How to Breed Axolotls in Minecraft: Complete Guide

Abdul Wasay Khatri | Administrator

Last updated: 1 February, 2026

Breeding axolotls in Minecraft seems tricky at first, but once you know the secret ingredient, it becomes surprisingly easy. Many players waste time trying the wrong items before discovering what actually works. Let’s clear up the confusion and get you breeding these adorable underwater creatures.

The Quick Answer You’re Looking For

Feed tropical fish buckets to two adult axolotls standing near each other. Hearts will pop up above their heads, they’ll swim together briefly, and boom a baby axolotl appears. You need one bucket of tropical fish per parent, which means two buckets total for each breeding session. After breeding, wait five minutes before the same pair can breed again.

The catch? You can’t use regular tropical fish items. It has to be the bucket version with a live fish inside. This trips up tons of players who try feeding them raw fish and wonder why nothing happens.

Step 1: Find Your Axolotls

Axolotls live deep underground in lush caves, specifically in water pockets below Y-level 63. These caves are easy to spot because they’re packed with distinctive features like glow berries hanging from the ceiling, moss carpeting the floors, azalea trees, and dripleaf plants scattered around.

The axolotls themselves spawn in darkness, so you’ll need to explore unlit water areas. Bring torches to light your path, but remember they originally spawned where it was dark. They come in five colors:

• Pink (most common)
• Brown
• Yellow
• Cyan
• Blue (incredibly rare only 1 in 1,200 chance)

Scoop them up with a regular water bucket. Walk close, aim at the axolotl, and right-click. The bucket now contains your new pet, ready for transport back to your base.

Step 2: Set Up a Breeding Pool

Don’t just dump your axolotls anywhere. Create a proper breeding environment that keeps them healthy and makes the process smooth.

Dig out a pool at least 5 blocks wide and 3 blocks deep. The depth matters because axolotls need swimming room and shallow water causes them to get stuck on edges. Fill it completely with water no air pockets.

Add a solid floor using stone, clay, or colored concrete. This helps you spot the axolotls easily instead of losing them against dirt or gravel backgrounds. Throw in some sea pickles or kelp if you want the pool to look nice, but decorations aren’t required for breeding.

Release both axolotls into the pool by right-clicking while holding their buckets. They’ll immediately start swimming around and exploring.

Step 3: Catch Tropical Fish in Buckets

Here’s where most guides skip the important details. You need buckets of tropical fish not the item you get from killing fish.

Head to warm ocean biomes (bright blue water) or lukeworm ocean biomes (lighter blue-green water). Mangrove swamps also work. Tropical fish swim in colorful schools near the surface. They come in different patterns and colors, but any type works for breeding. The game doesn’t care if you catch an orange clownfish-looking one or a blue striped one.

Grab an empty bucket, swim up to a tropical fish, and right-click on it. The fish vanishes into your bucket. Repeat until you have at least two buckets of tropical fish. Honestly, catch more than two while you’re there you’ll want extras for future breeding sessions.

Step 4: Feed and Breed

Return to your breeding pool with the tropical fish buckets. Right click on one axolotl while holding a bucket. Red hearts burst out above its head, signaling it’s entered love mode.

Immediately right click the second axolotl with another tropical fish bucket. Hearts appear above this one too. The two axolotls will swim toward each other, meet in the middle, and a tiny baby axolotl pops into existence between them.

The whole animation takes about three seconds. The baby is much smaller than the parents and swims around adorably while it grows.

Understanding Color Genetics

Baby axolotls inherit their color from one parent chosen at random. If you breed a pink axolotl with a brown one, the baby has a 50% chance of being pink and a 50% chance of being brown. It will never be cyan, yellow, or any color neither parent had.

Blue axolotls work differently because they’re so rare. Two non-blue parents will never produce a blue baby—the game simply doesn’t allow it. The only way to get blue babies is by breeding at least one blue parent. Even then, the baby might inherit the other parent’s color instead.

Want a whole army of blue axolotls? Breed your single blue axolotl with different colored partners multiple times. Each baby has a coin flip chance of being blue when one parent is blue.

Growing Babies Faster

Baby axolotls naturally take 20 minutes to become adults. That’s one full Minecraft day. You can speed this up by feeding the baby tropical fish buckets. Each bucket reduces the remaining growth time by 10%.

Feed a newborn baby 10 tropical fish buckets and it becomes an adult instantly. This gets expensive fast since you need to keep catching tropical fish, but it works great when you’re in a hurry.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Using raw tropical fish items: These come from killing tropical fish with a sword or trident. They don’t work for breeding at all. You must use buckets with live fish.

Breeding in shallow water: If your pool is only one block deep, axolotls spend half their time flopping on the edges instead of swimming. Go at least three blocks deep.

Not waiting between breeding: After two axolotls breed, they both enter a five-minute cooldown. Feeding them more tropical fish buckets during this time does nothing. Be patient.

Expecting blue babies from non-blue parents: This will never happen. Blue can only come from blue parents.

Letting axolotls escape onto land: Axolotls take damage after being out of water for five minutes. Build walls around your pool or they might flop out and die.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I breed axolotls with salmon or cod buckets?
Nope, only tropical fish buckets work. Salmon and cod do nothing even though you can catch them in buckets too.

How many times can I breed the same pair?
Unlimited times, but you must wait five minutes between each breeding session. There’s no lifetime limit.

Do baby axolotls need special care?
Not really. They swim around like adults but won’t attack fish until they grow up. Just keep them in water.

Can I breed different colored axolotls?
Yes, any two adult axolotls can breed regardless of color. The baby’s color depends on the parents, not whether they “match.”

What happens to the tropical fish bucket after feeding?
You get an empty bucket back. The fish disappears and the axolotl enters love mode.

How do I get my first blue axolotl?
Either get extremely lucky finding one in the wild (1 in 1,200 chance) or trade with other players. Some servers have players who sell blue axolotls.

Will axolotls breed automatically if I leave them alone?
No, they need you to feed them tropical fish buckets. They won’t breed on their own like villagers do.

Can I transport baby axolotls in buckets?
Yes, baby axolotls can be scooped into buckets just like adults. Super useful for organizing your collection.

Do I need a male and female axolotl?
Minecraft axolotls don’t have genders. Any two adults can breed together as long as you feed them both.

Abdul Wasay Khatri
Administrator
Abdul Wasay is the founder and lead author of Axolotl Portal, a trusted site for axolotl care. He spent almost nine months learning about axolotls, including their tanks, feeding, water care, and common health problems. His knowledge comes from trusted vets, research, and real experience from long term axolotl owners. All Posts by