Find the Best Height to Mine a Specific Ore

Locate Ore Spawn Information

Open JEI by pressing your configured key (default: O). Search for the ore you want to find by typing its name in the search bar, or scroll through the ore list.

Read the Height Data

Hover over the ore block in the JEI panel. Look at the tooltip that appears—it displays the minimum and maximum Y-level where this ore naturally generates. This range tells you exactly which depths are worth mining.

Navigate to the Right Level

Open your debug screen (F3 on most systems) to see your current Y-coordinate in real time. Dig down to the height range shown in JEI. You'll find ore clusters most reliably within this zone.

Understand Cluster Size

The tooltip also shows how large ore veins typically are in your world. Smaller clusters mean you need to explore more; larger ones mean you can mine more material from a single vein. This helps you decide whether to strip-mine, cave-dive, or use branch mining techniques.

Check for Biome Restrictions

Some ores only spawn in specific biomes. If the tooltip mentions biome limitations, you'll need to travel to those areas—mining at the correct height in the wrong biome won't help.