Where to find redstone ore in Minecraft: Java Edition

Redstone is one of the most intriguing resources in Minecraft due to its ability to carry currents and enable the creation of complex machinery.

To construct redstone machinery in the game, players need at least a little redstone dust. This is obtained from redstone ore, which can be found deep underground.

Like other ores, when a redstone ore block is broken, players will receive redstone dust instead of the ore block itself (unless they break it with a Silk Touch tool).

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The best areas to find redstone ore in Minecraft version 1.18.2

Redstone can be found underground, even as deep as the deepslate layers (Image via Mojang)

When searching for redstone ore in Minecraft, it's important to remember that the game's ores were redistributed with the changes made in the Caves & Cliffs update.

The height limit of worlds was increased, and deepslate layers were added below what used to be the bedrock layer. As a result, ores were moved about, and the method of their generation was changed. This also stands true for redstone ore.

In both Minecraft's Java and Bedrock Editions, redstone ore now generates in two "batches" per chunk. The first batch generates in blobs of 0-10 blocks from levels Y=-63 to Y=15, evenly distributed among all height levels.

However, the second batch can be easier to key in on. It generates from levels Y=-63 to Y=-34, with the concentration of blobs increasing as players reach lower elevations.

Since one batch essentially distributes itself evenly throughout the underground, it can be difficult for players to pin down a good area to find the ore. This leaves them with the second batch, which becomes more concentrated the lower that players descend.

With that in mind, players may want to mine down as low as they possibly can until they hit the bedrock layer at Y=-64. They can then branch mine and slowly but surely work their way back up.

It may also benefit players to use one of the various x-ray glitches available in Minecraft 1.18.2. Though Mojang is patching these glitches quite regularly, a few tactics still work. These glitches allow players to clip through the border of blocks and view certain things generated underground, including structures like strongholds and caves as well as large ore veins.

Like other ores in-game, it's possible to spot veins of redstone ore on occasion, which can lead players to collect a huge amount of redstone dust at once.