Overview
One Silverfish is nothing. Eight of them coming out of a stronghold wall at once is how people die at the end portal room. Individually it has 8 health, hits for 1 on Normal, and stands 0.3 blocks tall, which mostly means it is awkward to hit rather than dangerous. The problem is the call: a Silverfish that takes damage without dying alerts every other Silverfish hidden inside the surrounding infested blocks, and a corridor wall can empty into a swarm in seconds. That is why the advice is to one-shot them or leave them alone — a half-killed Silverfish is worse than an untouched one. Infested stone, cobblestone and deepslate look identical to the real thing and break noticeably faster, which is the only warning you get before one bursts out. Silk Touch solves it completely: mined with Silk Touch, an infested block drops itself and spawns nothing. Every stronghold end portal room also has a silverfish spawner sitting under the frame, which is worth blocking up before you start placing eyes of ender. They spawn in strongholds and in windswept hills, jagged peaks, frozen peaks and stony peaks.
Nothing collectable — a Silverfish drops no items at all. The reason it has a page is the swarm mechanic, which is a real hazard in strongholds and a real nuisance when mining mountain stone.
Break an infested block and a silverfish bursts out; if it takes damage without dying it calls every other silverfish in the surrounding blocks, and a stronghold wall can empty into a swarm in seconds. Individually they hit for almost nothing, but they are fast, low to the ground, and awkward to hit. Kill them in one blow, or mine infested blocks with Silk Touch, which stops them spawning at all.
Silverfish sits under Hostile mobs in Minecraft 1.21.4. Health sits at 8 points (4 hearts). It deals 1 damage on Normal difficulty.
Expect 5 experience per kill.
Properties
Silverfish has 8 health, which is 4 hearts. It drops up to 5 experience when a player kills it. Its hitbox is 0.4 blocks wide and 0.3 tall, which is what decides whether it fits through a gap or a one-block-high opening.
- Dimension
- Overworld
- Added in
- 1.0.0
Damage by difficulty
Silverfish hits for 1 on Easy, 1 on Normal and 1.5 on Hard — the site's stat strip shows the Normal figure, which is the one most guides quote.
A full set of diamond armour cuts that by up to 80% against a small hit and less against a large one, and Protection IV on all four pieces — 16 EPF — takes a further 64% off what is left.
| Difficulty | Attack damage | Hearts |
|---|---|---|
| Easy | 1 | 0.5 |
| Normal | 1 | 0.5 |
| Hard | 1.5 | 0.75 |
Spawns in
Hides inside infested stone, cobblestone and deepslate in strongholds and mountain biomes, and spawns from the silverfish spawner in every stronghold end portal room.
It does not appear in open terrain: every Silverfish comes from Stronghold.
- Dimension
- Overworld
- Light level
- Any
- Only in
- Stronghold
- Biomes
- Windswept Hills, Jagged Peaks, Frozen Peaks, Stony Peaks
- Added in
- 1.0.0
Dimension: Overworld · Added in 1.0.0
How it behaves
The Silverfish attacks on sight within its detection range, so light, walls and distance are all valid answers. Most hostile mobs notice you inside about sixteen blocks, though a few — ghasts especially — see very much further.
Killed by a player it drops up to 5 experience; killed any other way it drops none.
Command
In a world with cheats on, this spawns one Silverfish where you are standing.
Summon
/summon minecraft:silverfish ~ ~ ~Guides and tools that cover this
Frequently asked questions
How do you stop silverfish spawning?
Mine infested blocks with Silk Touch, or kill each Silverfish in a single hit so it never calls the others.
Where do silverfish come from?
Infested stone, cobblestone and deepslate in strongholds and mountain biomes, and the spawner in every end portal room.
Do silverfish drop anything?
No items at all, only 5 experience each.
How much damage does a Silverfish do?
1 on Normal, 1 on Easy and 1.5 on Hard. The danger is the number of them, not the damage.
How much health does the Silverfish have in Minecraft?
The Silverfish has 8 health points, which is 4 hearts.
What does the Silverfish drop?
It drops no items, only 5 experience.
Where does the Silverfish spawn?
Hides inside infested stone, cobblestone and deepslate in strongholds and mountain biomes, and spawns from the silverfish spawner in every stronghold end portal room.
How much damage does Silverfish do?
1 on Normal difficulty — 0.5 hearts — with 1 on Easy and 1.5 on Hard.
Related pages
How to get it
Silverfish hide inside infested stone, cobblestone and deepslate in strongholds and mountain biomes, and every stronghold end portal room has 1 silverfish spawner. Each gives 5 experience and drops no items.
Tips
- Kill in one hit or not at all: a damaged Silverfish calls every one hidden in the surrounding blocks.
- Mine infested blocks with Silk Touch, which collects the block and spawns nothing whatsoever.
- Block the spawner under the end portal frame before you place eyes, or the swarm arrives mid-activation.
- Watch for stone that breaks unusually fast in mountain biomes — that is the only tell.