Transportation

Transportation involves the methods by which players move around the world or between dimensions (the Overworld, the Nether and the End).
Contents
Methods[edit]
Please update this section to reflect recent updates or newly available information.
These speeds assume that the form of transportation is not under the effect of the Speed or Slowness status effects if they can be.
Method | Conditions | Running start effective? | Average speed in m/s (blocks per second)[note 1] | Average speed in km/h (1000 blocks per hour)[note 1][note 2] | Works in the Nether? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Walking | Flat terrain | No | 4.317 m/s | 15.54 km/h | Yes |
Soul Speed 1 | No | 6.066 m/s | 21.84 km/h | Yes | |
Soul Speed 2 | No | 6.519 m/s | 23.47 km/h | Yes | |
Soul Speed 3 | No | 6.972 m/s | 25.1 km/h | Yes | |
Sprinting | Flat terrain | No | 5.612 m/s | 20.2 km/h | Yes |
Soul Speed 1 | No | 7.885 m/s | 28.39 km/h | Yes | |
Soul Speed 2 | No | 8.475 m/s | 30.51 km/h | Yes | |
Soul Speed 3 | No | 9.064 m/s | 32.63 km/h | Yes | |
Sneaking | Flat terrain | No | 1.3 m/s | 4.68 km/h | Yes |
Soul Speed 1 | No | 1.819 m/s | 6.55 km/h | Yes | |
Soul Speed 2 | No | 1.949 m/s | 7.02 km/h | Yes | |
Soul Speed 3 | No | 2.92 m/s | 10.51 km/h | Yes | |
Minecart | Powered Track | Yes, small | 8.0 m/s | 28.8 km/h | Yes |
1⁄4 slope track | No | 7.1 m/s | 25.6 km/h | Yes | |
Minecart with Furnace [Java Edition only] | No | 4.0 m/s | 14.4 km/h | Yes | |
Boat[note 3] | 1⁄4 slope rapids | Yes, small | 7.3 m/s | 26.4 km/h | No[note 4] |
1⁄4 slope rapids | No | 7.0 m/s | 25.2 km/h | No[note 4] | |
Flat ice Flat packed ice Flat frosted ice | No | 40.0 m/s | 144.0 km/h | Yes | |
Flat blue ice | No | 70.0 m/s | 252.0 km/h | Yes | |
Flat water | No | 8.0 m/s | 28.8 km/h | No[note 4] | |
Saddled Strider | Flat land, without boost | No | 1.74 m/s | 6.26 km/h | Yes |
Flat lava surface, without boost | No | 4.14 m/s | 14.9 km/h | Yes | |
Saddled pig | Flat terrain | No | 4.0 m/s | 14.4 km/h | Yes |
Flat terrain, using carrot on a stick | Yes | 4.19 m/s | 15.08 km/h | Yes | |
Horse [note 5] | Flat terrain (average horse speed) | No | 9.49 m/s | 34.16 km/h | Yes |
Flat terrain, fastest possible horse breed | No | 14.23 m/s | 51.22 km/h | Yes | |
Donkey Mule |
Flat terrain | No | 7.525 m/s | 27.125 km/h | Yes |
Zombie horse Skeleton horse |
Flat terrain | No | 8.62 m/s | 31.03 km/h | Yes |
Swimming | Still water, surface[note 6] | No | 2.20 m/s | 7.92 km/h | No[note 4] |
Still water, underwater[note 7] | No | 1.97 m/s | 7.09 km/h | No[note 4] | |
Upstream, underwater | No | 0.39 m/s | 1.40 km/h | No[note 4] | |
Downstream, underwater | No | 1.81 m/s | 6.52 km/h | No[note 4] | |
While Diving | No | 0.39 m/s | 1.40 km/h | No[note 4] | |
Downstream, underwater, standing | No | 1.37 m/s | 4.93 km/h | No[note 4] | |
Dolphin's Grace status effect | No | 8.0 m/s | 28.8 km/h | No[note 4] | |
Dolphin's Grace status effect with Depth Strider III | No | 48.0 m/s | 172.8 km/h | No[note 4] | |
Dolphin's Grace status effect with Depth Strider III and Soul Speed III on a layer of Soul Soil underwater [note 8] | No | ~75.0 m/s | ~270 km/h | No[note 4] | |
