What's the Use for Bundles Minecraft? Real Life Uses!

I’ll never forget the moment I first stumbled upon a “bundle” in Minecraft. I was watching a YouTube video about organizing inventory, and the creator casually mentioned this item I’d never heard of. My immediate thought? What on earth is a bundle, and why don’t I have one?

To be honest, I felt a bit embarrassed. I’d been playing Minecraft for years, and here was this storage item I knew nothing about. So I did what I always do — I dove deep into research, tested it myself, and now I’m here to share everything I learned. Because if I was confused about bundles, I know you might be too.

My First Encounter with Bundles (and Why I Was So Confused)

Here’s the thing — bundles aren’t like most Minecraft items. They’re not everywhere. In fact, when I first went looking for them in my regular survival world, I couldn’t find them at all. I checked crafting recipes, explored villages, raided desert temples… nothing.

e truth: bundles are currently an experimental feature. They were introduced in the 1.17 Caves & Cliffs update as a snapshot feature, but they haven’t made it into the full vanilla game yet (as of my last playthrough). You need to enable experimental gameplay or use specific snapshots to access them.

I felt like I’d solved a mystery. No wonder I couldn’t find them! also Read:

What’s the Best Way to Escape from Prison in Minecraft? (My Complete Guide)

So, What Exactly ARE Bundles?

Let me break this down the way I wish someone had explained it to me.

A bundle is basically a portable storage bag that holds multiple different items in a single inventory slot. Think of it like a small backpack inside your inventory. Instead of having one slot occupied by 64 dirt blocks, you could have one slot holding some dirt, some seeds, a few flowers, and maybe some wheat — all mixed together.

The Real Problem Bundles Solve

Before I understood bundles, I never realized how much of an inventory management nightmare Minecraft could be. Let me paint you a picture:

I’d go mining with a specific goal — find diamonds, grab some iron, maybe collect a bit of coal. But then I’d also pick up andesite, granite, diorite, gravel, flint, random ores… and before I knew it, my inventory looked like a chaotic mess. Twenty-seven slots filled, but most of them with just a handful of random items.

Bundles solve this exact problem.

They let you consolidate all those “small stack” items into single slots, freeing up your inventory for the stuff that actually matters.

How I Learned to Use Bundles (Step-by-Step)

When I finally got my hands on a bundle in a test world, I had to figure out how it actually worked. Here’s what I discovered through trial and error:

Step 1: Getting a Bundle

First, you need to either:

Enable experimental features when creating a new world
Use a snapshot version of Minecraft
Use commands in creative mode (if you just want to test it)

The crafting recipe is actually pretty simple:

2 strings and 1 rabbit hide arranged in a specific pattern (string on sides, rabbit hide at bottom)

I didn’t expect rabbit hide to be required, but it makes sense thematically — you’re literally crafting a small leather pouch.

Step 2: Filling Your Bundle

This part confused me at first. Here’s how it works:

Right-click (or your “use” button) while holding a bundle to open it. Then you can add items by right-clicking them in your inventory.

Or — and this is what I prefer — right-click items directly with the bundle to add them quickly.

Each bundle can hold up to one full stack’s worth of items, but mixed. So you could put:

32 dirt + 32 cobblestone, OR
16 torches + 16 coal + 16 iron ore + 16 gold ore, OR
Any combination that doesn’t exceed 64 “slots”

Step 3: Retrieving Items

Left-click the bundle to take out the last item you put in. It works like a stack — last in, first out.

This took me a while to get used to. I kept trying to pick specific items from the bundle, but that’s not how it works. You take out items in reverse order of how you put them in.

When I Actually Use Bundles (Real-World Scenarios)

After testing bundles extensively, I found specific situations where they’re absolute game-changers:

1. Early Game Exploration

When I’m just starting a new world and exploring, I don’t have an organized base yet. I pick up everything — flowers, seeds, saplings, random food items. A bundle lets me stuff all those miscellaneous items into one slot instead of clogging up eight different slots.

2. Mining Trips

I created a dedicated “junk bundle” for mining. All that andesite, granite, and diorite I don’t really want but might use later? Straight into the bundle. It keeps my main inventory clean for important ores.

3. Redstone Projects

If you’ve ever worked on a redstone contraption, you know you need small amounts of many different items — repeaters, comparators, redstone dust, torches, blocks. I now keep a “redstone bundle” with exactly what I need. One inventory slot instead of six or seven.

