How to Use a Lodestone in Minecraft

Guide Java Bedrock

Quick answer: Craft a lodestone from 8 chiseled stone bricks + 1 iron ingot, place it at your base, and use a compass on it: that compass points to the lodestone from anywhere in the same dimension. It is the only way to make a compass track a custom point.

What you need

8 chiseled stone bricks (stonecutter or 2 stone brick slabs stacked)
1 iron ingot
1 compass per waypoint you want to track

Step by step

Craft chiseled stone bricks: run stone bricks through a stonecutter, or stack 2 stone brick slabs.
Craft the lodestone: fill the crafting grid with 8 chiseled stone bricks and put 1 iron ingot in the center. (The recipe was cheapened from netherite to iron in the Spring to Life update.)
Place the lodestone somewhere permanent - your base entrance is ideal. It needs a pickaxe to mine back.
Hold a compass and use it (right-click) on the lodestone. The compass enchants-glints and locks to that block.
Follow it home: the linked compass points at the lodestone from any distance, as long as you are in the same dimension.
Make one per dimension: a lodestone compass only works in the lodestone's dimension, so keep separate linked compasses for your overworld base, nether hub and end gateway.
If the lodestone breaks, every compass linked to it spins randomly - replace the lodestone and re-link them.

Java vs Bedrock

Same crafting and linking in Java and Bedrock. Lodestones also generate in ruined portal chests.

Versions: Lodestones were added in 1.16 (Nether Update). The recipe changed from a netherite ingot to an iron ingot in 1.21.5 (Spring to Life).

Frequently asked questions

Does a lodestone compass work in other dimensions?

No - it must be in the same dimension as its lodestone. A nether lodestone compass is useless in the overworld and vice versa.

Can other players use my lodestone?

Only if they link their own compass to it. Lodestones are not beacons - each compass is linked individually, and there is no limit to how many compasses point at one lodestone.

What happens if I lose the linked compass?

Craft a new compass and right-click the lodestone again. Linking is free and instant - the lodestone never runs out.