Dolphin's Grace status effect with Depth Strider III and Soul Speed III on a layer of Soul Soil underwater, aligned at a +/-45 or +/-135 degree angle, depending on travel direction, and holding forward, left/right (left if -135 or 45, right if 135 or -45), and the sprint key [note 9] | No | ~146.965 m/s | ~529.074 km/h | No[note 4] | |
Flying (horizontal)[note 10] | Creative Mode Spectator Mode |
Yes | 11.0 m/s | 39.6 km/h | Yes |
Sprint-flying | Yes | 22.0 m/s | 79.2 km/h | Yes | |
Ender Pearl | Thrown 15° above horizontal | No | ~23.0 m/s | ~82.8 km/h | Yes |
Biggest TNT pearl cannon[note 11] | Yes | 1,760,000 m/s (1.760 Mm/s) | 6,336,000 km/h (6.336 Gm/h) | Yes | |
Elytra[note 12] | Gliding at 0° pitch | Yes, small | 30.0 m/s | 108.0 km/h | Yes |
Continuous rocket boost | No | 33.5 m/s | 120.6 km/h | Yes | |
Gliding at 52° pitch down | Yes | 67.3 m/s | 242.3 km/h | Yes | |
Gliding at 90° pitch down | Yes | 78.4 m/s | 282.2 km/h | Only when above bedrock level[note 13] |
- Notes
- ↑ a b Multiply the value by 8 to get the Overworld equivalent when doing this in the Nether.
- ↑ Divide by 3 to get kilometres per game day, or by 6 to get kilometres per half-day (from dawn to sunset)
- ↑ The time taken by a boat to reach maximum speed is 9.4 seconds—the difference in time between a running start and not, is half that, or 4.7 seconds.
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m In the Nether, water cannot be placed without the use of commands.
- ↑ Horses vary in speed. They are the fastest method of land transportation on open terrain.
- ↑ The swimming speeds are not affected by Swiftness potions. The surface speed refers to "skimming" across the top of the water by holding the spacebar.
- ↑ Underwater refers to any part of the body submerged in water and walking on flat terrain. The Player travels the same speed regardless of if the water is 1 block deep or 2 (in observed cases).
- ↑ Data based on https://youtu.be/PuXX2zkEs48?t=178.
- ↑ Data based on https://youtu.be/ySREkWjks6A.
- ↑ Flying speed can be varied.
- ↑ Data based on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79Cqxz1-2f8.
- ↑ Values are faster than those listed if the player has the Slow Falling status effect.
- ↑ it is technically possible below; however, the size between the roof of the nether and the floor is 124 blocks, meaning that it would take less than 2 seconds to go down. Also, achieving speed requires either using rocket boost, or starting above the roof.
Potions[edit]
Using potion effects (including beacon effects), walking and sprinting speeds become competitive with other methods of transportation.
Each additional level of Speed allows the player to walk at nearly the sprinting speed of the previous level, and sprinting with Speed II is only slightly slower than a minecart at full speed or a boosted pig. With adequate food and potion supplies, sprinting may be more cost-effective than building high-speed transportation systems.
Effect level | Walking speed (m/s) | Sprinting speed (m/s) |
---|---|---|
none | 4.317 m/s | 5.612 m/s |
Speed | 5.181 m/s | 6.735 m/s |
Speed II | 6.044 m/s | 7.857 m/s |
Commands[edit]
Using the /effect
command, extremely high or low speeds become reachable. At exceedingly high levels (100+), the player moves faster than the chunks can load.
