How to Craft Lead in Minecraft

Lead in Minecraft, drawn from the game's own item texture. Leashing passive mobs. Minecraft has used the name Lead since 1.6.1.

Stand at a Crafting Table with 5 String and you can make Leads. Read it row by row: two String in the left and middle columns, then two String in the left and middle columns, then String in the right column. Done once, that is 2 Leads.

Lead Item ID and Give Command

The item ID for Lead is minecraft:lead. In commands the namespace may be left off, so lead works too. Checked against Minecraft Java 26.2.

Give yourself one: /give @p lead
Give a full stack of 64: /give @p lead 64
Give it to a named player: /give Steve lead 1

Cheats have to be on for Lead to appear this way, and the same command works on Bedrock Edition, where the name is written the same.

Overview

A Lead (leash) can be attached to most passive mobs to guide them. Tie the other end to a fence to keep them in place. Lead uses a shaped recipe: the ingredients only work in the pattern shown.

Minecraft has used the name Lead since 1.6.1, the oldest release whose language file lists it. The recipe itself last changed in Minecraft 1.21.6. Guides written before that release show a different set of ingredients for the lead, so check the grid above rather than the video.

The materials come together from a few sources: you will be working with string (kill spiders, or break cobwebs).

Stack Maths

A full stack of 64 string gives 24 leads, across 12 crafts at 5 for 2. Short by one craft: 4 string left.

Materials Needed

Item	Amount	Where to Find
StringString	5x	Kill spiders, or break cobwebs

Lead needs 5x String (kill spiders, or break cobwebs), worked together at a Crafting Table.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1
String5x String
2
2x Lead

Minecraft crafting recipe for Lead: 5 x String in a crafting table, making 2 Lead.

Tips & Notes

Line up 5x String before you open the Crafting Table. String: kill spiders, or break cobwebs.
Each craft yields 2 Lead, so a full stack of 64 takes 32 crafts.

Uses for Lead

Leashing passive mobs
Tying mobs to fences

View detailed item stats, durability and properties for Lead on the Astroworld Items Database.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do I need to craft a Lead in Minecraft?

a Lead asks for 5 String, and the work happens at a Crafting Table. Copy the grid above cell for cell, and one craft produces 2 Leads.

Can you craft a Lead without a crafting table?

No, a Lead needs a crafting table. It is laid out as five String, and that takes 3 rows, more than the 2x2 grid in your inventory can hold.

Where do you find the materials for a Lead?

The parts of a Lead do not all come from one place. String: kill spiders, or break cobwebs.

How many Leads do you get from one craft?

The Lead recipe makes 2 Leads in a single craft.

What is the item ID for Lead in Minecraft?

In Java 26.2 the Lead goes by minecraft:lead; lead without the namespace does the same job in a command.

What is the give command for Lead?

/give @p lead gives you a Lead. Swap @p for a player name to hand it to someone else, and put 64 on the end for a whole stack.

Is the Lead recipe the same in Java and Bedrock Edition?

No difference to worry about: a Lead takes 5 String at a Crafting Table on Java and on Bedrock alike, 2 at a time.

What version of Minecraft added the Lead?

The name Lead goes back to Minecraft 1.6.1, and no older release we can read uses it. The recipe file cannot narrow that down, because recipes only became separate files in 1.12. Today the game builds it from 5 String, as shown above.

Sources

Grid, ingredients and yield: 5 String in, 2 Leads out, Crafting Table. Java 26.2, 17 August 2026.
That Bedrock agrees: Bedrock 1.26.40.05, same ingredient.
How far back it goes: The name appears in Minecraft Java 1.6.1 and in nothing older. From all 163 released Java clients, rd-132211 to 26.2.
When the recipe last changed: Walked forward through 50 Java releases from 1.13 onwards; 1.21.6 is the last one that altered it.
That the ingredients come back: What drops, what villagers trade and what farms regrow in Minecraft Java, followed through the recipes to see what those ingredients can be turned into.
Stack size: The Astroworld Items Database, built from the same jar.
The recipe book unlock: What unlocks it in the recipe book. Java 26.2.
The stack sum: Counted, not played: 2 Leads per craft against the stack size.

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