How to Make a Slime Block in Minecraft

Guide Java Bedrock

Quick answer: Craft a slime block with 9 slimeballs filling the grid. It bounces you (no fall damage), sticks to blocks when pistons push it, never sticks to honey blocks, and uncrafts back into 9 slimeballs whenever you need them.

What you need

Slimeball x9
Crafting table

Step by step

Collect 9 slimeballs: kill slimes in swamps at night or in slime chunks below Y=40, trade with wandering traders, or get them from sneezing baby pandas.
Craft the slime block: slimeballs filling all 9 crafting slots.
Bounce safely: falling onto a slime block deals zero fall damage and bounces you back up - a 255-block fall rebounds about 50 blocks. Hold sneak to land without bouncing (still no damage).
Move builds with pistons: a piston pushing a slime block drags every adjacent movable block along - the core of flying machines, elevators and doors. Slime blocks never stick to honey blocks, so the two combine for compact machines.
Watch your step: walking on slime is slow and slightly slippery, though less slippery than ice.
Brew with it: slime blocks are an ingredient for potions of Oozing (1.21), which make mobs spawn slimes on death.
Store compactly: one slime block holds 9 slimeballs and uncrafts back into 9 slimeballs in the grid - the perfect compact slime storage.
Break it instantly: slime blocks break instantly with any tool or bare hands, even under Mining Fatigue.

Java vs Bedrock

Recipe, bouncing and piston behavior are the same in Java and Bedrock. Potion of Oozing brewing with slime blocks works in both editions from 1.21 onward.

Versions: Added in 1.8 (14w02a) as the Bountiful Update's bouncy storage block. Potion of Oozing brewing arrived in 1.21.

Frequently asked questions

How do you get slimeballs in Minecraft?

Kill slimes: they spawn in swamps at night (more during full moons) and in special slime chunks below Y=40. Wandering traders sometimes sell slimeballs, and baby pandas drop one when they sneeze.

Do slime blocks prevent fall damage?

Yes - landing on a slime block cancels all fall damage and bounces you back up. Hold sneak while landing to stop the bounce; you still take no damage.

What is the difference between slime blocks and honey blocks?

Both stick to blocks when moved by pistons, but they never stick to each other - so side-by-side slime and honey let one machine move two groups independently. Slime bounces entities and prevents fall damage; honey slows entities and lets you slide down walls.