Shulker Box
Renewable |
Yes |
---|---|
Stackable |
No |
Tool | |
Blast resistance |
2 |
Hardness |
2 |
Luminous |
No |
Transparent | |
Waterloggable | |
Flammable |
No |
Catches fire from lava |
No |
Map color (Java) |
|
{ "title": "Shulker Box", "rows": [ { "field": "Yes", "label": "(link to Renewable resource article, displayed as Renewable)" }, { "field": "No", "label": "Stackable" }, { "field": "<span class=\"sprite-file\" style=\"height:32px;width:32px;--vertical-align:middle\">(link to File:SlotSprite Pickaxe Required.png article, displayed as 32x32px|link=Pickaxe|alt=|class=pixel-image|This block can be broken with any tool, but a pickaxe is the quickest)</span>", "label": "Tool" }, { "field": "2", "label": "(link to Explosion#Blast resistance article, displayed as Blast resistance)" }, { "field": "2", "label": "(link to Breaking#Blocks by hardness article, displayed as Hardness)" }, { "field": "No", "label": "(link to Light article, displayed as Luminous)" }, { "field": "'''(link to Java Edition article, displayed as JE):''' No<br>'''(link to Bedrock Edition article, displayed as BE):''' Yes", "label": "(link to Opacity article, displayed as Transparent)" }, { "field": "'''(link to Java Edition article, displayed as JE):''' No<br>'''(link to Bedrock Edition article, displayed as BE):''' Yes", "label": "(link to Waterlogging article, displayed as Waterloggable)" }, { "field": "No", "label": "(link to Flammable article, displayed as Flammable)" }, { "field": "No", "label": "Catches fire from (link to lava article, displayed as lava)" }, { "field": "<span style=\"display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap;\"><span style=\"display: inline-block; background-color: rgb(127, 63, 178)\n; border: 1px solid #888; border-radius: 0.3em; width: 1em; height: 1em; vertical-align: -0.36em; margin-right: -0.1em\"><br></span> 24 COLOR_PURPLE\n</span>", "label": "(link to Map color article, displayed as Map color) <small>((link to Java Edition article, displayed as Java))</small>" } ], "invimages": [ "Shulker Box", "White Shulker Box", "Light Gray Shulker Box", "Gray Shulker Box", "Black Shulker Box", "Brown Shulker Box", "Red Shulker Box", "Orange Shulker Box", "Yellow Shulker Box", "Lime Shulker Box", "Green Shulker Box", "Cyan Shulker Box", "Light Blue Shulker Box", "Blue Shulker Box", "Purple Shulker Box", "Magenta Shulker Box", "Pink Shulker Box" ], "images": [ "Shulker Box.png", "White Shulker Box.png", "Light Gray Shulker Box.png", "Gray Shulker Box.png", "Black Shulker Box.png", "Brown Shulker Box.png", "Red Shulker Box.png", "Orange Shulker Box.png", "Yellow Shulker Box.png", "Lime Shulker Box.png", "Green Shulker Box.png", "Cyan Shulker Box.png", "Light Blue Shulker Box.png", "Blue Shulker Box.png", "Purple Shulker Box.png", "Magenta Shulker Box.png", "Pink Shulker Box.png" ] }
A shulker box is a dyeable block that stores items, and, unlike all other storage blocks, keeps its contents in item form when broken.
Dyed shulker boxes are the dyed variants of shulker boxes.
Obtaining[edit | edit source]
Breaking[edit | edit source]
All shulker boxes can be mined with any tool or by hand, but using a pickaxe is the most effective. All shulker boxes drop themselves when mined. Unlike other containers, the contents of any shulker box are stored within the dropped item, and not dropped separately. When instantly mined in Creative mode, all shulker boxes drop as an item if there are items stored within, unless /gamerule doTileDrops
is set to "false".
