Whether you want to get diamonds in Minecraft or unlock tools without mining, villagers are your best option. They are the most reliable mobs in the game when it comes to obtaining and even farming items. All of this is possible thanks to the trading system of Minecraft. But, at the same time, the same trades can also get a bit confusing. So, to clear any confusion, here’s everything you need to know about all villager jobs in Minecraft.

How Do Villagers Get Jobs in Minecraft

Villagers are one of the most unique mobs in Minecraft, thanks to their ability to trade. But, this ability only gets unlocked when villagers access a Job Site block. True to their names, these blocks allow villagers to get a job and perform it.

If an unemployed villager has a composter (a job site block) nearby, it takes on the role of a farmer. As a result, you can trade crops and related items with that villager. However, all villagers only sell a limited stock of items available for trade at once. For instance, if you buy all the wheat from a farmer, the mob must return to the composter, "work" on it, and restock the item.

How Many Types of Villagers Are There

In Minecraft, there are a total of 13 types of job site blocks and 15 types of villagers. As you might expect, two of these villager types don't perform any jobs and look identical. Furthermore, you can also divide villagers into 7 types based on the biome they are from.

In total, you can witness 98 different models of villagers in Minecraft, excluding their baby variants. The number skyrockets if you also include the zombie villagers. But, more on them later.

Do Biomes Affect Villager Trades

Thanks to Minecraft's villager trading rebalance, the biome of a villager affects the item they offer. At least, for a few villagers, including:

• Librarians: These villagers offer particular enchanted books as a trade, based on their biome. This takes away the uncertainty of the book you'll receive and also allows you to farm enchantments.
• Armorers: The biome-based trades of armorers only show up after they reach the expert level. Then, the material of the armor and enchantments they offer change, based on their biomes. For example, you can only get a complete set of diamond armor from the taiga villagers.
• Cartographers: You can trade with these villagers to get a variety of maps that make exploring your world a bit easier. The best biome-based item they offer is village maps. These maps allow you to find a village in a different biome than the one you currently are in.

Note: The biome-based trades are only a part of the experimental features of Minecraft. They are subject to change in their final release. You can use our guide to learn how to turn on new trades in Minecraft and test them within your world.

A Complete List of Minecraft Villager Jobs (2023)

Now that you know about the basics of jobs, let's explore all the villager jobs in Minecraft. Our list also contains information about their best trades and the specific Job Site block for each villager job.

Armorer

• Job Site Block: Blast Furnace
• Common Trades: Bell, Pieces of Armor, Shield
• Biome-Based Trades: Yes

Sporting an eye mask, they sell bells, shields, and pieces of iron, chainsaw, and diamond armor. They use the Blast Furnace as their job site block. You can use this block to smelt ores, tools, and armor at twice the speed of a regular furnace.

Butcher

• Job Site Block: Smoker
• Common Trades: Rabbit Stew, Cooked Porkchop, Cooked Chicken
• Biome-Based Trades: No

If you want to get reliable food then butchers are the best option in Minecraft villager jobs. They offer rabbit stew, cooked porkchop, and cooked chicken, all for a single emerald each. The butchers use smokers as their job site block, it allows you to cook meat at double the speed of a furnace.

What makes butchers truly special is that they buy kelp blocks for emeralds. Since you can farm kelp in Minecraft, this gives you a reliable way to get all the emeralds you need from a single villager.

Cartographer

• Job Site Block: Cartography Table
• Common Trades: Maps, Item Frame, Banner, Banner Pattern
• Biome-Based Trades: Yes

The cartographers in Minecraft are a perfect match for players who love exploring. They sell maps that can help you find villages, ocean monuments, and even Woodland Mansions. Moreover, you can also get item frames and banners from them to

Cleric

• Job Site Block: Brewing Stand
• Common Trades: Redstone Dust, Glowstone, Ender Eye, Lapis Lazuli, Bottle o' Enchanting
• Biome-Based Trades: No

If you want to make potions in Minecraft then clerics are the go-to Minecraft villager job. They offer everything you need to upgrade your potions including the Brewing Stand, which is also their job site block. Not to forget, if you like their purple robs, you can use armor trim combinations to recreate their look.

