Here’s a clear, fully explained guide to how to make an Ender (End) Portal in Minecraft , plus some quick context and extra tips.

How to Make an Ender Portal

You can use an End Portal in two main ways:

  • Activate a naturally generated portal in a stronghold (Survival).
  • Build your own portal frame in Creative mode.

Quick Scoop

  • In Survival , you cannot legitimately obtain End Portal Frame blocks; you must find a stronghold and activate the existing frame with Eyes of Ender.
  • In Creative , you can build an End Portal anywhere using:
    • 12 End Portal Frames
    • 12 Eyes of Ender
  • The most common mistake is placing frames while standing outside the portal, which breaks the orientation and stops it from activating.

Method 1: Activating a Stronghold End Portal (Survival)

This is the “intended” way to reach the End in normal gameplay.

1. Prepare Eyes of Ender

You need Eyes of Ender , crafted from:

  • Blaze Powder (from Blaze Rods in the Nether)
  • Ender Pearls (from Endermen, etc.)

You will need:

  • Several Eyes to locate the stronghold.
  • Up to 12 Eyes to fill the portal frame, though some slots might already contain Eyes.

2. Find the Stronghold

  1. Stand in the Overworld and throw an Eye of Ender.
  2. Watch the direction it flies and follow it.
  3. Repeat; eventually the Eye will start going downward—this means you are above the stronghold.
  4. Dig down carefully until you enter the stronghold structure (stone brick corridors, libraries, etc.).

3. Locate the Portal Room

Inside the stronghold, search for the room that contains:

  • A lava pool
  • A raised structure of End Portal Frames arranged in a rectangle (3 on each side, corners missing)
  • Often a silverfish spawner nearby.

4. Fill the Portal Frame

The frame has 12 slots for Eyes of Ender.

  1. Equip your Eye of Ender.
  2. Right‑click (or tap) each empty End Portal Frame to insert an Eye.
  3. Some slots may already be filled; bring enough Eyes to top it up to 12.
  1. When the last Eye is placed, the center will fill with a starry, black portal texture.

Now you can jump in to reach the End and fight the Ender Dragon.

Method 2: Building an End Portal in Creative Mode

If you want an End Portal anywhere (for a map, base hub, or testing), use Creative.

1. Items You Need

In Creative inventory, grab:

  • 12 End Portal Frame blocks
  • 12 Eyes of Ender

2. Stand in the Center

Orientation matters a lot.

  • Stand in the spot where the portal’s center will be (inside the future 3×3 hole).
  • You will be placing frames around yourself , turning in place.

This ensures that the “front” of every frame block points toward the center.

3. Place the Frame Correctly

You are building a ring that surrounds a 3×3 empty square:

  1. While standing in the center, place 3 End Portal Frames in a row directly in front of you.
  2. Turn 90 degrees right, place 3 more frames for the next side.
  3. Turn again and repeat until you have 3 frames on each of the 4 sides, forming a rectangle with no corner blocks.

Key detail:

  • The frames have small green tabs/patterns on top that must all face inward toward the center for the portal to activate.

4. Insert the Eyes of Ender

  1. Stay inside the frame (or at least aligned with its center).
  2. Place an Eye of Ender into each frame block by right‑clicking/tapping.
  1. Many guides recommend placing the first 11 Eyes while standing inside, then stepping out or hovering and placing the last Eye from outside if you want to watch it activate instead of instantly falling in.

When the twelfth Eye is placed correctly, the portal will form—a dark, starry 3×3 square.

Common Mistakes (and Fixes)

Even experienced players get tripped up by End Portals. Here are typical errors and what to do.

  • Mistake: Placing frames while standing outside the ring.
    • Result: Frames face the wrong direction; portal won’t activate.
    • Fix: Break all frames and rebuild them while standing in the center so the tops/tabs face inward.
  • Mistake: Putting corner blocks.
    • Result: Shape not recognized as a valid portal frame.
    • Fix: Make sure there are only 3 frames per side , corners empty.
  • Mistake: Not using exactly 12 Eyes of Ender.
    • Result: No activation.
    • Fix: Ensure every frame block has an Eye placed.
  • Mistake: Trying this in Survival with frame blocks from commands/cheats disabled.
    • Fix: In legit Survival , you must find a stronghold portal and activate that one; you cannot craft frames.

Survival vs Creative: Fast Comparison

[6][5] [3][10][5] [5] [3][5] [6][5] [10][3][5] [5] [7][10][5] [6][5] [8][10][3]
Aspect Survival Mode Portal Creative Mode Portal
Where the frame comes from Pre-generated in strongholds; you must find it. You place all 12 End Portal Frames yourself anywhere.
Can you obtain frame blocks legitimately? No, they do not drop and cannot be crafted. Yes from Creative inventory or commands.
Eyes of Ender needed Up to 12; some slots may be pre-filled. Exactly 12, one for each frame.
Orientation requirement Pre-built correctly already. You must place frames while standing in the center so they face inward.
Difficulty / time Harder: find Blaze, Endermen, stronghold. Easier: instantly build with Creative tools.

Little Story-Style Example

Imagine you’re in Creative, planning an epic arena where friends can jump straight into an Ender Dragon fight. You mark a 3×3 space in the floor of your lobby, stand in the center, and place 3 End Portal Frames on the north side, then slowly rotate, adding 3 on each side until you’re encircled by a jagged stone ring with green tabs all pointing at you. Staying inside the ring, you click an Eye of Ender into each slot; with the last Eye placed from just above, the floor suddenly fills with a swirling void, turning your quiet lobby into a dramatic gateway to the End.

Trending / “Latest News” Angle

Even in 2025–2026, short tutorials and forum posts about “how to make an Ender portal” remain popular because:

  • New updates keep bringing players back, and many forget the orientation trick.
  • Content creators still publish refreshed guides for newer versions and cross‑platform play (Java vs Bedrock).

So if you see a lot of recent YouTube videos or blog posts on this, it’s not just you—this is one of those evergreen Minecraft questions that keeps trending regularly.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.