Block | ![]() ![]() | |
---|---|---|
Hardness | 2 | |
Tool | ![]() | |
Breaking time (sec)[A] | ||
Default | 3 | |
![]() |
1.5 | |
![]() |
0.75 | |
![]() |
0.5 | |
![]() |
0.4 | |
![]() |
0.35 | |
![]() |
0.25 |
- incorrect tool, drops nothing
- correct tool, drops nothing or something other than the block itself
- correct tool, drops the block itself
- italicized can be instant mined
- ↑ These durations ignore other influential factors (e.g. Mining Fatigue), and are measured in seconds. For more information, see Breaking § Speed.
When a shulker box is pushed by a piston, it breaks and drops as an item. It cannot be pulled.
Crafting[edit | edit source]
Name | Ingredients | Crafting recipe | [hide]Description |
---|---|---|---|
Shulker Box | Shulker Shell + Chest |
||
Dyed Shulker Box | Any Shulker Box + Matching Dye |
The shulker box retains its contents. If it is renamed on an anvil, it also retains its name. |
Usage[edit | edit source]
Storage[edit | edit source]

All shulker boxes have 27 inventory slots, the same as a barrel or a single chest.
All shulker boxes keep their items when broken, which can be retrieved when placed again, thus making them portable chests. This is different from other containers, which drop their contained items as item entities when broken. A shulker box drops itself as an item if pushed by pistons or destroyed by an explosion. Unlike most blocks with inventory, shulker boxes always drop themselves when destroyed by explosions. When a shulker box with items inside is being held[Bedrock Edition only] or is in a container's inventory, the items are listed on the tooltip as properties.

Any shulker box's items can be fed or removed by a hopper.
All shulker boxes can be stored in all containers except for other shulker boxes and bundles.
When placed by a player, a shulker box faces toward the player placing it. For example, if a shulker box is placed on a floor, a wall or a ceiling, it faces and opens upward, sideways or upside-down, respectively. Dispensers can also be used to place shulker boxes. If there is no block below the space where the shulker box is placed, the shulker box faces identically to the dispenser. Otherwise, the shulker box always faces upward, even if the block has no hitbox such as torches, signs and open fence gates.
Like a chest, all shulker boxes require a transparent area in the direction of its top surface to be opened. That area is exactly half of a full block, and clear of any obstructions, which may be any other hitbox, including blocks, boats and shulkers[Java Edition only], or a redstone conductive block[Bedrock Edition only]. This way, any shulker box can be opened with an upside-down slab or an upper trapdoor on top of it. It is also unique in that when opened, its hitbox expands to 1.5 blocks high/wide, physically pushing entities where it is facing.
By default, the GUI of any shulker box is labeled "Shulker Box", which can be changed by naming it in an anvil or by changing the CustomName
tag using the /data
command.[Java Edition only]
When any shulker box item is destroyed, the contents of the shulker box are dropped as items.
Piglins[edit | edit source]
Piglins become hostile toward players who open or mine any shulker box.[1]
Undyeing[edit | edit source]
Dyed shulker boxes can be undyed using a cauldron. To do this, use a dyed shulker box on a cauldron that has water in it. This causes the cauldron's water level to decrease by 1, and the dyed shulker box loses its dye color.
Redstone component[edit | edit source]
The fullness of any shulker boxes, even if cannot be opened, can be read by redstone comparators, unlike chests.
Observers can detect the opening and closing of any shulker boxes.
Shulker boxes are conductive when closed, but not if open. However, opening or closing a shulker box does not update its neighboring blocks, which can be used to create BUD state redstone wires[Java Edition only].
