As Minecraft has evolved over the years, a new type of gameplay has become possible. For example, you can automate repetitive tasks using automatic farms. They even work while you’re AFK (away from the keyboard)!
Automatic farms genuinely are a blessing, whether semi-automatic or fully automatic. They generate blocks, crops, and experiences while you’re free to mine or explore. These farms can keep you from starving in Survival and help you level up quicker.
Many types of automatic farms exist, and players frequently invent more. With new additions like these observers, what’s possible to automate has expanded. So what you want to achieve in-game (and this Minecraft automatic farm ultimate guide) can help you decide where to start.
How To Choose Your Automatic Farms
Your goal will inform which automatic farms you choose to build and when. If your priority is finding food so you won’t starve, you don’t need to start with an automatic gold farm. You don’t need an auto wheat farm if you want to make weapons to fight zombies during the apocalypse.
What players want to achieve in Minecraft can pretty much be split into three categories:
- Food to survive
- Experience to level up
- Items to build/decorate with
Your needs and goals will change as you play. Food acquisition is less of an issue as you level up, but that doesn’t mean it’s not an extremely important initiative. Just focus on what you need to do right now. You can cross those bridges as you come to them (or build them).
We’re going to split these automatic farms into categories to make it easier for you. You’ll find out what each automatic Minecraft farm does, how to build them, and how difficult it is to build them. Even if your goal is the same at levels 1 and 24, what you can build is not.
Crops
The first category is arguably the most important. You can’t do anything else in Minecraft if you starve to death. Feast your eyes on these designs:
1. Easy Automatic Crop Farm
Watch the full tutorial
This easy automatic crop farm (minute 10:07) by Chapman is perfect for absolute beginners. It’s a simple build that doesn’t use any Redstone. Redstone isn’t as rare as other minerals in Minecraft, but it’s not easy to find. You have to mine down to the bottom 16 layers.
That’s a lot to ask when you don’t even have a wooden axe yet. As you gain more experience, you can build more complex automatic crop farms. In the meantime, this farm can get you up and running.
2. Semi-Automatic Wheat Farm
A semi-automatic wheat farm is a next level above easy. Treasure Toad shows how to use water to harvest your wheat automatically. This process works for carrots and potatoes too, but not pumpkins or melons. You harvest each crop differently.
It’s semi-automatic because it doesn’t replant your crops automatically. That’s how you have a more straightforward design that’s easier to build earlier. However, if you want a fully automatic wheat farm, you can do this layout and add a villager.
3. Automatic Pumpkin and Melon Farm
We’re progressing in difficulty with this automatic pumpkin and melon farm by NaMiature. The concept isn’t very different from the wheat farm, just more complex. More complex means you need to use more Redstone.
It can get tricky, but it’s less challenging with the tutorial. You can follow along and replay any parts that don’t make sense.
4. Automatic Sugarcane Farm
Making an automatic sugarcane farm provides food for your stomach and brain. Sugarcane turns into sugar and paper, so you can bake a cake and make a map.
RealJayden shows the most efficient way to build a sugarcane farm. You can build this farm in no time as long as you have the necessary materials. Feel free to build it anywhere, but you will get more sugarcane in swampy areas.
5. Auto Crop Farm
This auto crop farm (minute 5:49) by Gorillo is actually really simple. The issue is that you need a bone meal to operate it. It’s not exactly in abundance, so you may need to build a bone meal farm beforehand.
Other than that, this farm is excellent. It doesn’t take up much space and produces crops extremely quickly. You don’t have control over which crops you get, but it all eats the same.
Drops
This category includes items that come from animals. These automatic farms provide food, experience, and/or materials to decorate with. It’s nice to kill two birds with one (cobble) stone.
6. Automatic Egg Collector
An automatic egg collector gives you eggs, chickens, and feathers. You can bake with eggs or use them to spawn more chickens. You can cook the chickens or use them to lay more eggs. Feathers are just as valuable. You can trade and craft with them.
JC Playz put together a quick and easy tutorial. This farm is easy to complete early in the game because you don’t need any Redstone. It does require a hopper, but you only need iron ingots and a chest for that.
7. Automatic Wool Farm
This automatic wool farm by OinkOink is another straightforward project. It doesn’t take up much space unless you want to expand it to accommodate more sheep. The design is simple, but it may take time to collect all the materials.
You need shears and Redstone dust, which requires some mining. Wool is a surprisingly valuable item. You need it to craft beds, carpets, banners, and paintings. Villagers will buy it from you, and it technically works as furnace fuel.
8. Automatic Honey Farm
Eyecraftmc has put together an excellent automatic honey farm tutorial. His video includes other pertinent information about bees and honey. If you’re only interested in the automatic farm, skip to minute 8:30.
Having an automatic honey farm gives you another handy food source. You can harvest honeycomb from bees, too. You can decorate with it or make candles and beehives.
9. Automatic Cow Farm
JC Playz brings us an automatic cow farm tutorial. This is one to build if you want large quantities of steak and leather. The design isn’t too complicated, but you may have trouble finding the materials early on. You need Redstone and some lava buckets.
Hardtops
The final category is rocks, minerals, and other hard things. They’re for more advanced players because the materials aren’t as easy to come by. You don’t technically need these to survive, so it’s better to wait until later to build them. They’re great for gaining experience quickly.
10. Automatic Iron Farm
The idea behind this automatic iron farm by wattles is certainly a creative one. You get the iron from iron golems that spawn to protect villagers from zombies. Isn’t that cool? There are some challenges with this project, so it’s best to wait until later in the game.
You have to build the entire farm at least 12 blocks above ground. You have to catch a zombie and several villagers. There’s no need for Redstone in this one, but you’ll need some lava. There’s a lot to do, but you’ll have fun doing it.
11. Automatic Bone Meal Farm
This automatic bone meal farm by Farzy isn’t the most important one, but it should still be on your list. You can use bone meal as a dye or fertilizer. Fertilizer helps you eat your crops faster and grow your trees taller. The dye comes in handy for decorating.
None of the required materials are too difficult to find, thankfully. This farm is lower on our list because you don’t need it. It just helps makes things easier and faster. It’s definitely worth your time if you have the resources.
12. Cobblestone Generator
Next, there’s a cobblestone generator by Mysticat. Having an abundance of stone or cobblestone is basically only useful if you want to build or decorate. You can’t eat it or gain experience from mining it.
You can use the stone from this farm to build the other farms, at least. The design for this automatic Minecraft farm is similar in concept to the others. So, it’s not too challenging to build, especially with this helpful tutorial. The most difficult item you need to get is lava.
13. Automatic Gold Farm
Last but certainly not least, we have an automatic gold farm by BlazeDude. This is the most challenging automatic farm on this list because you need to build it in the Nether. That means building a Nether portal, which means mining for obsidian. The gold farm itself is a challenge.
You need a heap of materials, and they aren’t easy to obtain. Items include 97 scaffolding, 16 stacks of magma, and 25 hoppers. This automatic farm should be left for advanced players to take on. Good thing gold is so useful. Otherwise, it may not be worth the effort.
Wrap-up
If you’ve made it this far, you’ve learned pretty much all there is to know about automatic farms. It would be best if you understood what they are and how they work. You also should be able to choose the best one for you. This is a Minecraft automatic farm ultimate guide, after all.
What works best depends on your level and if you want to find food/items or gain experience. If you’re still looking for inspiration, try building a storage room. You’ll need a place to keep all the food and items you get from these automatic farms.