Farmer - Most Common in Minecraft Villager Jobs

• Job Site Block: Composter
• Common Trades: Bread, Pumpkin Pie, Cookies, Cake, Glistering Melon Slice, Golden Carrot, Apple, Suspicious Stew
• Biome-Based Trades: No

Farmers are the easiest option when it comes to finding Minecraft villager jobs in your world. They spawn in almost every village and offer more functionality than their peers. You can get a bunch of vegetarian food from them, which may not be as effective as meat but is much cheaper.

Moreover, they are the only mobs with the ability to harvest crops and plant seeds in Minecraft. You can hire them to automatically manage your farms while you are away on adventures.

Fisherman

• Job Site Block: Barrel
• Common Trades: Bucket of Fish, Cooked Fish, Raw Fish, Enchanting Fishing Rods, Campfire
• Biome-Based Trades: No

As you might expect, the fishermen in Minecraft only offer trades based on fishing. You can buy fish, fishing rods, and even campfires from these villagers. Their job site block is the barrel which is a storage block that offers more functionality than chests.

Fletcher

• Job Site Block: Fletching Table
• Common Trades: Flint, Bow, Crossbow
• Biome-Based Trades: No

If there is one Minecraft villager job that players seek out that's the Fletcher. This is only because of their special ability to buy sticks for emeralds. If you are playing on the best Minecraft desert seeds, all the dead bushes can give you sticks and thus more than enough emeralds you need.

Meanwhile, when it comes to selling, the fletchers have impressive trade options there too. You can get arrows, bows, and even crossbows from them. The only drawback with these villagers is their job site block, the Fletching Table. Even though it has been over five years since this block came to Minecraft, it doesn't have any proper function.

Leatherworker

• Job Site Block: Cauldron
• Common Trades: Dyed Pieces of Leather Armor, Leather Horse Armor, Saddle
• Biome-Based Trades: No

If you want to get a saddle in Minecraft, then your best bet is to look for leatherworkers. They have a whole inventory of leather-based trades in the game. The list includes armor, horse armor, and saddles. Leatherworkers use cauldrons as their job site blocks, which serve as storage blocks for liquids in the game.

Librarian - Most Versatile in Minecraft Villager Jobs

• Job Site Block: Lectern
• Common Trades: Bookshelf, Enchanted Books, Lantern, Clock, Compass, Glass, Name Tag
• Biome-Based Trades: Yes

Whether you want to upgrade your gear, explore the world, or simply decorate your base, the librarians are the best option. You can get enchanted books from them to enchant your items, without exploring a ton of structures. Plus, the bookshelves they sell and the ones they store at their huts, can help you level up your Enchanting Table.

They also offer items like compasses and name tags that unlock new mechanics in the game. As for the job site block, the librarians use lecterns. This block allows multiple players to read the same book simultaneously. You can find lecterns all around the popular on many Minecraft SMP servers.

Mason or Stone Mason

• Job Site Block: Stonecutter
• Common Trades: Andesite, Terracotta, Quartz, Brick, Bricks Block
• Biome-Based Trades: No

Masons hold one of the most underrated villager jobs in Minecraft. But they are a truly great asset if you plan on building a base. Their best offer includes all varieties of terracotta and glazed terracotta in the game. These vibrant and unique blocks allow players to truly customize their builds.

Furthermore, you can also get rarer building blocks like quartz and andesite. What makes masons even more desirable to builders is their job site block, the stonecutter. You can use it to cut all building blocks into various shapes including walls, stairs, and much more.

Shepherd

• Job Site Block: Loom
• Common Trades: Wool, Shears, Carpet, Bed, Banner, Painting
• Biome-Based Trades: No

Unless you want to decorate your house with wool, chances are, you will never interact with shepherds in Minecraft. But, that doesn't mean that they are the black sheep of Minecraft villager jobs.

