Since the 1.14 update was released back in 2019, a whole host of new blocks that both villagers and players can interact with were introduced in Minecraft. For villagers, these blocks determine their profession within the village. When interacted with, they restock their inventories with more trade items.

For players, many of these blocks introduced quality-of-life changes that often go unexplored by beginners. While some are definitely not a necessity for players to have in their home, some of these make the daily life of any Minecraft player much more enjoyable and productive. Here’s how each workstation block functions.

Updated September 9, 2022 by Jacqueline Zalace: Villager workstations are helpful when creating villager trading posts, as well as helpful additions in your base. We’ve updated this list with more information to help you use these workstations efficiently. You can also find a quick list of what villagers can trade to you.

13 Composter

  • Job:
  • Farmer
  • Possible Trades:
  • Suspicious Stew
  • Golden Carrots
  • Glistering Melon Slices
  • Cooked Foods

Farmers will know how important bone meal is for growing crops fast. However, finding bones by either finding bone blocks in the Nether or killing skeletons isn’t always an option. Luckily, the composter changes things drastically. Placing any plant, seed, or food in the composter will gradually fill it up.

  • Farmer

  • Suspicious Stew

  • Golden Carrots

  • Glistering Melon Slices

  • Cooked Foods

When the composter is full, it will have white particles at the top, which can be harvested for bone meal. It’s great for getting rid of useless items like lily pads, extra seeds, flowers, or ferns.

12 Smoker

  • Job:
  • Butcher
  • Possible Trades:
  • Cooked Meats
  • Rabbit Stew

The classic furnace is a great item in the sense that it can both smelt ores and cook food. However, it does take quite a while to wait for the furnace to finish. This is why every good home should also have a smoker in order to cook food items faster.

  • Butcher

  • Cooked Meats

  • Rabbit Stew

The smoker is a dedicated furnace for food only, but its fast cooking rate makes it worth using. Any food item that can be consumed after cooking can be cooked within a smoker.

11 Barrel

  • Job:
  • Fisherman
  • Possible Trades:
  • Raw and Cooked Fish
  • Enchanted Fishing Rod
  • Campfire

The barrel is the storage system item players have dreamed of for ages, given that it doesn’t need an empty space above it to be opened. It doesn’t have any other use than that — it’s an extra storage space that corresponds to the space of a single chest.

  • Fisherman

  • Raw and Cooked Fish

  • Enchanted Fishing Rod

  • Campfire

However, considering how compact the barrel is, it has quickly become a favorite among many players as a primary way to store their items efficiently. It’s also fairly cheap to make, costing six planks and two slabs.

10 Loom

  • Job:
  • Shepherd
  • Possible Trades:
  • Wool
  • Beds
  • Carpet
  • Banners
  • Paintings

Banners are a great way to set up markers on maps and decorate areas or buildings. The loom block was introduced in order to make the process much easier, complete with a brand new interface. The interface allows you to choose specific patterns and preview the banner before crafting it.

  • Shepherd

  • Wool

  • Beds

  • Carpet

  • Banners

  • Paintings

Put in a banner of any color, plus a dye of your choice, and the interface will showcase all available options. It’s fantastic for making flags as well.

9 Blast Furnace

  • Job:
  • Armorer
  • Possible Trades:
  • Iron Armor
  • Enchanted Diamond Armor
  • Chainmail

While the smoker allows you to quickly cook some food in a pinch, the blast furnace will quickly smelt ore. This is basically a variant of the classic furnace, but you can only put in ores that can be smelted. This includes iron, gold, or ancient debris.

  • Armorer

  • Iron Armor

  • Enchanted Diamond Armor

  • Chainmail

The rate at which this furnace smelts ores is significantly faster than a regular furnace, so it’s a staple for any household. The blast furnace speeds up a tedious process for those that truly enjoy mining their resources.

8 Brewing Stand

  • Job:
  • Cleric
  • Possible Trades:
  • Redstone Dust
  • Lapis Lazuli
  • Glowstone
  • Ender Pearl
  • Bottle o’ Enchanting

The brewing stand has been in the game for ages, and as such isn’t really a new addition to the 1.14 villager update. Brewing stands can be found in some villages with a cobblestone tower or in the basement of igloos. End Ships will also have a brewing stand.

  • Cleric

  • Redstone Dust

  • Lapis Lazuli

  • Glowstone

  • Ender Pearl

  • Bottle o’ Enchanting

In order to make potions, you’ll need Blaze Powder, as well as Nether Wart, both of which can be found inside Nether Fortresses. For an in-depth guide on potions and how to make them, check out this complete potion guide.

7 Cauldron

  • Job:
  • Leatherworker
  • Possible Trades:
  • Leather Armor
  • Leather Horse Armor
  • Saddle

Cauldrons are another older block in the game that has been around for some time. They can also be found in villages, igloo basements, and witch’s huts in swamp biomes. Their sole purpose is to hold water, lava, or powdered snow.

