How to make a dispenser in Minecraft

To make a dispenser in Minecraft, open a crafting table and place seven cobblestone around the edge, a bow in the center slot and one redstone dust in the bottom middle slot.

The bow itself takes three sticks and three string, and a finished dispenser fires its items only when a redstone signal reaches it.

The fastest way to make a dispenser in Minecraft

The recipe is shaped, so each item has to sit in its exact slot of the 3×3 grid.

1. Collect seven cobblestone, one bow and one redstone dust.
2. Open a crafting table; the 2×2 grid in your inventory is too small for this recipe.
3. Fill the whole top row with cobblestone.
4. In the middle row, put cobblestone on the left, the bow in the center and cobblestone on the right.
5. In the bottom row, put cobblestone on the left, redstone dust in the middle and cobblestone on the right.
6. Take the dispenser from the output slot and move it to your hotbar.

Should you craft a dispenser or use a command?

Your situation	Route	Why
Survival world, no cheats	Craft it at a crafting table	The only route that keeps the world cheat-free; costs seven cobblestone, a bow and a redstone dust
Creative world or a test build	Run /give @p dispenser	Puts a dispenser straight into your inventory, but the command requires cheats to be on
You need an item thrown out, not used	Craft a dropper instead	A dropper needs no bow and spits items out as items

Dispenser materials and where each one comes from

Item	Amount	How to get it
Cobblestone	7	Plain cobblestone; the Bedrock recipe names cobblestone itself, not any stone block
Redstone dust	1	One piece of dust; the recipe names the dust, so a block of redstone does not take its place
Bow	1	Craft from 3 sticks and 3 string at a crafting table
String (for the bow)	3	Spiders drop 0 to 2 string each; the Looting enchantment raises the drop
Sticks (for the bow)	3	Two planks stacked vertically make 4 sticks
Crafting table	1	Four planks in a 2×2 square
Oak logs (for planks)	2	One oak log makes 4 oak planks; 2 logs give the 4 planks for the crafting table and the 2 for the sticks

Making a dispenser in survival mode on PC

Bedrock Edition runs on Windows PCs, and on PC the crafting table opens with a right-click. These steps start from two oak logs, three string, seven cobblestone and one redstone dust.

1. Put one oak log in your inventory crafting grid to get 4 oak planks, then repeat with the second log.
2. Put four planks in a 2×2 square to make a crafting table, place it on the ground and right-click it to open the 3×3 grid.
3. Stack two planks vertically to make 4 sticks.
4. Make the bow: put sticks in the top middle, middle left and bottom middle slots, and string in all three right-hand slots.
5. Drag cobblestone into all three top slots and into the left and right slots of the middle and bottom rows.
6. Drag the bow into the center slot and the redstone dust into the bottom middle slot.
7. Drag the dispenser out of the output slot into your inventory.

Making a dispenser in survival mode on consoles

Minecraft on consoles, including Nintendo Switch, is Bedrock Edition, so the recipe matches Bedrock Edition on Windows exactly. Only Bedrock supports a controller, and the crafting table opens with the Use button.

1. Stand in front of a placed crafting table and press the Use button to open it.
2. Pick up cobblestone and drop one into each of the three top slots.
3. Drop cobblestone into the left and right slots of the middle row and the bottom row.
4. Move the bow into the center slot.
5. Move the redstone dust into the bottom middle slot.
6. Select the dispenser in the output slot to add it to your inventory.

Bedrock unlocks the dispenser recipe once a bow is in your inventory, so the dispenser appears among the crafting table recipes only after you have one.

Placing your dispenser and powering it with redstone

A dispenser does nothing until it receives a redstone signal. It reacts when powered directly or when powered by an adjacent block.

1. Select the dispenser in your hotbar and place it like any other block.
2. Open it with the Use button (right-click on PC) and put the items you want it to fire into its slots.
3. Attach a power source: a button sends a short pulse, a lever toggles full signal strength on or off, and a pressure plate fires when a player or mob steps on it.
4. To use a redstone torch, put the torch on a block next to the dispenser, never on the dispenser itself.
5. For a distant switch, run redstone dust from the power source to the dispenser, and add a repeater if the line is long.
6. Trigger the switch and watch the dispenser fire one item.

With several stacks loaded, the dispenser picks a random item from its inventory each time it is powered.

Get a dispenser with the /give command

The command route needs a world with cheats turned on. For a new Bedrock world, select Play, Create New, then Create New World, turn on Activate Cheats in the world settings and select Create.

/give @p dispenser 1

Gives the nearest player (@p) one dispenser. Change the last number to give more; the amount defaults to 1 when left out.

You should see: A dispenser appears in your inventory, ready to place.

How to check the dispenser works

1. Load a few arrows into the dispenser and stand to one side of it.
2. Place a button on the dispenser and press it.
3. Confirm an arrow is fired out of the dispenser rather than dropped as an item.
4. Swap the arrows for a spawn egg and press the button again; a dispenser spawns the mob, where a dropper would only drop the egg.