All the trades shepherds offer are much cheaper than their counterparts. If you have a sheep farm in Minecraft, you can trade extra wool to easily get a bunch of emeralds. Not to forget, shepherds use the loom as their job site block, a block that allows you to make custom banners.

Toolsmith

• Job Site Block: Smithing Table
• Common Trades: Bell, stone tools, iron tools and diamond tools
• Biome-Based Trades: No

Whether you want to get a pickaxe, axe, shovel, or hoe, toolsmith villagers are your only option. They offer these vital tools in three different materials including stone, iron, and even diamond. This allows players to skip intensive mining and focus on their exploration.

But a toolsmith's awesomeness doesn't end with its trades. The huts of these villagers are a free source of lava. Plus, their chests have a high chance of spawning with iron ingots, tools, and weapons. Toolsmiths rely upon the Smithing Table as their job site block. You can use this table to unlock Netherite items and apply armor trims to your gear.

Weaponsmith

• Job Site Block: Grindstone 
• Common Trades: Bell, Iron Axe, Iron Sword, Diamond Axe, Diamond Sword
• Biome-Based Trades: No

The weaponsmith offers very limited items in Minecraft but they are still quite popular with players. This is because they offer you a chance to get iron and even enchanted diamond weapons without stepping a foot into caves. So, if you want to get a diamond sword in Minecraft, they are your safest bet.

Moreover, like toolsmiths, their huts often contain valuable loot, including lava and various treasures. Plus, if you don't like any enchantments on your weapons, you can use a grindstone to remove enchantments in MInecraft. It is also the job site block for weaponsmith villagers.

Unemployed

• Job Site Block: Any

All villagers in Minecraft spawn unemployed and stay that way until they find an unclaimed jobsite block. This also applies to the baby villagers, all of whom grow up to be unemployed villagers. Moreover, if you break a jobsite block, any villager connected to that block loses their job and becomes unemployed.

Since unemployed villagers do not have a job, they cannot offer trades to players. But, you can easily change that by crafting a jobsite block and placing it close to an unemployed villager.

Nitwit

• Job Site Block: None

The last option in the list of Minecraft villager jobs is the nitwits. They look exactly like unemployed villagers but are fundamentally different from them. If you place a job site block in front of nitwits, it doesn't have any effect on them.

These unique villagers simply don't have the ability to take jobs or offer any valuable trades. As a result, most players end up killing or trapping the nitwits. But, we suggest you let them roam around your world as a reminder to not overwork yourself like other villagers.

Wandering Trader

Some players hate them and others rely on them for survival. Wandering Traders are an oddball when it comes to trading in the overworld. They look and act just like the villagers but spawn randomly around you while you are exploring the world.

In terms of trades, their inventory is usually full of environmental blocks and items. At times, they can be carrying a rare sapling or an odd building block you need. But, most of the time, they don't offer anything truly valuable. You can use our dedicated guide to learn how to spawn Wandering Traders in Minecraft and meet them.

Can Wandering Trader Buy Items

Currently, the Wandering Traders can't buy items. But, that is about to change, thanks to the ongoing trading rebalance. Once that becomes a native feature in the game, you will be able to sell items to these mobs for emeralds. This mechanic has the potential to become a reliable way to clean up your inventory without rushing home.

Bonus: Piglins

As you know at this point, the Minecraft villager jobs offer a great way to get trade items in the overworld. But, they are not the only mobs with the ability to exchange items. These Nether mobs barter a variety of useful items in exchange for gold ingots. 

Since gold isn't a reliable material for tools or armor, the Piglins are a perfect way to turn it into something useful. You can use our guide on the Piglin trades in Minecraft to discover more about the same.