  • Leatherworker

  • Leather Armor

  • Leather Horse Armor

  • Saddle

While cauldrons are great for holding water for brewing potions, the water source actually depletes when bottles are filled, which forces you to pour another bucket for water in. It’s actually better to just have a source block of water on the floor than a cauldron.

6 Fletching Table

  • Job:
  • Fletcher
  • Possible Trades:
  • Arrows
  • Flint
  • Bow (as well as Enchanted Bows)
  • Crossbow (as well as Enchanted Crossbows)
  • Tipped Arrows

The only workstation block that has no use for players is the fletching table. It’s a bit of a shame that there’s no functionality for it, as it could be a way for you to make special arrows or alter bows and crossbows.

  • Fletcher

  • Arrows

  • Flint

  • Bow (as well as Enchanted Bows)

  • Crossbow (as well as Enchanted Crossbows)

  • Tipped Arrows

For now, however, it’s more of a decoration block and utility block for villagers to pick their profession.

5 Cartography Table

  • Job:
  • Cartographer
  • Possible Trades:
  • Empty Maps
  • Ocean Explorer Map
  • Woodland Explorer Map
  • Item Fram
  • Banners
  • Globe Banner Pattern

If you’re looking to map out your Minecraft world, a cartography table is an easy way to help you out in the process once you’ve crafted a map. This table can alter maps in several different ways by either zooming them out, expanding them, copying them, or locking them.

  • Cartographer

  • Empty Maps

  • Ocean Explorer Map

  • Woodland Explorer Map

  • Item Fram

  • Banners

  • Globe Banner Pattern

To expand a map, you need to combine a drawn map and a piece of paper. To copy a map, combine a drawn map and an empty map together. To lock a map and make sure it can’t be expanded any further, combine a drawn map with a glass pane.

4 Lectern

  • Job:
  • Librarian
  • Possible Trades:
  • Enchanted Books
  • Bookshelf
  • Lantern
  • Glass
  • Clock
  • Compass
  • Name Tag

Lecterns are another block that doesn’t really have an interesting function. They’re more useful for decoration and immersion. The only purpose they have is to hold a book and quill, which other players can interact with by reading and editing it.

  • Librarian

  • Enchanted Books

  • Bookshelf

  • Lantern

  • Glass

  • Clock

  • Compass

  • Name Tag

The book can also be taken or placed back down on the pedestal. In adventure mode maps, lecterns might play a better role since they serve as a way to hold books that might explain some lore.

3 Smithing Table

  • Job:
  • Toolsmith
  • Possible Trades:
  • Stone Tools
  • Enchanted Iron Tools
  • Enchanted Diamond Tools
  • Bell

Smithing tables have essentially become a staple for anyone looking to make Netherite armor. Since Netherite armor isn’t crafted like diamond gear but rather used as a coating, you’ll need to already have a piece of diamond gear to upgrade it to Netherite.

  • Toolsmith

  • Stone Tools

  • Enchanted Iron Tools

  • Enchanted Diamond Tools

  • Bell

In the interface, place down any piece of diamond gear, enchanted or unenchanted, as well as a Netherite ingot. You’ll then receive the Netherite version of the item. The process won’t cost you any experience points.

2 Stonecutter

  • Job:
  • Mason
  • Possible Trades:
  • Brick
  • Chiseled Stone Bricks
  • Colored Terracotta
  • Glazed Terracotta
  • Quartz Pillar
  • Block of Quartz

Builders were frustrated for a long time by how each variant of a block needed to be separately crafted on the crafting table, but the introduction of the stonecutter changed building and landscaping.

  • Mason

  • Brick

  • Chiseled Stone Bricks

  • Colored Terracotta

  • Glazed Terracotta

  • Quartz Pillar

  • Block of Quartz

This tool is fantastic for any builder who wants to create a more precise amount of different block variants. It works for every stone block, from cobble to sandstone, and is an easy way to make cracked stone bricks and other rare variants.

1 Grindstone

  • Job:
  • Weaponsmith
  • Possible Trades:
  • Iron Axe
  • Bell
  • Enchanted Iron Sword
  • Enchanted Diamond Axe
  • Enchanted Diamond Sword

Gone are the days when you would have to roll the dice with their enchantments and then simply deal with the fact that they hated what they received from the enchantment table. Thanks to the grindstone, enchantments can now be removed and some of the experience points will actually be returned.

  • Weaponsmith

  • Iron Axe

  • Bell

  • Enchanted Iron Sword

  • Enchanted Diamond Axe

  • Enchanted Diamond Sword

Moreover, it allows you to repair gear for free, although any enchantments will be removed in the process, and some experience points will be returned. It’s a nice budget version to the anvil and makes repairing gear early on a bit more doable.

NEXT: Minecraft Complete Guide And Walkthrough