4. Trading Runs

When I’m visiting villages to trade, I bundle up all the different items villagers want. Emeralds, specific crops, books — all in one portable package.

The Limitations I Discovered (Important to Know)

Why Bundles Matter (My Honest Opinion)

Here’s what I think: Bundles represent a massive quality-of-life improvement for Minecraft, especially for players like me who hate inventory clutter.

I didn’t realize how much mental energy I was wasting on inventory management until I tried playing with bundles enabled. Suddenly, I could focus more on building, exploring, and actually enjoying the game instead of constantly organizing my inventory.

I really hope Mojang adds them to the full game soon. They’re not overpowered (like shulker boxes can be), but they’re incredibly convenient for everyday gameplay.

Tips I Learned the Hard Way

After weeks of using bundles in test worlds, here are my top tips:

Color-code or rename your bundles: Use an anvil to give them specific names like “Mining Junk” or “Redstone Kit.” Future you will thank present you.

Don’t overstuff them: Just because you can fill a bundle to maximum capacity doesn’t mean you should. Leave some room for flexibility.

Keep an “emergency bundle”: I always carry one bundle with random useful items — extra food, a water bucket, some blocks, torches. It’s saved me more times than I can count.

Use them with shulker boxes: In late-game, bundles and shulker boxes work beautifully together. Store bundles inside shulkers for ultra-organized inventory management.

Remember the LIFO rule: Last In, First Out. Put items in the order you’ll want to retrieve them.

The Future of Bundles (What I’m Hoping For)

I’ve been following the Minecraft updates closely, and I’m cautiously optimistic about bundles becoming a permanent feature. The community response has been mostly positive, and the mechanics are already well-developed.

If I could make one request to Mojang, it would be this: make bundles easier to obtain in early game. Requiring rabbit hide is a bit annoying since rabbits can be hard to find in some biomes. Maybe add them as village loot or allow alternative crafting recipes?

I’d also love to see different bundle sizes or types — small bundles (32 capacity), medium (64 capacity), and large (96 capacity) made with different materials. But that’s just me dreaming.

Final Thoughts

When I started this journey, I thought bundles were just another gimmick — something neat but not essential. I was so wrong.

Bundles changed how I play Minecraft. They reduced my inventory stress, made exploration more enjoyable, and allowed me to carry a wider variety of items without constantly feeling cluttered. They’re the quality-of-life improvement I didn’t know I desperately needed.

If you haven’t tried bundles yet, I genuinely encourage you to create a test world with experimental features enabled and play around with them for a few hours. Pay attention to how they change your gameplay flow. Notice how much cleaner your inventory feels.

And if you’re already using bundles? I’d love to hear your creative uses for them. I’m always discovering new ways to incorporate them into my gameplay, and I know the community has brilliant ideas I haven’t thought of yet.

Until bundles make it into the official game, I’ll be here, impatiently waiting and enjoying them in snapshot versions. Because once you experience truly organized inventory management, there’s no going back.

Happy crafting, and may your inventories always be organized!

— Noman Durrani

Not in the current release version, unfortunately. Bundles are still an experimental feature as of now. You need to enable experimental gameplay when creating a world, or play on snapshot versions. I’m hoping this changes soon because bundles are incredibly useful.

Bundles can’t store non-stackable items like tools, weapons, armor, or other bundles. You also can’t put shulker boxes inside bundles (which makes sense — that would be way too overpowered). Basically, if it doesn’t stack in regular inventory, it won’t go in a bundle.

They serve different purposes, honestly. Shulker boxes are for massive storage and transporting large quantities of items. Bundles are for organizing small amounts of many different items. I use shulker boxes for moving base or storing themed items, and bundles for day-to-day inventory management. They complement each other beautifully.

Not currently, which is a bit disappointing. I would love to dye bundles different colors for easy organization. Maybe in a future update? For now, renaming them with an anvil is your best option for differentiation.

Only if the server is running a snapshot version or has experimental features enabled. Most public servers stick to stable release versions, so you probably won’t find bundles there yet. I’ve tested them on private servers with friends, and they work perfectly.

I really don’t think so. While they haven’t made it to the full release yet, there’s been no indication that Mojang plans to remove them entirely. They’re likely just refining the feature before official implementation. The community wants them, and the developers seem committed to making them work.

What’s the Use for Bundles Minecraft? Real Life Uses!