Looking for a “parrot egg” in Minecraft and coming up empty? You are not going crazy. There is no natural parrot egg in Survival and parrots cannot breed, so you will never find a parrot egg the way you find chicken eggs or turtle eggs. What players usually mean is the Parrot Spawn Egg, which is only available in Creative inventory or by using commands.
Quick answer
You cannot obtain a parrot egg in Survival. Parrots do not have baby variants and cannot breed, and spawn eggs are not obtainable without Creative or commands. If you want a “parrot egg,” you are looking for a Parrot Spawn Egg, which is a Creative-only item unless cheats are on.
What “parrot egg” actually means
Players use “parrot egg” as shorthand for the Parrot Spawn Egg. Spawn eggs instantly create a mob when used. They are items meant for Creative building, mapmaking, testing, or for worlds with cheats enabled. Spawn eggs are not thrown like normal eggs and are consumed on use in Survival. You can also click a mob spawner with a spawn egg to change what it spawns.
How to get a Parrot Spawn Egg (Creative and commands)
If you are in Creative mode, open your inventory and search for “Parrot Spawn Egg.” You can also middle-click a parrot with Pick Block to add its spawn egg to your hotbar. Outside Creative, you need commands:
Java Edition 1.13 and later
/give @p parrot_spawn_egg 1
The default namespace is implied. If you prefer to be explicit, use minecraft:parrot_spawn_egg.
Bedrock Edition
/give @s parrot_spawn_egg 1 0
This syntax works across current Bedrock versions. Replace @s with your name if you like.
If cheats are off, enable them in your world or open the world to LAN with “Allow Cheats” enabled on Java.
Spawning parrots without an egg
If you do not need the egg item itself, use the summon command:
Java Edition
/summon minecraft:parrot ~ ~ ~
To pick a color, add the Variant tag. Values are 0 to 4 for the five parrot colors:
/summon minecraft:parrot ~ ~ ~ {Variant:0}
That spawns a red parrot at your position.
Bonus uses for spawn eggs
- Use a dispenser to deploy a spawn egg automatically.
- Right-click a spawner with a Parrot Spawn Egg to turn it into a parrot spawner. Both behaviors are officially supported for spawn eggs.
Survival-friendly alternatives if you want parrots without cheats
If your goal is simply to have parrots in a Survival world, you do not need an egg at all.
Find a jungle biome. Parrots spawn naturally in Jungle and Bamboo Jungle variants, usually in singles or pairs. Explore at canopy level and listen for their high-pitched mimic sounds.
Tame with seeds. Feed any common seed type to a wild parrot to attempt taming. Once tamed, make them sit to keep them from wandering or walk through them to perch them on your shoulders.
Move them safely. Parrots will teleport if you get far enough, but boats are reliable for long trips across mixed terrain. Leads also work in Bedrock and Java.
Avoid cookies at all costs. Feeding a cookie to a parrot kills it in Java and applies fatal poison in Bedrock, a deliberate anti-teaching-kids-to-feed-chocolate-to-birds mechanic. Never test this.
Common myths and mistakes
“You can breed parrots with seeds.” No. Parrots still cannot breed, and there is no baby parrot in vanilla Minecraft. Some mods add parrot breeding, which is likely where this rumor starts, but that is modded gameplay, not vanilla.
“Parrots lay eggs if you build a nest box.” Also mod misinformation. There is no vanilla nest box and no parrot egg drop.
“Spawn eggs drop in Survival.” Spawn eggs never drop naturally. They are Creative-only items unless spawned with commands.
“Parrot eggs hatch into baby parrots like turtles.” Turtles use turtle eggs, sniffers use sniffer eggs, chickens lay eggs, but parrots have no egg mechanic in vanilla.
Java vs Bedrock differences you should know
Functionally, both editions gate the Parrot Spawn Egg behind Creative or commands, and parrots cannot breed in either edition. Two notes that trip people up:
- Cookie interaction differs in the log message but not the outcome. Java kills the parrot instantly and shows poison particles. Bedrock applies Fatal Poison for an absurd duration, which still results in death.
- Command syntax has small differences, particularly with
/givearguments. The Bedrock form includes an extra number slot many guides still show as0, while Java’s modern form uses the unqualified item name orminecraft:namespace.
Practical tips for collecting parrots in Survival
If your aim is a colorful aviary, skip the egg hunt and go on a jungle expedition. Bring a stack of seeds, a bed, extra tools, and a boat. Tame multiple parrots of different colors, sit them near a jukebox, and they will dance when music plays. If you need to relocate them to a base far away, nether-shortcutting with boats works, but keep them seated before portal crossings to avoid shoulder hitchhiking mishaps. Above all, keep cookies out of your hotbar when handling parrots to prevent tragic misclicks.
FAQ
Do villagers sell Parrot Spawn Eggs?
No. There is no trade for any spawn egg in vanilla. Use Creative or commands only.
Can I make a farm that produces parrot eggs or baby parrots?
No. Parrots do not lay eggs and cannot breed in vanilla. Any farm claiming otherwise is running a datapack or a mod.
What is the exact command to get one Parrot Spawn Egg on Java 1.21?/give @p parrot_spawn_egg 1 or /give @p minecraft:parrot_spawn_egg 1. Both work.
How do I spawn a specific color parrot without an egg?
Use /summon minecraft:parrot ~ ~ ~ {Variant:N} where N is 0 to 4 for the different colors.
If you came here hunting for a parrot egg, the shortest path is simple: use a Parrot Spawn Egg via Creative or commands, or skip the egg entirely and find and tame parrots in a jungle. Either way, you will have a lively flock perched on your shoulders in no time.