How to Get Sugar Cane in Minecraft

Guide Java Bedrock

Quick answer: Sugar cane generates in patches on dirt, sand or mud directly next to water in almost every biome. Break the middle of a stalk to keep the bottom growing, replant one piece beside water, and each plant adds a block every ~18 minutes in Java (~54 in Bedrock).

What you need

One sugar cane to start a farm
Dirt or sand next to water
A row of water channels (farm design)
Bone meal (Bedrock only)

Step by step

Search riverbanks, lake shores and coastlines: sugar cane grows in patches of up to 20 columns on dirt, grass, sand or mud blocks directly adjacent to water, in nearly every Overworld biome.
Harvest smart: break the stalk at the second block so the bottom block keeps the plant alive and regrowing.
Replant your own: place sugar cane on dirt, sand, grass, moss or mud directly next to water (even covered water works). It uproots instantly if the water is removed.
Grow it: a plant adds one block every 16 random ticks, about 18 minutes on average in Java and 54 minutes in Bedrock, up to 3 blocks tall. Bone meal only works in Bedrock, where one use grows it fully.
Buy it if you're stuck: wandering traders sell sugar cane for 1 emerald.
What you need it for: paper (3 cane in a row = 3 paper, for books, maps and fireworks), sugar (for cakes, potions of swiftness and pumpkin pie), and rockets for elytra flight.

Java vs Bedrock

Two real differences: sugar cane grows about 3x faster in Java (~18 minutes per block vs ~54 in Bedrock), and bone meal fully grows sugar cane in Bedrock but does nothing in Java. Wandering traders also drop sugar cane when killed mid-trade only in Bedrock.

Versions: Sugar cane was added as 'reeds' in Java Alpha v1.0.11 (July 2010) and renamed to sugar canes in Beta 1.2. It has been in Pocket Edition since the early alphas.

Frequently asked questions

Where does sugar cane grow in Minecraft?

Next to water in almost every Overworld biome: riverbanks, lakeshores, swamps and coasts. It needs dirt, grass, sand or mud directly adjacent to a water block, and it can't generate underground.

Why won't my sugar cane grow?

It only grows up to 3 blocks tall, it needs the water to stay adjacent (covered water is fine), and growth is slow: on average 18 minutes per block in Java, 54 in Bedrock. Bone meal does nothing in Java.

How do you make paper in Minecraft?

Place 3 sugar cane in a horizontal row on a crafting table to get 3 paper. Paper crafts into books (with leather), maps, cartography table items and firework rockets.

Can sugar cane grow on sand?

Yes: since Beta 1.8, sugar cane grows on sand and red sand exactly as well as on dirt or grass, as long as the block touches water. Growth speed is the same on every block.