/effect

The /effect command gives or removes status effects, the same buffs and debuffs you get from potions, beacons and mobs. With it you can give yourself permanent night vision for building, speed for travel, resistance for testing, or apply effects to players and mobs on adventure maps. This command reference covers the full syntax in Java and Bedrock, durations including infinite, amplifier levels, every effect ID, clearing effects, hiding particles and common errors.

Syntax

Use	Java	Bedrock
Give an effect	/effect give <targets> <effect> [seconds|infinite] [amplifier] [hideParticles]	/effect <player> <effect> [seconds|infinite] [amplifier] [hideParticles]
Clear all effects	/effect clear [targets]	/effect <player> clear
Clear one effect	/effect clear <targets> <effect>	/effect <player> clear <effect> (newer versions)

• targets: a player name or selector such as @s, @a or @e[type=zombie].
• effect: the effect ID, such as speed or night_vision. Java uses the minecraft: namespace optionally.
• seconds: how long the effect lasts. The default is 30 seconds. Use infinite for an effect that never runs out, available in current versions of both editions.
• amplifier: the level minus one. 0 is level I, 1 is level II, up to 255. The default is 0.
• hideParticles: true hides the swirling particles; the effect icon still shows.

Examples

Command	Result
/effect give @s night_vision infinite 0 true	Java: permanent night vision with no particles
/effect @s night_vision infinite 0 true	Bedrock: the same
/effect give @s speed 300 2	Speed III for 5 minutes
/effect give @a regeneration 60 1	Regeneration II for everyone for a minute
/effect give @s haste infinite 1	Haste II, faster mining
/effect give @s water_breathing 600	10 minutes of underwater breathing
/effect give @e[type=zombie] glowing 30	Java: zombies glow through walls
/effect clear @s	Java: removes all your effects
/effect @s clear	Bedrock: removes all your effects

Effect IDs

Helpful effects

ID	Effect
speed	Move faster
haste	Mine and attack faster
strength	More melee damage
instant_health	Heal instantly (damages undead)
jump_boost	Jump higher
regeneration	Regain health over time
resistance	Take less damage; level V blocks almost all damage
fire_resistance	Immune to fire and lava
water_breathing	Breathe underwater
invisibility	Become invisible
night_vision	See in the dark
health_boost	Extra maximum health
absorption	Golden absorption hearts
saturation	Restores hunger
slow_falling	Fall slowly without damage
conduit_power	Underwater breathing, vision and mining speed
dolphins_grace	Java: swim much faster
luck	Java: better loot table luck
hero_of_the_village	Cheaper villager trades

Harmful effects

ID	Effect
slowness	Move slower
mining_fatigue	Mine much slower
instant_damage	Damage instantly (heals undead)
nausea	Wobbling screen
blindness	Very limited vision
darkness	Pulsing dark screen, from the Warden
hunger	Hunger drains faster
weakness	Less melee damage
poison	Damage over time, cannot kill
wither	Damage over time, can kill
levitation	Float upward
glowing	Java: outline visible through walls
bad_omen, raid_omen, trial_omen	Trigger raids and ominous trials
wind_charged, weaving, oozing, infested	Effects from newer potions

Amplifier levels explained

The amplifier is always one less than the level you see. Amplifier 0 is level I, 1 is level II, 4 is level V. Very high values can behave strangely: Resistance at amplifier 4 or more makes you immune to almost all damage, Jump Boost at very high values can stop you jumping, and Levitation with high values sends you flying up extremely fast. Map makers use these quirks on purpose, for example negative-style effects from very high jump boost to stop players jumping.

Popular uses

• Permanent night vision for building and caving: infinite duration with hidden particles.
• Speed and Haste for big terraforming projects.
• Fire Resistance while working with lava.
• Glowing to find lost mobs or players through walls in Java.
• Resistance and Regeneration for testing boss fights.
• Slowness and Blindness for adventure map traps and horror maps.
• Saturation to keep players fed during events.

Effects vs potions and beacons

/effect applies exactly the same effects as potions, but without brewing and with any duration or level you like. Beacons give Speed, Haste, Resistance, Jump Boost, Strength and Regeneration in an area, while conduits give Conduit Power. In Survival without cheats, see the potions guide for how to get these effects legitimately. Milk removes all effects in Survival, just like /effect clear.

Permissions

/effect requires cheats or operator permission. In Bedrock, using it with cheats disables achievements in that world.

Common errors

• Unknown effect: the ID is misspelled; use underscores, such as night_vision.
• Java syntax rejected: you forgot the word give after /effect.
• Bedrock syntax rejected: you typed give; Bedrock puts the player first.
• Effect level too high: remember the amplifier starts at 0.
• Infinite not recognized: update your game version, or use a very large number such as 1000000.

Related commands

• /give: give potions instead of effects.
• /enchant: add enchantments to items.
• /kill: remove mobs entirely.

/effect FAQ

How do you give yourself night vision forever?

Java: /effect give @s night_vision infinite 0 true. Bedrock: /effect @s night_vision infinite 0 true.

How do you remove effects?

/effect clear @s in Java, or /effect @s clear in Bedrock, or drink milk.

What does amplifier mean?

The effect level minus one: 0 is level I.

What is the default duration?

30 seconds.

Effect durations and stacking

Running /effect again on someone who already has the effect replaces it if the new level is higher, or if the level is the same and the new duration is longer. A lower level with a longer duration is stored in the background in current versions and takes over when the stronger effect runs out. This lets map makers layer effects, for example a short burst of Speed III on top of a long Speed I. Instant effects such as instant_health and instant_damage ignore duration and apply immediately, with the amplifier controlling how much they heal or hurt.

Applying effects to mobs

/effect works on any living entity, not only players. Give a pet wolf Resistance and Regeneration to keep it alive, make a boss stronger with Strength and Speed for an adventure map, or give a group of zombies Glowing in Java to track them. Undead mobs react to instant effects in reverse: instant_health damages zombies and skeletons, while instant_damage heals them. Some bosses, such as the Ender Dragon, ignore most effects.

Effects in command blocks

Repeating command blocks are often used to apply effects continuously, for example /effect give @a[distance=..20] regeneration 5 0 true near a spawn area, which keeps players healthy without showing particles. Short durations refreshed every tick are more reliable than one long effect, because milk or death removes the long one. Beacon-style areas, safe zones and team buffs in minigames all use this pattern, combined with selectors that check teams or tags.

Hiding effect particles and icons

Setting hideParticles to true removes the particle swirl that other players see, which is ideal for cinematic recordings and stealthy minigames. The effect icon still appears in your inventory and on the screen. Java also lets you hide the icon in some situations through data components on potions, but the /effect command itself only hides particles.

Effects that only exist through commands

A few effects are hard or impossible to get in normal Survival, which makes /effect the main way to use them. Luck and Unluck in Java change loot table rolls but have no potion in Survival except the rare Luck potion in Creative. Health Boost and Saturation exist only in special food or suspicious stew situations. Glowing comes from spectral arrows, but /effect lets you apply it for any length of time. Levitation normally only comes from shulker bullets.

Like /kill and /give, /effect can target many players at once, so double-check your selector before pressing Enter on a busy server.