How to Make a Sign in Minecraft

Guide Java Bedrock

Quick answer: Craft 3 signs with 6 matching planks filling the top two rows and 1 stick in the bottom-center slot. Signs display text, label chests and bases, and block water and lava without stopping players.

What you need

6 matching planks (any single wood type)
1 stick

Step by step

Turn logs into 6 planks of a single wood type (the wood sets the sign's color).
Craft 1 stick from planks.
Open a crafting table.
Fill the entire top row and middle row with the 6 matching planks.
Place the stick in the bottom-center slot.
Take the 3 signs. Place one, type your text (or write later by right-clicking it), and press Done.

Java vs Bedrock

The sign recipe is the same in Java and Bedrock and gives 3 signs. Every wood type has its own sign color, including Nether woods, and you can write on both the front and the back of a placed sign. Right-click with a dye to recolor the text, or with a glow ink sac to make it glow. Signs are not washed away by water or lava, which makes them useful for controlling fluid flow in farms, and a honeycomb waxes a sign so its text can never be edited again.

Versions: javabedrock

Frequently asked questions

How do you edit a sign in Minecraft?

Right-click the placed sign to reopen the editor. If the text stops changing, the sign has been waxed with a honeycomb, which locks it permanently. You can also write on the back side by clicking it.

Can signs stop water in Minecraft?

Yes. Signs, ladders and similar blocks occupy their space without being destroyed by fluids, so players place them to hold back water or lava while still walking through. That is the base of many bubble elevators and mob farms.

How many signs do you get from one recipe?

Three signs per craft from 6 planks and 1 stick, in both Java and Bedrock.