Sounds[edit | edit source]
Generic[edit | edit source]
[hide]![]() stone sound type | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sound | Subtitles | Source | Description | Resource location | Translation key | Volume | Pitch | Attenuation distance |
Block broken | Blocks | Once the block has broken | block | subtitles | 1.0 | 0.8 | 16 | |
Block placed | Blocks | When the block is placed | block | subtitles | 1.0 | 0.8 | 16 | |
Block breaking | Blocks | While the block is in the process of being broken | block | subtitles | 0.25 | 0.5 | 16 | |
Something falls on a block | Entity-Dependent | Falling on the block with fall damage | block | subtitles | 0.5 | 0.75 | 16 | |
Footsteps | Entity-Dependent | Walking on the block | block | subtitles | 0.15 | 1.0 | 16 |
[hide]![]() stone sound type | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sound | Source | Description | Resource location | Volume | Pitch |
Blocks | Once the block has broken | dig | 1.0 | 0.8-1.0 | |
Blocks | When the block is placed | dig | 1.0 | 0.8-1.0 | |
Blocks | While the block is in the process of being broken | hit | 0.37 | 0.5 | |
Players | Falling on the block with fall damage | fall | 0.4 | 1.0 | |
Players | Walking on the block | step | 0.3 | 1.0 | |
Blocks | Jumping from the block | jump | 0.12 | 1.0 | |
Blocks | Falling on the block without fall damage | land | 0.22 | 1.0 |
Unique[edit | edit source]
[hide] Sounds | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sound | Subtitles | Source | Description | Resource location | Translation key | Volume | Pitch | Attenuation distance |
Shulker box closes | Blocks | When a shulker box closes | block | subtitles | 0.5 | 0.9-1.0 | 16 | |
Shulker box opens | Blocks | When a shulker box opens | block | subtitles | 0.5 | 0.9-1.0 | 16 | |
Chest locked[sound 2] | Blocks | When a player attempts to open a shulker box locked using the [String] Lock tag | block [sound 2] | subtitles [sound 2] | 1.0 | 1.0 | 16 |
- ↑ Jump up to: a b MC-279209 — Shulker box subtitles are improperly capitalized
- ↑ Jump up to: a b c MC-98316 — Wrong subtitles caused by missing distinction
[hide] Sounds | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sound | Source | Description | Resource location | Volume | Pitch |
Blocks | When a shulker box closes | random | 0.5 | 0.9-1.0 | |
Blocks | When a shulker box opens | random | 0.5 | 0.9-1.0 |
Data values[edit | edit source]
ID[edit | edit source]
Name | Identifier | Form | Block tags | [hide]Translation key |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | white_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | orange_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | magenta_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | light_blue_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | yellow_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | lime_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | pink_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | gray_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | light_gray_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | cyan_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | purple_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | blue_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | brown_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | green_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | red_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
![]() | black_shulker_box | Block & Item | guarded_by_piglins shulker_boxes | block |
Name | [hide]Identifier |
---|---|
![]() | shulker_box |
Name | Identifier | Alias ID | Numeric ID | Form | Item ID[i 1] | [hide]Translation key |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | undyed_shulker_box | None | 205 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] | tile |
![]() | white_shulker_box | shulker_box / 0 | 218 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] | tile |
![]() | orange_shulker_box | shulker_box / 1 | 868 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -613 ) | tile |
![]() | magenta_shulker_box | shulker_box / 2 | 869 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -614 ) | tile |
![]() | light_blue_shulker_box | shulker_box / 3 | 870 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -615 ) | tile |
![]() | yellow_shulker_box | shulker_box / 4 | 871 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -616 ) | tile |
![]() | lime_shulker_box | shulker_box / 5 | 872 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -617 ) | tile |
![]() | pink_shulker_box | shulker_box / 6 | 873 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -618 ) | tile |
![]() | gray_shulker_box | shulker_box / 7 | 874 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -619 ) | tile |
![]() | light_gray_shulker_box | shulker_box / 8 | 875 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -620 ) | tile |
![]() | cyan_shulker_box | shulker_box / 9 | 876 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -621 ) | tile |
![]() | purple_shulker_box | shulker_box / 10 | 877 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -622 ) | tile |
![]() | blue_shulker_box | shulker_box / 11 | 878 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -623 ) | tile |
![]() | brown_shulker_box | shulker_box / 12 | 879 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -624 ) | tile |
![]() | green_shulker_box | shulker_box / 13 | 880 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -625 ) | tile |
![]() | red_shulker_box | shulker_box / 14 | 881 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -626 ) | tile |
![]() | black_shulker_box | shulker_box / 15 | 882 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] (Numeric: -627 ) | tile |
Name | [hide]Savegame ID |
---|---|
![]() | ShulkerBox |
Block states[edit | edit source]
Name | Default value | Allowed values | [hide]Description |
---|---|---|---|
facing | up | down east north south up west | The direction the shulker box is pointing. The opposite from the direction the player faces while placing the shulker box. |
Block data[edit | edit source]
A shulker box has a block entity associated with it that identifies its contents.
