The Top 5 Easiest Ways To Get A Saddle In Minecraft PC (1.21 Update Guide)

For years, the Saddle was the white whale of Minecraft loot, a frustratingly rare item that could only be found by chance. As of the latest updates in December 2025, that era of endless dungeon crawling is officially over. The game has introduced a dedicated crafting recipe, fundamentally changing how players acquire this essential item for riding Horses, Camels, and other mobs.

This comprehensive guide details the new, official way to "make" a Saddle using the crafting table, along with the four best alternative methods, complete with the latest probability rates and strategies to ensure you get your mount ready for adventure as quickly as possible.

The Definitive Guide to Obtaining a Saddle in Minecraft (All 5 Methods)

The best method for getting a Saddle has shifted dramatically. While finding Saddles in chests is still possible, the introduction of a crafting recipe and reliable villager trades means you no longer have to rely on luck.

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#1: The New Official Crafting Recipe (The Fastest Way)

The biggest news for all long-time players is that the Saddle is now a craftable item in Minecraft Java Edition (and Bedrock) as of the 1.21 update, which is a major quality-of-life improvement. This method is now the most reliable and fastest way to get a Saddle, provided you have the basic materials.

Required Materials for Crafting a Saddle:

• 3 x Leather: Obtained from Cows, Horses, Mules, Donkeys, Hoglins, or by trading with a Leatherworker Villager.
• 1 x Iron Ingot: Smelted from Iron Ore or found as loot.

How to Craft the Saddle on a 3x3 Crafting Table:

To craft the Saddle, place the materials in the following configuration on your Crafting Table:

• Place one Leather in the top-middle slot.
• Place one Leather in the middle-left slot.
• Place one Leather in the middle-right slot.
• Place one Iron Ingot in the bottom-middle slot.

This arrangement visually resembles the shape of a saddle, creating a simple and repeatable recipe that has unlocked easy access to mounts for early-game players.

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#2: Trading with a Master Leatherworker Villager

If you have a thriving village and an abundance of Emeralds, trading is the most reliable alternative to crafting. This method is guaranteed and removes the element of chance entirely.

The Leatherworker Trade:

• Villager Type: Leatherworker (Job Site Block: Cauldron).
• Required Level: Master (Highest level).
• Trade Offer: The Master Leatherworker will always offer to sell a Saddle in exchange for 6 Emeralds.

To use this method, you will need to place a Cauldron to assign the profession, then trade with the villager until they reach the Master level. This is a fantastic late-game strategy for players who have established an efficient Emerald farm.

#3: Mob Drops from Zombified Piglins

For players who spend time in the Nether, farming Zombified Piglins is a surprisingly efficient way to acquire Saddles. These mobs, which are often found in groups, have a small but significant chance to drop a Saddle upon death.

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Zombified Piglin Drop Rate:

• Each Zombified Piglin that dies has an 8.5% chance to drop a Saddle.
• This chance is not affected by the Looting enchantment, but the sheer volume of Piglins that can be farmed in a well-designed gold/piglin farm makes this a very effective method.

This strategy is particularly popular on survival servers where players have built massive mob farms in the Nether, yielding not only Saddles but also large amounts of gold ingots and rotten flesh.

#4: Looting Structure Chests (The Classic Method)

Before the crafting recipe was introduced, looting structure chests was the only way to find a Saddle. While no longer the *best* method, it remains a viable option for those who enjoy exploration and dungeon crawling. The probability of finding a Saddle varies significantly by structure:

Saddle Loot Probability by Structure:

The following are the best structures to loot, showing the chance of a Saddle appearing in at least one chest within the structure:

• Nether Fortress: 35.3% Chance (Highest probability)
• Dungeon: 28.3% Chance
• Desert Temple: 23.5% Chance
• Bastion Remnant: 13.6% Chance
• End City: 13.3% Chance
• Jungle Temple: 12.8% Chance

The Nether Fortress is statistically the best place to find a Saddle through exploration, followed closely by the underground Dungeon (which is often a small cobblestone room containing a mob spawner and up to two chests).

#5: Fishing (The AFK Method)

Fishing is the most passive way to acquire a Saddle, placing it in the Treasure category of items you can reel in. While the base chance is low, it’s a good option for players who enjoy AFK (Away From Keyboard) activities.

Fishing Drop Rate:

• An unenchanted Fishing Rod has a base 0.8% chance of catching a Saddle.
• This chance can be slightly increased by using the Luck of the Sea enchantment on your Fishing Rod.

If you set up an efficient AFK fishing farm, you can passively collect Saddles, Enchanted Books, Name Tags, and other rare items while you do other things in the real world.

How to Use and Remove a Saddle in Minecraft

Once you have your Saddle, its use is straightforward, but recent updates have also added a crucial new feature for removing it.

Saddling and Riding Mobs

A Saddle is essential for riding any mountable mob in Minecraft. To use it:

1. Tame the Mob (if necessary): Horses, Donkeys, and Mules must be tamed by repeatedly attempting to ride them until hearts appear above their heads. Pigs, Striders, and Camels do not need taming.
2. Equip the Saddle: Sneak (Shift key) and right-click on the mob, or open the mount's inventory (usually by pressing 'E' while mounted) and place the Saddle in the designated slot.
3. Ride: Right-click the saddled mob to ride it. For Pigs and Striders, you will also need a carrot on a stick or warped fungus on a stick, respectively, to steer them.

List of Rideable Mobs:

The Saddle allows you to control movement for the following mobs:

• Horse
• Donkey
• Mule
• Pig
• Strider (in the Nether)
• Camel (added in the 1.20 Trails & Tales update)

The New Shearing Feature

In a recent update, Mojang added a long-requested feature: the ability to remove a Saddle from a mob without killing it. This is a huge change, especially for prized mounts like Horses and Camels.

• To Remove: Simply equip a pair of Shears and right-click on the saddled mob.
• The Saddle will instantly drop as an item, allowing you to move it to a different mount or store it safely.

Saddle Acquisition Strategy: Crafting vs. Looting

Given the variety of methods, what is the best strategy for a modern Minecraft player?

Early Game: Focus on the Crafting Recipe. Leather is an easy resource to farm from Cows near your spawn, and Iron Ingots are one of the first metals you find. The simplicity of the 3 Leather and 1 Iron Ingot recipe makes this the go-to method for getting your first Horse or Pig mount.

Mid-Game Exploration: If you are already doing a run to a Nether Fortress for Blaze Rods or a Dungeon for a Spawner, treat the Saddle as bonus loot. The high probability in these specific structures makes them worth the effort, even if you already have a Saddle.

Late Game/Mass Production: Establish a Master Leatherworker Villager trade. Once you have a sustainable Emerald economy (perhaps from a Cured Villager or a Raid farm), buying Saddles for 6 Emeralds each is the most efficient way to equip an entire stable of Horses and Camels.