DirtCheap
by pinter.gabor
DirtCheap is a Fabric, Forge and NeoForge technology mod that makes dirt renewable through a set of crafting recipes.
What it does
The mod adds a few recipes that turn cheap, renewable materials into dirt blocks, so dirt no longer has to be dug up. Cobblestone is the starting point, and later recipes create dirt, sand and clay from other common items. The aim is to make a plain resource available in unlimited amounts, which can save time in early survival and when building large projects.
Client and server, meaning a server owner and every player need the mod installed. Files are published for Fabric, Forge and NeoForge across 24 release versions, 1.18.1 – 26.2. The source code is available on GitLab and GitHub under the MIT License, and the project is open source.
Key features
Renewable dirt recipes
Crafting recipes allow dirt blocks to be duplicated from cheap, renewable items such as cobblestone.
Sand and clay recipes
Additional recipes produce sand and clay alongside dirt.
Short, documented source
The source code is kept short and documented, which makes it a starting point for people new to modding.
Simple example mod
Its simplicity lets it serve as a first Minecraft mod to read, study or copy from.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
26.x4 of 4 versions with builds
1.21.x12 of 12 versions with builds
1.20.x5 of 5 versions with builds
1.19.x1 of 1 version with builds
1.18.x2 of 2 versions with builds
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
Requirements
Dependencies declared by the latest file for each loader.
Required 1
Use cases
Early survival
Players who need large amounts of dirt for building or farming can make it from cobblestone instead of digging.
Learning to mod
New modders can read the short, documented code to see how a recipe-based mod is structured.
Who it’s for: Players who want a quick source of dirt, and people learning to write Minecraft mods who want a small, readable example.
How it compares
Simple Cobblestone Generator is a Fabric-only mod released under a custom license and is not open source; it works for 1.16.5 – 1.20.4. SimpleTech for Fabric is open source under the MIT License and covers 1.17 – 1.19.2 on Fabric alone. Cheap craftable gunpowder is released under the MIT License and spans Fabric, Forge and NeoForge across 1.18.2 – 1.21.11 with a client and server environment.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DirtCheap | Fabric, Forge and NeoForge | 1.18.1 – 26.2 | Client and server | 2026-07-13 |
| Simple Cobblestone Generator | Fabric | 1.16.5 – 1.20.4 | Client and server | 2024-03-31 |
| SimpleTech for Fabric | Fabric | 1.17 – 1.19.2 | Client and server | 2022-09-11 |
| Cheap craftable gunpowder | Fabric, Forge and NeoForge | 1.18.2 – 1.21.11 | Client and server | 2026-06-15 |
Questions
Does DirtCheap need Fabric API?
Does the server need DirtCheap?
Which game versions have files?
In the catalog
DirtCheap is one of 8,499 Technology mods on ModsFinder, and one of 4,201 Technology mods for Fabric. 13,894 mods support Minecraft 26.2.
More from pinter.gabor
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What the author says
Dirt must be dirt cheap. But in Minecraft cobblestone is cheaper than dirt, because it is free. Although there are complicated ways to create dirt from cobblestone, I do not like them. So I made this mod to make dirt really cheap by adding a few recipes that allow duplication of dirt blocks by mixing them with cheap…
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/dirtcheap
- Owner
- pinter.gabor
- Published
- 2023-11-23
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2026-07-13
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15