Anvil Simulator
Combine enchantments, rename items, or discover the best order to combine multiple enchanted books — and see the exact XP cost before actually spending in the anvil in Minecraft Java Edition.
Renaming always costs 1 XP level, plus the item's current prior work penalty.
Enter an approximate "weight" (XP level) for each book — it doesn't need to be exact; it is used to calculate the best order.
Want to create a cheap, lag-free Minecraft server?
I recommend Sparked Host: affordable plans, great performance, easy panel, and fast support.
🚀 Create server on Sparked HostHow to Use the Anvil Simulator
In "Combine items" mode, configure the base item and sacrifice item with their enchantments, and see the exact XP cost before spending in the actual anvil. "Rename" mode calculates the cost to give a custom name to an item. The "Order optimizer" helps you decide in what order to combine multiple enchanted books to spend as little XP as possible.
The prior work penalty (also called "repair cost") increases each time an item passes through the anvil, following the sequence 0 → 1 → 3 → 7 → 15 → 31 → 63. This value is added directly to the XP cost of the next combination — which is why a heavily "worked" item becomes too expensive very quickly.
Why does combining everything directly cost more?
Because every time you use the SAME base item repeatedly, its penalty doubles with each use. If you have 4 enchanted books to combine, it is cheaper to combine 2 pairs separately and then merge the two results, rather than stacking one book at a time onto the same item.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my anvil show "Too Expensive"?
This happens when the total XP cost reaches 40 levels or more. The more times an item has passed through the anvil, the higher its prior work penalty becomes, which adds directly to the cost.
Is combining with an enchanted book cheaper than with another item?
Yes, in the actual game, combining using an enchanted book costs less XP than combining two items of the same type (like two swords), although this simulator uses a simplified equal cost for both cases.
Why does the order of combining multiple enchantments matter?
Because an item's prior work penalty practically doubles with each use in the anvil. Combining everything sequentially on the same base item costs much more than combining pairs in a balanced tree.