Effect level | Sneaking speed (m/s) | Walking speed (m/s) | Sprinting speed (m/s) |
---|---|---|---|
Speed 50 | 14.25 m/s | 47.49 m/s | 61.74 m/s |
Speed 127 | 34.19 m/s | 113.97 m/s | 148.17 m/s |
Speed 256 | 67.61 m/s | 225.36 m/s | 292.96 m/s |
Vertical transportation[edit]
There are some examples of purely vertical transportation methods:
Method | Conditions | Average speed (m/s) |
---|---|---|
Jumping [note 1] | Climbing slope without stairs, pillar jumping, etc. | 2.0 m/s |
Stairs | Ascending | 3.2 m/s |
Descending | 3.6 m/s | |
#climbable (e.g. ladders, vines) | Ascending | 2.35 m/s |
Descending | 3.0 m/s | |
Soul Sand | Ascending in water | 11 m/s |
Magma Block | Descending in water | 4.9 m/s |
Waterfall | No adjacent blocks | 2.0 m/s |
Ascending, with adjacent blocks | 0.6 m/s | |
Descending, with adjacent blocks | 3.4 m/s | |
Lavafall | Using a Potion of Fire Resistance | 0.8 m/s |
Levitation | Level 1 | 0.9 m/s |
Flying | Creative Spectator |
7.5 m/s |
Falling | No blocks below player (terminal velocity) | 78.4 m/s |
Swimming | Water | 0.39 m/s |
Scaffolding (measured on Bedrock Edition) | Ascending | 1.2 m/s |
Descending | 2.94 m/s | |
Scaffolding (measured on Java Edition) | Ascending | 2.352 m/s |
Descending | 3.000 m/s |
- ↑ The player can jump up a distance of 1 1⁄4 blocks. With Jump Boost I, that increases to 1 15⁄16 blocks, and with Jump Boost II, that increases to 2 1⁄2 blocks.
Falling speed is more complex: Every tick (1⁄20 second), non-flying players and mobs have their vertical speed decremented (less upward motion, more downward motion) by 0.08 blocks per tick (1.6 m/s), then multiplied by 0.98. This would produce a terminal velocity of 3.92 blocks per tick or 78.4 m/s. However, the sky isn't quite high enough for that: Falling from layer 256 to bedrock takes about 5.5 seconds, with impact at 3.5 blocks per tick (70 m/s). It is possible to fly higher in creative mode, potentially reaching terminal velocity falling from "above the sky".
An exact function to calculate the speed of a (free)falling player is the following: v(t) = (392/5) ((98/100)floor(20t) - 1). Where the velocity v is in blocks/second (or meters/second), the time t is in seconds, initial velocity is zero and downward motion is negative. 20 t is floored because Minecraft updates once each tick.
An exact function to calculate the displacement of the player is the following: d(t) = 392(10 - (1/5) floor(20t) - 10(49/50)floor(20t)). Where the displacement d is in blocks (meters), the time t is in seconds, initial velocity and displacement is zero and downward displacement is negative
An approximate function to calculate the time it takes to fall from some height is the following: t(d) = 1000 - 5.102d + 989.960 W-1(-0.36786e0.0051538d). Where the height d is in blocks (meters), the time t is in seconds, downward displacement is negative and W is the Lambert W function.
Other modes of transportation[edit]
- Players are also able to use pistons for transport.
- It is possible to construct complex flying machines using pistons, blocks of redstone, slime blocks, and honey blocks.
- Dying is an instant mode of transportation to the player's bed or spawn point, but at the cost of all items and XP (if the
keepInventory
gamerule is disabled) and the world (on Hardcore).- If the player has already defeated the ender dragon, and is near a stronghold/End portal, they can enter and exit the End to instantly be transported to their bed or spawn point without dying.
- Explosion knockback can send an adjacent player flying for a short distance, depending on the strength of the explosion. This is not recommended in Survival mode.
- It is possible to mount minecarts and boats as long as they are within 4-5 blocks (inclusive) from the player. Placing these in a straight line allows for extremely fast transport. This also works with saddled pigs, provided they stay in position (placed on posts).
