A living cross-section of the world, drawn from the game's real worldgen odds. Drag to set your mining depth, click an ore column to inspect it.
Quartz is uniform from Y 10 to 117, so mine wherever it is safe. Y 15 lets you collect it while hunting ancient debris.
100%Any level from Y 10 to 117. Every figure on this page is read from the 26.2 worldgen files the game itself ships, so it reflects what actually generates rather than a community estimate.
Nether quartz is uniform. The batch runs from Y 10 to Y 117 with no peak anywhere in that range, attempting 16 veins per chunk. Unlike every Overworld ore, there is no depth that rewards you more than another, so the usual question does not really apply.
Basalt Deltas are the exception worth knowing. That biome doubles the rate to 32 veins per chunk on the same range, which makes it the fastest place to gather quartz in the game if you can tolerate the terrain.
In practice most players collect quartz at whatever level they are already tunnelling for ancient debris, around Y 15. That is not because quartz is denser there, it just costs nothing extra.
Minecraft places ore in separate batches, each with its own count, height range and vein size. A discard value above zero means the game throws away veins that would touch open air, which is what decides whether caving or tunnelling is the better approach.
| Batch | Veins/chunk | Range | Vein size | Air discard |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ore_quartz_nether | 16 | uniform Y 10 to 117 | 14 | none |
| ore_quartz_deltasbasalt deltas only, double rate | 32 | uniform Y 10 to 117 | 14 | none |
The distribution is flat across the whole Y 10 to 117 range, so depth does not matter. Biome does: Basalt Deltas run the same batch at 32 veins per chunk instead of 16.
The peak level differs for each ore, and a few of them share a band closely enough to mine on one trip. The full interactive chart is on the ore distribution hub.
| Ore | Best Y level |
|---|---|
| diamonds | Y -59 |
| netherite | Y 15 |
| iron | Y 16 underground, Y 232 in mountains |
| coal | Y 96, or anything above Y 136 |
| gold | Y -16, or anywhere in a badlands |
| redstone | Y -59 |
| lapis lazuli | Y 0 |
| copper | Y 48 |
| emeralds | Y 232, mountain biomes only |
| nether quartz | Any level from Y 10 to 117 |
| nether gold | Any level from Y 10 to 117 |
There is not one. The distribution is uniform from Y 10 to Y 117, so every level in that band has the same chance. Most players collect it at Y 15 while mining for ancient debris.
Basalt Deltas. That biome runs the quartz batch at 32 veins per chunk against 16 everywhere else in the Nether.
No. Nether quartz ore generates only in the Nether. The Overworld has no equivalent.
Up to 14 blocks, which is large. Combined with 16 veins per chunk it makes quartz one of the easiest resources to gather in bulk.
Related ore levels:
