Guides / Using AnvilCalc
How to Use the Calculator
September 20, 2026
The calculator on the home page turns "I want these enchantments on this item" into an exact, ordered list of anvil steps — no guessing, no spreadsheet. Here's how to actually use it.
1. Check your active inventory (top of the page)
The calculator always reads from whichever inventory is currently active — its name, icon, and color show at the top, with a tap-to-switch selector if you keep more than one. Switching here also switches which edition (Java or Bedrock) and version the calculator uses, since those are properties of the inventory, not the page. See How to Use Your Inventory for the full picture.
2. Pick an item
Tap a tool/armor category in the grid, then tap the resulting banner to change its material if that item has more than one tier (a shield or elytra, for instance, only comes in one). There's also a shortcut — "Or upgrade an item already in your inventory" — that jumps to /inventory and brings a specific owned item's exact enchantments, prior-work count, and name straight back here when you tap its ↑ button.
3. Set current enchantments, if any
If the item already has enchantments (because you upgraded it from your inventory, or you're just describing an item you're holding), the Current enchantments section lets you tap them in the same way as the target picker below it. This is what tells the solver the item's real starting point — skip it entirely for a fresh, unenchanted item.
4. Pick target enchantments
Tap any enchantment pill to add it at level I; tap again to cycle up a level, and once more past its max to remove it. Pills that would conflict with something already selected are visually disabled with a short explanation. Whatever you've picked shows underneath as a removable "Selected" list.
5. Optional: rename, and "Use only items in my inventory"
A Rename field adds a flat +1 XP level, bundled into whichever step has room for it. The "Use only items in my inventory" checkbox changes what the solver is allowed to assume: left unchecked (the default), it can assume a fresh book is obtainable for anything your inventory doesn't cover; checked, it will only ever use books/items actually recorded in your active inventory — and tells you plainly if that isn't enough.
6. Read the result
Cheapest combine order lists every anvil step as a left slot (base) + right slot (sacrifice) → result, exactly like the in-game UI, with that step's own XP cost. If even the cheapest possible sequence would exceed the level cap, the calculator still shows that hypothetical sequence with the offending step(s) marked — so you can see why it's not possible, not just that it isn't.
Tap Mark done as you complete each step in-game (untap to undo it) — this state carries into a shared link too, so you can pick up a plan later exactly where you left off. Copy result grabs a plain-text summary; Share creates a link to a dedicated review page others can follow without ever seeing your inventory — see Sharing a Combine Plan.