How to Change All Minecraft Villager Jobs

Follow these steps to change the job of a villager in Minecraft:

1. First, find a village in Minecraft within your world.

2. Then, craft a job site block, based on the villager job you want to unlock. For this guide, we are going to craft a Smithing Table by combining two iron ingots and four planks.

3. Then, find an unemployed villager in the villager or break a villager's job site block to make it unemployed.

4. Finally, place the job site block next to the villager to make it accept the job. As soon as the villager accepts the job, its appearance changes, and green particles show up over its head.

Why is Villager Not Accepting Job

The job site blocks aren't the only item that affects the Minecraft villager jobs. You also need to ensure the following aspects:

• The target villager should not be a nitwit. A reliable way to check is by checking the villager's sleeping pattern. All nitwits stay out of their huts till midnight unless they get chased by zombies.
• If you have already traded with a particular villager, you cannot change their job. You can only assign it back to its original job.
• The villager must be able to physically reach the job site block to claim it.
• Once a villager claims a job site block, another villager cannot use it to get a job. At least, until you break the job and make the original villager unemployed.
• In some versions of the Minecraft Bedrock edition, the villagers need to access their beds to work. So, it's a good idea to place a bed near every village in your base. Doing so also makes the game spawn Iron Golems for their protection.

Best Trades to Get Emeralds

From building blocks to tools, you can buy a variety of items from the villagers. But, more often than not, you need to get emeralds in Minecraft to unlock the best items. Fortunately, you can use the Minecraft villager jobs and the related trades to bypass it.

Glass to Glasspanes

Get a cartographer and a librarian villager then follow these steps to get emeralds easily:

1. First, cure a zombie villager or win a raid in Minecraft to unlock cheaper trades.

2. Smelt sand blocks in a furnace to turn them into glass blocks.

3. Then, turn the glass blocks into glass panes by filling two rows of the crafting grid. You can turn 6 glass blocks into 16 panes.

4. Sell 3 glass panes to an Apprentice-level cartographer for 1 emerald.

5. Then, trade with Journeyman-level librarians to buy 4 glass blocks for one emerald.

6. Finally, repeat the cycle from "Step 3" and enjoy your profits.

Bookshelf Loophole

Follow these simple steps to quickly get a lot of emeralds in Minecraft:

1. First, trap and cure a librarian zombie villager in Minecraft. You can our dedicated guide to learn how.

2. Once the villager is cured, it will offer one bookshelf for one emerald. Buy as many as you can.

3. Then, place the bookshelves on the ground and break them with your hands. Without a silk touch, the bookshelf ends up dropping three books.

4. Finally, sell the books to the same librarian to get one emerald for each of them.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do villagers need a bed to get a job in Minecraft?

Villagers don't need their beds to work in Minecraft. But, in some versions of Minecraft Bedrock, not having access to a bed prevents them from working.

Can villagers work at night?

Irrespective of the Minecraft villager's job, it only works during the daytime. You can make a clock in Minecraft to keep track of their working schedule even while mining.

Can villagers open gates in Minecraft?

Villagers can only open regular wooden doors in Minecraft. They can't open trapdoors or iron doors until you place a pressure plate next to them.

Why do villagers stare at you?

Villagers tend to stare at other villagers and players randomly. Moreover, if you are holding a tradeable item, they will also display what they can give you for it.

Why do villagers freak out when you ring the bell?

In Minecraft, villagers will only ring the bell when a Pillager raid begins. So, if a player rings the bell, it forces the villagers to treat it like a raid event and hide inside their huts.

Unlock All Minecraft Villager Jobs

Now that you are familiar with villagers, it’s time to take trading to the next level. The first thing you need to do is make a Nether portal and visit the Nether dimension. There, you can trade with Piglins to get items that villagers don’t sell. But, keep in mind that these Nether mobs only trade with gold, not emeralds. Though, if you don’t plan to find gold in Minecraft, your next best option is the Wandering Trader. Unlike Piglins, this mob not only accepts emeralds but also sells them. With that said, what is your villager's job in Minecraft? Drop your pick on our Discord server!