How to make an End Portal in Minecraft

This Minecraft tutorial explains how to make an End Portal with screenshots and step-by-step instructions.

In Minecraft, an End Portal acts as a doorway from the Overworld to the End biome. There are 2 ways to make an End Portal, you can either build the frame yourself or you can find a frame already assembled in a Stronghold. Let's explore both ways.

Required Materials to make an End Portal

In Minecraft, these are the materials you can use to craft an End Portal:

12 Eyes of Ender

12 End Portal Frames

TIP: The End Portal Frames are only needed if you are building the frame of the End Portal yourself!

How to build an End Portal from Scratch

The quickest way to travel to the End biomeis to build your own End Portal using 12 end portal frames and 12 Eyes of Ender. Let's show you how.

1. Build the Frame

You can start by building the frame for your End Portal using 12 end portal frames. Place 3 end portal frames to make the first side of the portal.

Next, place 3 more end portal frames to make the second side of the portal. Be sure that the green tabs on the top of the end portal frames are pointed towards the inside of the portal.

Next, place 3 more end portal frames to make the third side of the portal. Again, make sure that the green tabs on the top of the end portal frames are pointed towards the inside of the portal.

Finally, place the last 3 end portal frames to complete the frame of the End portal.

The pattern of the end portal frames must look exactly like the picture above.

WARNING: If all of the green tabs on the end portal frames are not pointing inwards, the End Portal will not activate in the next step.

2. Complete the End Portal by adding the Eye of Ender

To finish the End Portal, you will need to add the 12 Eyes of Ender. Place an Eye of Ender inside each of the end portal frame blocks.

Now the End Portal will activate. You can go to the End biome and battle the Ender Dragon! This is a very quick way to find your way to the End.

How to complete an End Portal found in a Stronghold

If you prefer the more traditional way, you can look for a portal frame already assembled in a Stronghold. With this method, you will need at least 10 Eyes of Ender to find the Stronghold and activate the portal.

1. Find the Stronghold

In Minecraft, you will first use an Eye of Ender to find the Stronghold in your world. To do this, you need to select the Eye of Ender in your hotbar and then throw it into the air to see which direction it goes.

The game control to throw the Eye of Ender depends on the version of Minecraft:

For PC/Mac, right click to throw the Eye of Ender.
For Pocket Edition (PE), tap where you want to throw the Eye of Ender.
For PS3 and PS4, press the L2 button on the PS controller.
For Xbox 360 and Xbox One, press the LT button on the Xbox controller.
For Windows 10 Edition, right click to throw the Eye of Ender.
For Wii U, press the ZL button on the gamepad.
For Education Edition, right click to throw the Eye of Ender.

You will see the Eye of Ender float up into the air, hover, and then drop to the ground. This is the direction that you need to go. If the Eye of Ender did not break, you can pick it up and throw it again.

TIP: If you are in Creative mode, it is easiest to fly up in the air to get a better look at where the Eye of Ender is leading you.

Continue to throw the Eye of Ender into the air until it hovers over one spot. This is the location of your Stronghold.

Start digging straight down at this location.

Once you find the Stronghold, you will need to travel through the hallways searching for the frame of the End Portal. Chances are, you will not find it directly where you dig down, so it may take some time and patience.

Start searching through the Stronghold. While you are looking around, you find chests filled with treasures and eventually you will find the End Portal that has not been activated yet.

2. Complete the End Portal by adding the Eye of Ender

The End Portal will have 12 blocks where Eyes of Ender need to be placed. There should already be 2 of the Eyes of Ender placed for you, so you only need to add the other 10 Eyes of Ender to complete the end portal.