Dispenser vs dropper: what each block does with items

	Dispenser	Dropper
Recipe	7 cobblestone, 1 bow, 1 redstone dust	7 cobblestone, 1 redstone dust, empty center slot
Loaded with arrows	Fires the arrow	Spits the arrow out as an item
Loaded with a spawn egg	Spawns the mob	Drops the spawn egg
Other items with special behavior	Armor stands, boats, bone meal, potions and buckets	None; every item comes out as an item
Which item comes out	A random item from its inventory	A random item from its inventory
How it is triggered	Powered directly or by an adjacent block	Powered directly or by an adjacent block

Choose the dispenser when the item should be used, fired or placed; choose the dropper when the item should simply be thrown out, which also saves the bow.

Fix a dispenser recipe or dispenser that does not work

The recipe fails with a stone block other than cobblestone

The Bedrock dispenser recipe names cobblestone itself, unlike the furnace recipe, which accepts any stone crafting material.

1. Remove the other stone blocks from the grid.
2. Fill all seven outer slots with plain cobblestone.
3. Check that the bow is in the center and the redstone dust is in the bottom middle slot.

The output slot stays empty with the right items

The recipe is shaped, so a bow or redstone dust in the wrong slot breaks it.

1. Move the bow to the exact center slot.
2. Move the redstone dust to the bottom middle slot, directly under the bow.
3. Make sure the top row is full and every corner holds cobblestone.

Not enough string for the bow

Each spider drops between 0 and 2 string.

1. Defeat more spiders until you have 3 string.
2. Use a weapon with the Looting enchantment to raise the string drop.

The dispenser does not fire when a redstone torch is attached

A redstone torch does not power the block it is placed on.

1. Break the torch off the dispenser.
2. Place the torch on a neighboring block beside the dispenser.
3. Or use a button, lever or redstone block instead.

The dispenser fires near the switch but not at the end of a long wire

Signal strength starts at 15 and drops by 1 for every block of redstone dust.

1. Shorten the redstone line, or place a repeater along it.
2. A repeater fed any signal of 1 or higher outputs a full strength of 15 again.

The dispenser drops items instead of using them

Only some items have a special dispenser action; anything else comes out as an item, the same as from a dropper.

1. Load arrows, a spawn egg, bone meal, a potion, a bucket, a boat or an armor stand.
2. Power the dispenser again and check the result.

The /give command is refused

The /give command requires cheats.

1. Open the world settings and turn on Activate Cheats.
2. Run /give @p dispenser again.

Minecraft dispenser FAQ

What is the recipe for a dispenser in Minecraft?

A dispenser takes seven cobblestone, one bow and one redstone dust at a crafting table. The cobblestone fills the top row and both sides, the bow goes in the center slot and the redstone dust goes in the bottom middle slot.

Can you make a dispenser without a bow?

No. The bow is part of the dispenser recipe, and the recipe produces nothing without it. The same grid with an empty center slot makes a dropper, which throws items out but does not fire arrows or use special items.

Can you make a dispenser in the 2×2 inventory grid?

No. The dispenser recipe fills a 3×3 grid, so it needs a crafting table. Make one from four planks in a 2×2 square, place it, and open it with the Use button or a right-click on PC.

Does a dispenser need cobblestone or will any stone work?

It needs cobblestone. In Bedrock Edition the dispenser recipe names cobblestone itself, while the furnace recipe accepts any stone crafting material, so a stone block that works for a furnace is not a substitute here. Keep seven plain cobblestone for the dispenser.

How do you make a dispenser shoot arrows?

Put arrows in the dispenser's slots and give it a redstone signal from a button, lever, pressure plate or a redstone torch on a neighboring block. Each pulse fires one arrow out of the dispenser.

Why is my dispenser not working?

A dispenser that does nothing has no redstone signal reaching it. A redstone torch on top of the dispenser does not power it, and a long redstone dust line loses one signal level per block. Move the torch to a neighboring block or add a repeater.

What is the difference between a dispenser and a dropper?

Both spit out a random item when powered. A dispenser also uses items with special behavior: it fires arrows, spawns mobs from spawn eggs and places boats, while a dropper only drops each item as an item.

What items can a dispenser use?

A dispenser fires arrows and spawns mobs from spawn eggs. Armor stands, boats, bone meal, potions and buckets also have special behavior. Any other item is dropped out of the dispenser as a plain item.

Is the dispenser recipe the same on Xbox, PlayStation, Switch and Windows?

Yes. Minecraft on consoles is Bedrock Edition, the same edition that runs on Windows PCs, and Bedrock uses one recipe: seven cobblestone, a bow in the center and redstone dust in the bottom middle slot. Consoles open the crafting table with the Use button.