How to Make a Hopper in Minecraft

Guide Java Bedrock

Quick answer: Craft a hopper from a chest and 5 iron ingots. It has 5 slots. Unless powered by redstone, it pushes one item into the container it faces, pulls one item from a container above it, and collects dropped items above it. A redstone signal locks all three functions.

What you need

5 iron ingots
1 chest

Step by step

Craft the hopper: 5 iron ingots and 1 chest. The chest goes in the center, with iron ingots in the top-left, top-right, middle-left, middle-right and bottom-center slots.
Place it so its output points at the container you want to fill. Its facing is the direction its output points, and it pushes items only into containers in that direction.
It then works on its own: it pushes a single item from its inventory into the container it faces, pulls a single item from a container above it, and collects item entities from the space above it. It first tries to push, then to pull, and if there is no container above, it collects items.
After collecting an item (or stack), a hopper has an 8-game-tick cooldown (0.4 seconds).
Lock it with redstone: while powered, the hopper does not push, pull or collect. A locked hopper can still receive items from droppers, crafters and other hoppers.
Chain hoppers into pipes to move items over distance. Locking one hopper stops a horizontal pipe, but a vertical pipe needs two adjacent hoppers locked.
Read how full a hopper is with a redstone comparator. Hoppers also work with furnaces and brewing stands: a hopper on top of a brewing stand only deposits into the ingredient slot.

Java vs Bedrock

In Java, pistons cannot move hoppers. In Bedrock, a hopper can only be locked on the input redstone tick. Hoppers also generate above barrels in trial chambers.

Versions: Describes the current Java and Bedrock releases. See the edition note above for differences.

Frequently asked questions

How fast is a hopper?

After moving or collecting an item it waits 8 game ticks (0.4 seconds). Hoppers collect groups of dropped items all at once, so they collect item entities much faster than they pull from containers.

Why won't my hopper fill the chest next to it?

A hopper pushes only into the container in the direction its output faces. Check which way it points.

How do I stop a hopper?

Give it a redstone signal. All three functions stop. A locked hopper can still receive items from droppers, crafters and other hoppers.

How many items does a hopper hold?

It has 5 slots of inventory.