The Farmer is one of the best emerald generators in the game: if you have crop farms, it turns wheat, carrots, potatoes, and more straight into emeralds, and it sells golden carrots, the single best food in Minecraft. This guide covers every Farmer trade by level and which ones are worth your time.
Everything here is confirmed in the current 2026 version of Minecraft (26.2).
Quick answer: the Farmer’s best trades are its novice crop buys (20 wheat, 22 carrots, 26 potatoes, or 15 beetroot per emerald) for cheap renewable emeralds, and its master trade of 3 golden carrots for 3 emeralds, the best food in the game. Its job site block is the composter.
Farmer Trades at a Glance
| Level | Best trade | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Novice | Crops to emeralds | 20 wheat / 22 carrots / 26 potatoes / 15 beetroot per emerald |
| Apprentice | Pumpkins to emeralds | 6 pumpkins per emerald; buy 4 apples per emerald |
| Journeyman | Melons to emeralds | 4 melons per emerald; 18 cookies per emerald |
| Expert | Cake / suspicious stew | 1 emerald each |
| Master | Golden carrots | 3 golden carrots for 3 emeralds |
How to Make a Farmer
Place a composter next to an unemployed adult villager and it becomes a Farmer. See our how to make a stonecutter and Minecraft villager jobs guides for how professions and job blocks work.
Novice: The Crop Buys (Best for Emeralds)
This is where the Farmer earns its reputation. At novice level it buys crops for emeralds:
- 20 wheat for 1 emerald
- 22 carrots for 1 emerald
- 26 potatoes for 1 emerald
- 15 beetroot for 1 emerald
- It also sells 6 bread for 1 emerald
On Java, a novice Farmer gets 2 of these at random; on Bedrock, it gets one crop buy plus the bread sell. All of these crops are easy to mass-farm, so with a decent crop farm the Farmer becomes a renewable emerald machine. Wheat is usually the easiest to automate; see our what villager trades wheat guide and best early-game farms for setups.
Apprentice: Pumpkins and Apples
At apprentice, the Farmer buys 6 pumpkins for 1 emerald, another highly profitable trade if you have a pumpkin farm (pumpkins are one of the easiest crops to automate). It also sells 4 pumpkin pies for 1 emerald (a great food) and 4 apples for 1 emerald, which is handy for crafting golden apples if you have gold.
Journeyman: Melons and Cookies
The journeyman Farmer buys 4 melons for 1 emerald, very profitable with a melon farm, and sells 18 cookies for 1 emerald. Both editions get both trades.
Expert and Master: Golden Carrots
At Expert, the Farmer sells cake and suspicious stew for 1 emerald each (the stew is a random type, so it is a gamble). The real prize is the master trade: 3 golden carrots for 3 emeralds. Golden carrots are the best food in the game for saturation, and buying them beats crafting when gold is tight. Master Farmers also sell glistering melon slices (great for healing potions).
The Verdict: Which Farmer Trades Are Best
For pure emerald income, the novice crop buys win, cheap, renewable, and easy to automate. For utility, the master golden carrot trade is the standout, giving you the best food in the game on tap. Pair a Farmer with an automatic crop farm and you have both a steady emerald supply and endless golden carrots. For the full profession breakdown, see our best villager trades for emeralds guide.
The Farmer is a two-in-one villager: dump your crop surplus into it for emeralds, then spend those emeralds on golden carrots, the best food in the game. Build a crop farm, set up a Farmer next to a composter, and you have a renewable loop of food and emeralds.
Frequently Asked Questions
The novice crop buys (20 wheat, 22 carrots, 26 potatoes, or 15 beetroot per emerald) are best for emeralds, and the master trade of 3 golden carrots for 3 emeralds is the best for food.
The composter. Place one next to an unemployed adult villager to turn it into a Farmer.
Level the Farmer up to master. At master level it sells 3 golden carrots for 3 emeralds, which is the best food source in the game for saturation.
22 carrots for 1 emerald at novice level. The Farmer also buys 20 wheat, 26 potatoes, or 15 beetroot per emerald.
Yes, one of the best. Its novice crop buys are cheap and renewable, so with an automatic crop farm the Farmer becomes a reliable emerald generator.
Bread, pumpkin pie, apples, cookies, cake, suspicious stew, golden carrots, and glistering melon slices, depending on its level.