Achievements[edit]
Icon | Achievement | In-game description | Actual requirements (if different) | Gamerscore earned | Trophy type (PS) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | 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 | |
![]() | Beam Me Up | Teleport over 100 meters from a single throw of an Ender Pearl | — | 20G | Silver | |
![]() | Super Sonic | Use Elytra to fly through a 1 by 1 gap while moving faster than 40 m/s | — | 30G | Gold |
Advancements[edit]
Icon | Advancement | In-game description | Parent | Actual requirements (if different) | Namespaced ID |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Subspace Bubble | Use the Nether to travel 7 km in the Overworld | Nether | Use the Nether to travel between 2 points in the Overworld with a minimum horizontal distance of 7000 blocks between each other, 875 blocks in the Nether. | nether/fast_travel
|
History[edit]
Java Edition pre-Classic | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
rd-132211 | Added walking as the first form of locomotion. | ||||
Java Edition Classic | |||||
0.0.12a | Added water and lava. "Swimming" (more akin to treading water) has been introduced. | ||||
Java Edition Infdev | |||||
June 18, 2010 | Added minecarts. | ||||
June 25, 2010, 2 | Added saddles, which made it possible to use pigs as a (somewhat unreliable) method of transportation. | ||||
Java Edition Alpha | |||||
v1.0.6 | Added boats. | ||||
v1.1.1 | Added sneaking. | ||||
v1.2.0 | preview | Added the Nether in the Halloween Update, which could be used as a fast travel zone since any distance covered in the Nether is multiplied by 8 in the Overworld. | |||
Java Edition Beta | |||||
1.5 | Added powered rails, which removed the need for "booster" minecarts. | ||||
1.8 | Pre-release | Added sprinting and flying in the Adventure Update. | |||
An infamous bug where walking on the edges of blocks would accumulate step sounds and rapidly play them upon touching solid ground has been fixed. | |||||
Java Edition | |||||
1.0.0 | Beta 1.9 Prerelease 2 | Added ender pearls in the second half of the Adventure Update, which can be thrown, teleporting the player to where it lands. | |||
Beta 1.9 Prerelease 3 | Added speed potions, allowing for faster travel. | ||||
1.3.1 | 12w23a | Boats have been made faster. | |||
1.4.2 | 12w36a | Added carrot on a stick in the Pretty Scary Update, which made it possible to control saddled pigs.[1] They start slow, but can reach up to 5 blocks per second (5m/sec).[2] | |||
Before this update, the player had no control over the pig's wandering, so this was not a practical form of long-distance transportation. After this update, however, the pig does not jump when being controlled, so transportation is still limited (to the same height or downhill directions). | |||||
12w37a | Saddled pigs now jump over blocks when being directed with the carrot on a stick. | ||||
12w38a | Teleportation by nether portal is now instantaneous in creative mode. | ||||
1.6.1 | 13w16a | Added horses in the Horse Update. | |||
13w16b | Horses are now slower and the amount of gliding from horses has been reduced. | ||||
1.7.2 | 13w36a | Added ability to "sprint" in minecarts in The Update that Changed the World, boats and horses, and while flying in creative mode, speeding them up slightly. | |||
1.8 | 14w05a | Added Spectator mode in the Bountiful Update, one of the fastest methods of transportation due to its no-clip ability and adjustable flying speed. | |||
1.9 | 15w31a | Added levitation in the Combat Update. | |||
15w41a | Added elytra in the Combat Update. | ||||
1.13 | 18w07a | Added the ability to sprint while in water in the Update Aquatic, which causes the player to dive to the ground and actually swim. This is much faster than the previous form. | |||
1.16 | 20w13a | Added striders in the Nether Update, which can stride on lava allowing the player to cross lava oceans. | |||
Pocket Edition Alpha | |||||
0.1.0 | Added water, therefore allowing swimming. | ||||
0.2.0 | Added flying. | ||||
0.8.0 | build 2 | Added minecarts and rails, allowing travel by minecart. | |||
0.11.0 | build 1 | Added boats. | |||
0.12.1 | build 1 | Added sneaking and sprinting. | |||
0.14.0 | build 1 | Added ender pearls. | |||
0.15.0 | build 1 | Added horses in the Friendly Update. | |||
Added saddles, which can be equipped on horses and pigs to ride them. | |||||
Added carrot on a stick to control pigs when riding. | |||||
Pocket Edition | |||||
1.0.0 | alpha 0.17.0.1 | Added elytra in the Ender Update. | |||
Bedrock Edition | |||||
1.4.0 | beta 1.2.13.8 | Added the ability to sprint while in water in the Update Aquatic, which causes the player to dive to the ground and actually swim. This is much faster than the previous form. |
Issues[edit]
Issues relating to "Transportation" are maintained on the bug tracker. Report issues there.
Trivia[edit]
Sprinting with Soul Speed 3 on Soul Sand while having Speed 2 is almost as fast as the fastest possible horse breed. (12.6896 m/sec)