The allay is one of the most useful mobs in Minecraft: a small, friendly flying creature that collects items for you, sorts your storage, and can even be duplicated so you never run out of helpers. Added in the 1.19 “The Wild Update” (Java Edition snapshot 22w13a and Bedrock 1.19), the allay turns tedious item gathering into a hands-off task. This guide covers where to find allays, how to free them, how to give them items, and how to use the amethyst-and-jukebox trick to duplicate them.
Where do allays spawn?
You cannot find allays wandering the wild. They only generate as captive mobs in two illager structures, and not every cage is guaranteed to hold one:
- Pillager outposts — allays have a 50% chance of spawning inside the dark oak cages found around the base of an outpost, in groups of 1–3.
- Woodland mansions — allays have a 50% chance to spawn inside the jail cells within a mansion, also in groups of 1–3.
Because the spawn is a coin flip per cage, it pays to check several outposts if your first cage is empty. Pillager outposts are far more common than woodland mansions, so they are usually the most practical place to source allays.
How to free an allay
Freeing an allay is simple: break the cage bars or jail-cell blocks trapping it. The allay is not hostile and will not attack you. Once released it begins flying around freely. It has 20 health points (10 hearts) and naturally regenerates 2 HP per second when hurt, though its main danger is the pillagers guarding the outpost, so clear those first. Be careful around lava and long falls — an allay that dies drops whatever item it is holding.
Giving an allay an item and item collection
To put an allay to work, hold any item and press the use key on the allay. It will take one of that item type into its single inventory slot and begin following the player who last gave it an item. From then on, the allay searches for dropped instances of its held item and brings them back near you.
The numbers that matter for collection:
- It seeks matching dropped items within a roughly 32-block sphere and follows the player within a 64-block sphere.
- It picks up items within about 1.3 blocks of itself and drops them up to 3 blocks from the player.
- There is roughly a 3-second delay between deliveries before it goes hunting again.
- It holds one given item plus a stack of the same type (usually up to 64) in its single slot.
One important caveat: an allay cannot pick up items if the mobGriefing game rule is set to false. This is a common surprise when allay farms suddenly stop working on a customized world or server.
How to duplicate an allay with amethyst and a jukebox
You start with at most a handful of allays, but you can clone them indefinitely using one of Minecraft’s most charming mechanics. The trick relies on the allay’s love of music:
- Place a jukebox near the allay and insert any music disc to play it.
- When music is playing nearby, the allay starts performing a dance animation.
- While the allay is dancing, give it an amethyst shard using the use key.
- The allay plays a small amethyst chime, shows a heart particle animation, and splits into two allays.
After a successful duplication, both allays enter a five-minute cooldown before either can be duplicated again. The newly created allay does not retain the original’s custom name or command-set attributes. Amethyst shards were chosen for this because they are renewable from amethyst geodes and their sound fits the allay’s musical theme — so a single geode and a music disc are all you need to grow a small army of collectors.
| Allay fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Health | 20 HP (10 hearts), regenerates 2 HP/second |
| Spawn locations | Pillager outpost cages, woodland mansion cells (50% chance, groups of 1–3) |
| Pickup radius | About 1.3 blocks |
| Drop range | Up to 3 blocks from player or note block |
| Item-seek radius | About 32 blocks |
| Follow radius | About 64 blocks |
| Duplication item | Amethyst shard (while dancing near a playing jukebox) |
| Duplication cooldown | 5 minutes |
| Note block tracking | Locks onto note blocks within 16 blocks for 30 seconds |
Using allays for item sorting
The allay’s most powerful use is automatic item sorting, and it hinges on note blocks. Normally an allay returns items to the player, but if it hears a note block play within 16 blocks, it delivers its collected items to that note block instead — for 30 seconds, with the timer resetting each time the note block plays again. By placing several allays, each holding a different item, over hoppers near separate note blocks, you can route incoming loot into the correct chests automatically.
A few build notes: wool blocks placed between a note block and an allay block the sound, which lets you isolate each allay so it only responds to its own note block. Allays drop items up to 3 blocks from the note block, so a wide hopper floor catches everything. This makes allays a tidy alternative — or complement — to redstone item filters. If you want a pure-redstone approach as well, see our Minecraft item sorter guide for an automatic storage system.
Edition differences
The core allay mechanics are the same across editions, but item interactions differ slightly. In Java Edition you cannot give an allay a name tag directly — you must tether it with a lead first. In Bedrock Edition you can give a lead or name tag directly, and sneaking triggers their functions. The spawn locations, duplication trick, and note-block sorting behavior work the same way in both.
Frequently asked questions
Can you breed allays without duplication?
No. Allays have no baby form and cannot be bred with food. The only way to make more allays is the amethyst-shard-while-dancing duplication method, with its five-minute cooldown between clones.
Why won’t my allay pick up items?
The most common cause is the mobGriefing game rule being set to false — allays cannot collect dropped items when it is disabled. Otherwise, make sure the dropped items match the exact item type the allay is holding and that they fall within its roughly 32-block search range.
What other mobs and structures pair well with allays?
Because pillager outposts and woodland mansions hold allays, you’ll often be exploring illager content alongside other late-game structures. If you’re working through that era of the game, our Trial Chambers guide and Warden and Deep Dark guide cover the toughest challenges, while the frogs and froglights guide covers another friendly Wild Update mob.
Allays really shine when a few players are gathering resources together, since one person can run the farms while allays sort the haul. If you want to set up an automated allay sorting system with friends, hosting a Minecraft server to play with friends keeps your world running 24/7, and our Minecraft server documentation walks you through game rules like mobGriefing and other settings.
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