Silverfish
hostileOurs, not the jar's: where it turns up, how a silverfish behaves. Same on Bedrock v1.26.30.5 for health. Checked 2026-08-08, and how
Health
Damage
XP Drop
Added InOverview
In Minecraft, the Silverfish is classified as a hostile mob: it will attack players on sight whenever it is able to reach them.
Silverfishes make their home in the Overworld, turning up in Stronghold and Mountains.
Its defining trait is simple: small and fast.
It carries 8 health points, 4 hearts, and yields 5 experience when it dies.
The Silverfish has been part of the game since version Beta 1.8.
A useful detail many players miss: Found in Strongholds and mountain biomes.
Knowing how the Silverfish behaves is mostly about survival: recognising it early and reacting correctly is what keeps a night-time excursion from ending in a respawn.
Damage by Difficulty
Spawning
Silverfishes spawn in Stronghold and Mountains.
Spawns from monster spawners in Stronghold end portal rooms. Hides in Infested Stone variants in mountains and igloo basements.
Naturally spawned silverfishes will despawn over time when no player is nearby; naming one with a name tag or leading it away on a lead keeps it permanent.
A Silverfish farm is built around its own spawn rule rather than around the light level, so start from what makes them appear at all.
Drops
The Silverfish leaves behind nothing collectable on death; you gain experience but no loot.
Because there is nothing to harvest from its corpse, the reason to engage a Silverfish is almost always the experience or simply clearing it out of the way, not farming a resource.
If you are after specific items, the Silverfish is not your source for them; look to mobs with populated drop tables or to mining and trading instead.
You also collect 5 experience for every Silverfish you defeat.
Since there is nothing to pick up, you do not need to worry about a hopper or collection system for silverfishes; they leave the ground exactly as they found it.
Its loot table in the game files is empty, so it leaves nothing behind on death.
Silverfish attributes
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Attack damage attribute | 1 |
| Experience | 5 |
| Health | 8 points |
| Follow range | 16 blocks |
| Movement speed | 0.25 |
The Silverfish does not stand alone on these numbers: the endermite on the same 8 health, the sheep at that same figure and the wolf at that same figure.
Silverfish: 4 values out of Silverfish.createAttributes
Nothing in the biome lists and nothing in the loot tables names the silverfish, so the numbers on this page come from one place only: Silverfish.createAttributes in the Java 26.2 client jar sets 8 health, 1 attack damage, 0.25 movement speed and 16 blocks follow range.
| Weapon | Attack damage | Full swings |
|---|---|---|
| golden sword, wooden sword | 4 | 2 |
| stone sword | 5 | 2 |
| iron sword | 6 | 2 |
| diamond sword, golden axe, wooden axe | 7 | 2 |
| netherite sword | 8 | 1 |
| diamond axe, iron axe, stone axe | 9 | 1 |
| netherite axe | 10 | 1 |
Turned around, 20 unblocked silverfish hits empty a player's 20 health, 5% of the bar at a time, which is what the silverfish's 1 damage on Normal buys it.
Behavior & Combat
Behaviourally, small and fast. When attacked, calls nearby silverfish from Infested Stone blocks. Swarms can be overwhelming.
Its 8 health is 56th of 69, just under the 10 of the cow.
Its combat profile is 8 health (4 hearts) with attacks dealing 1 damage on every difficulty.
To deal with one efficiently, exploit its weaknesses: it is vulnerable to Bane of Arthropods enchantment and Fire.
A sword enchanted with Bane of Arthropods shortens the fight considerably against this mob.
The practical takeaway is to respect its strengths, exploit the weaknesses listed above, and you will rarely lose a fight you choose to take.
Silverfish: common questions
How much health does a Silverfish have?
A Silverfish has 8 health points, which is 4 hearts on its health bar. Its 8 health is 56th of 69, just under the 10 of the cow.
What does a Silverfish drop?
A Silverfish does not drop any items, only 5 experience.
Where do Silverfishes spawn in Minecraft?
Silverfishes spawn in Stronghold and Mountains. Spawns from monster spawners in Stronghold end portal rooms. Hides in Infested Stone variants in mountains and igloo basements.
How do you defeat a Silverfish?
To defeat a Silverfish, target its weaknesses, it is vulnerable to Bane of Arthropods enchantment and Fire, while dealing with its 8 health (4 hearts).
How much damage does a Silverfish deal?
A Silverfish deals 1 damage on all difficulties.
How much XP does a Silverfish drop?
A Silverfish drops 5 experience points when killed.