Claiming land on Survival
Applies to Survival
Claiming land on Survival
Anything you build on Survival is unprotected until you claim it. Claiming is free, takes about ten seconds, and is the single most useful thing a new player can do.
How do I claim land?
Hold a golden shovel. Left-click one corner of the area you want, then left-click the opposite corner. The ground flashes and the claim is yours.
You do not need to claim from bedrock to sky — a claim protects the full height of the ground you select, so you only ever mark out the footprint.
I placed a chest and something claimed itself
That is deliberate. Your first chest automatically claims a small area around it — nine blocks by nine — so a brand new player is protected before they know the system exists.
It is a starter claim, not a finished one. Resize it with the golden shovel as soon as you know where you are actually building.
How much can I claim?
You start with 2,500 claim blocks, and earn more simply by playing. One claim block is one square metre of ground, so 2,500 is roughly a 50×50 area — considerably larger than most first bases.
There is no limit on the number of claims you can own. Claim your base, your farm and your mine separately if that suits you; you are only ever spending blocks, not claim slots.
Check your balance any time with /claimblocks.
What does a claim actually stop?
Other players cannot build, break, open containers, or use your beds, doors and buttons inside it. A few specifics worth knowing:
- Ender pearls cannot be thrown into someone else's claim.
/sethomeonly works inside a claim you have been trusted in.- Lecterns cannot be read without trust.
How do I let a friend build with me?
Trust is per-claim, and comes in levels. Stand inside the claim and run:
| Command | What they can do |
|---|---|
/trust <player> | Build and break — full access |
/containertrust <player> | Open chests and use furnaces, but not build |
/accesstrust <player> | Use doors, buttons and beds only |
/permissiontrust <player> | Grant trust to others on your behalf |
/untrust <player> removes it again. Give the least trust that does the job —
/trust is the one people regret.
Can I see what I have claimed?
Hold a stick and right-click any block. Nearby claim boundaries light up, and it tells you who owns the ground you are standing on. Useful before you start digging into what looks like empty hillside.
Claims are also drawn on the live map, so you can see how the land around you is divided before you travel out to it.
What if I want the land back?
/abandonclaim while standing in it. You get every claim block back — there
is no penalty for changing your mind, so do not hoard land you are not using out
of fear of losing the investment.
/abandonallclaims removes all of them at once. It asks for confirmation,
because it does exactly what it says.
Do claims expire?
No. Your claim stays yours whether you log in daily or come back after a year.
Can I claim in the Nether or the End?
Yes. Both worlds work exactly the same way, with the same golden shovel and the same pool of claim blocks.
Something was stolen from inside my claim
Report it rather than rebuilding quietly. Staff can see who opened what and when, and can often return it — but the record is far easier to read soon after it happens than a fortnight later. See Lost items, missing progress, and rollbacks.