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object] Block entity data
- Tags common to all block entities see Template:Nbt inherit/blockentity/template
- Tags common to all objects that can be renamed see Template:Nbt inherit/nameable/template
- [NBT List / JSON Array] Items: List of items in this container.
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object]: An item, including the slot tag. Shulker box slots are numbered 0–26, 0 starts in the top left corner.
- Tags common to all items see Template:Nbt inherit/item/template
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object]: An item, including the slot tag. Shulker box slots are numbered 0–26, 0 starts in the top left corner.
- Tags common to all containers that can be locked see Template:Nbt inherit/lockable/template
- Tags common to all objects that use loot tables to produce items see Template:Nbt inherit/lootable/template
Item data[edit | edit source]
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object] components: the item's components tag.
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object] minecraft:block_entity_data: Block entity NBT applied when this block is placed.
- See Block entity format. Excludes
x
,y
andz
tags.
- See Block entity format. Excludes
- [NBT List / JSON Array] minecraft:container: The items contained in this container.
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object]: A single item.
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object] item: The item stack in this slot.
- Tags common to all items see Template:Nbt inherit/itemnoslot/template
- [Int] slot: A slot in this container. Can be between 0 and 255 (inclusive).
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object] item: The item stack in this slot.
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object]: A single item.
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object] minecraft:container_loot: The unresolved loot table and seed of this container item.
- [String] loot_table: The ID of a loot table.
- [Long] seed: The pseudorandom seed to resolve the loot table with. If not specified or 0, a seed is randomly chosen by the game.
- [String][NBT List / JSON Array][NBT Compound / JSON Object] minecraft:custom_name: Text component to use as this item's name. See Text component format.
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object] minecraft:lock: An item predicate representing the "key" to open this container item.
- All possible conditions for items see Template:Nbt inherit/conditions/item/template
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object] minecraft:block_entity_data: Block entity NBT applied when this block is placed.
Achievements[edit | edit source]
[hide] | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Icon | Achievement | In-game description | Actual requirements (if different) | Gamerscore earned | Trophy type (PS) | ||
PS4 | Other | ||||||
![]() | ![]() | Organizational Wizard | Name a Shulker Box with an Anvil | — | 30 | Bronze |
History[edit | edit source]
- Shulker textures from Legacy Console Edition - the terrain.png only contained a single white "shulker top" texture rather than a textue per color, so were color variants generated via a tint system?
- Verify if the original purple shulker box (
) differs in texture or model from the modern undyed shulker box (
) - the renders look subtly different, but there is a possibility that one of them is simply mapped incorrectly.
