1 block.
					The collision and position handling of minecarts have been improved.
		14w17a			All changes to old minecart physics used before 14w11a have been reverted.
1.9.1		pre2			Extreme typos in minecarts with hoppers and chests, reading "container.minecart'' have been fixed.
1.11		16w32a			The entity ID has been changed from MinecartRideable to minecart.
					The player's hunger bar is now visible when riding in a minecart.
1.13		17w47a			Prior to The Flattening, this item's numeral ID was 328.
1.14		18w43a			The textures of minecarts have been changed.
		19w13a			Minecarts now move much slower when pushed along standard rails using the W key, even slower on unpowered golden rails, and cannot be pushed off of unpowered golden rails without the player looking at a certain angle.
1.16		20w09a			Minecart now checks dismount position height against entity height.
		20w16a			Minecarts no longer have subtitles for movement.
		20w18a			Mobs in minecarts no longer despawn.
1.17		20w45a			Minecarts can now move in water.
1.19		22w13a			Minecarts no longer drop when breaking a minecart with chest, hopper, furnace, or TNT.[9]
1.20		23w16a			Sniffers can now enter minecarts.
Pocket Edition Alpha
v0.8.0		build 2			Added minecarts.
		build 3			Minecarts now ride smoother.
v0.13.0		build 1			Sounds for minecarts have been added.
		build 2			Minecarts now stack on top of each other.
v0.14.0		build 1			Minecarts can now be used to craft storage, TNT, and hopper minecarts.
Bedrock Edition
1.10.0		beta 1.10.0.3			The textures of minecarts have been changed.
Legacy Console Edition
TU1	CU1	1.0	Patch 1	1.0.1	Added minecarts.
					Minecarts are now twice the speed than in other editions.
TU12					Minecarts are now slower.
TU13					Minecarts are now faster again.
TU21	CU9	1.14			The minecart limit has been increased.
TU31	CU19	1.22	Patch 3		Minecart sounds have been updated.
		1.90			The texture of minecarts has been changed.
New Nintendo 3DS Edition
0.1.0					Added minecarts.

Issues[]

Issues relating to "Minecart" are maintained on the bug tracker. Report issues there.

Trivia[]

• Minecarts appear to float above the track, as their model has no wheels.
• If the player views their inventory while riding in a minecart, they appear sitting down in mid-air.
• The player can teleport to another minecart while sitting in a minecart by right-clicking a minecart in their range. This can be used as an elevator to quickly rise up when minecarts are placed on top of each other.
• If the sound is muted in the options while riding a minecart, and then turned back up, the minecart no longer makes noise in the client until the player exits the minecart.
• If a saddled pig is riding a minecart, the player can ride the pig. Doing so causes the minecart to be able to ride freely at the player's walking speed. It is unknown whether this is a glitch.
• It seems that hunger does not deplete while inactive in a minecart (at least in normal difficulty).
• A minecart (alongside rails and powered rails) are used as Steve's Side-Special in the crossover fighting game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Gallery[]

• 

  A pig inside a burning minecart

• 

  A Minecart opened in Minecraft Infdev

• 

  A Minecart filled in Minecraft Infdev

• 

  An image of two Minecart with Spawners and unimplemented Minecart with Dispensers.

• 

  The first image Jeb released.^[10]

• 

  The first image of minecarts in Pocket Edition.

• 

  Minecart booster.

• 

  Minecarts being stacked on each other.

• 

  Villager in a minecart.

• 

  Player in minecart.

• 

  Minecarts can be edited to show any block inside, and can also be edited to be invisible.

• 

  A wooden minecart, featured in the Trails & Tales Event.

• 

  Two minecarts, as depicted on Minecoin gift cards.

References[]

External Links[]

• Taking Inventory: Minecart – Minecraft.net on September 6, 2019