[hide]Java Edition | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1.11 | 16w39a | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | |||||
16w39c | "Silver Shulker Boxes" have been now renamed to "Light Gray Shulker Boxes", in keeping with naming consistencies across dyed blocks. | ||||||
1.12 | 17w16a | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | |||||
17w17a | ![]() | ||||||
1.13 | 18w10b | ![]() | |||||
Purple shulker boxes from previous versions are now converted to default shulker boxes instead of purple ones. | |||||||
![]() | |||||||
18w10d | Dyed shulker boxes can now be undyed in a cauldron. | ||||||
Undyed shulker boxes can now be obtained by undyeing dyed shulker boxes in a cauldron. | |||||||
1.17 | 20w45a | Shulker post-generation mechanic is now added, making all shulker boxes renewable. | |||||
20w51a | All shulker boxes now drop their contents when destroyed as an item entity. | ||||||
1.19.3 | 22w45a | Blocks attached to the sides and lid of any shulker box now pop off when the shulker box opens.[2] | |||||
[hide]Pocket Edition | |||||||
1.1.0 | alpha 1.1.0.0 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | |||||
alpha 1.1.0.9 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ||||||
? | ? | Shulker boxes no longer use the wood sound. | |||||
[hide]Bedrock Edition | |||||||
1.2.0 | beta 1.2.0.2 | ![]() | |||||
![]() | |||||||
1.8.0 | beta 1.8.0.13 | A recipe for undyed shulker boxes has been added. | |||||
1.16.0 | beta 1.16.0.51 | Dyed shulker boxes can now be undyed in a cauldron. | |||||
Undyed shulker boxes can now be obtained by undyeing dyed shulker boxes in a cauldron. | |||||||
1.17.30 | beta 1.17.30.22 | All shulker boxes now drop their contents when destroyed as an item entity. | |||||
1.18.30 | beta 1.18.30.22 | Shulker post-generation mechanic is now added, making all shulker boxes renewable. | |||||
1.20.30 | Preview 1.20.20.21 | Decreased the hardness and blast resistance of shulker boxes and dyed shulker boxes from 2.5 to 2. | |||||
There's no mining penalties any longer when mining without wooden pickaxe or better. | |||||||
[hide]Legacy Console Edition | |||||||
Xbox 360 | Xbox One | PS3 | PS4 | PS Vita | Wii U | Switch | |
TU53 | CU43 | 1.49 | 1.50 | 1.49 | Patch 23 | 1.0.3 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
TU63 | CU53 | 1.67 | 1.67 | 1.67 | Patch 32 | 1.0.13 | Shulker boxes can no longer be opened when an entity is inside the area that the shulker box's collision box would extend to when opened. |
1.88 | ![]() | ||||||
![]() | |||||||
[hide]New Nintendo 3DS Edition | |||||||
1.9.19 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ||||||
There is no default shulker box separate from the purple shulker box; the purple shulker box uses the texture of the default shulker box. |
Data history[edit | edit source]
[hide]Java Edition | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1.13 | 17w47a | The ID for the light gray shulker box has been changed from silver_shulker_box to light_gray_shulker_box .
| |||||
Prior to The Flattening, these blocks' numeral IDs were 219 through 234.[more information needed] | |||||||
[hide]Bedrock Edition | |||||||
1.20.10 | Preview 1.20.10.20 | The different block states for the dyed shulker box ID, the shulker_box ID, have been split into their own IDs. |
Issues[edit | edit source]
Issues relating to "Shulker Box" are maintained on the bug tracker. Issues should be reported and viewed there.
Trivia[edit | edit source]
- With 37 shulker boxes in a player's inventory, hotbar, and off-hand slot, 999 stacks of up to 64 items (up to 63,936 total items; 63,973 if counting shulker boxes themselves) can be held. With 37 shulker boxes and an ender chest with 27 shulker boxes in one of the shulker box slots, 1,727 stacks (up to 110,528 items; 1,728 stacks with up to 110,592 items if counting stacked ender chests) can be held. [Java Edition only]
- Before they were added to Minecraft, storage objects that keep their inventory when picked up were already present in Minicraft.
Gallery[edit | edit source]
- Renders
-
Opening and closing animation of a shulker box.
References[edit | edit source]
External links[edit | edit source]
- Block of the Week: Shulker Box – Minecraft.net on November 19, 2020