Every Valheim Crafting Station, What It Costs and How Far It Reaches
A Workbench reaches 20 metres at level 1 and 36 metres fully upgraded — and you cannot build or repair anything outside that circle. Most guides treat station upgrades as a way to unlock recipes, which they are, but the radius is the stat that quietly decides how your base is laid out and why half your walls cannot be repaired. This is every station, what it costs, how many upgrade levels it has, and how far each one reaches.
On sourcing. Iron Gate do not publish system documentation. The figures below come from the community wikis and can change with any patch.
Every Station and What It Costs
| Station | Materials |
|---|---|
| Workbench | Wood ×10 |
| Cauldron | Tin ×10 |
| Forge | Stone ×4, Coal ×4, Wood ×10, Copper ×6 |
| Stonecutter | Wood ×10, Iron ×2, Stone ×4 |
| Artisan Table | Dragon Tear ×2, Wood ×10 |
| Black Forge | Black Marble ×10, Yggdrasil Wood ×10, Black Core ×5 |
Read the material column as a progression map. The Workbench needs nothing but wood. The Cauldron needs Tin, so it follows the Black Forest. The Stonecutter needs Iron, which means the Swamp. The Artisan Table needs Dragon Tears, which means Moder. The Black Forge needs Black Cores, which means the Mistlands.
The Artisan Table is the cheapest gate in the game relative to its importance. Moder drops 10 Dragon Tears and the table costs 2 — so you can build five of them, and there is no reason to hesitate over the cost.
Upgrade Levels
| Station | Levels | Upgrades |
|---|---|---|
| Forge | 7 | Forge Cooler, Anvils, Smith's Anvil, Forge Toolrack, Forge Bellows, Grinding Wheel |
| Cauldron | 6 | Spice Rack, Butcher's Table, Pots and Pans, Mortar and Pestle, Rolling Pins |
| Workbench | 5 | Chopping Block, Tanning Rack, Adze, Tool Shelf |
| Black Forge | 5 | Black Forge Cooler, Vice, Metal Cutter, Gem Cutter |
| Artisan Table | none | — |
| Stonecutter | none | — |
The Artisan Table and Stonecutter have no upgrades at all, which tells you what they are: not workbenches but keys. The Stonecutter unlocks a building material; the Artisan Table unlocks four other structures. Neither improves with investment.
The Workbench upgrade path is worth listing in full, because the materials are easy to overlook:
| Level | Upgrade | Materials |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Chopping Block | Wood ×10, Flint ×10 |
| 3 | Tanning Rack | Wood ×10, Flint ×15, Leather Scraps ×20, Deer Hide ×5 |
| 4 | Adze | Finewood ×10, Bronze ×3 |
| 5 | Tool Shelf | Finewood ×10, Iron ×4, Obsidian ×4 |
Note that level 5 needs Obsidian, which comes from the Mountain — so a fully upgraded Workbench is a mid-game achievement, not an early one.
Radius Is the Hidden Stat
| Station | Radius |
|---|---|
| Workbench (level 1) | 20 m |
| Workbench (fully upgraded) | 36 m — +4 m per level |
| Forge (level 7) | 38 m — +3 m per upgrade |
| Artisan Table | 40 m — the largest |
You can only build and repair inside a station's radius. That is the mechanic behind the single most common complaint in Valheim building: a wall that will not accept a repair hammer because the nearest Workbench is 25 metres away.
So upgrading a Workbench is not only about recipes — it is about reach. Going from level 1 to level 5 takes you from 20 m to 36 m, which is an 80% increase in covered area radius and often removes the need for a second bench entirely.
Practical layout rule: place the Workbench at the centre of what you intend to build, not at the edge where it is convenient. A 20-metre circle placed badly covers half of what it should.
And note the Artisan Table's 40 m — the largest radius of any station, which makes it a good anchor point for a production wing.
What Each One Unlocks
- Workbench — tools, weapons, armour, and all wood building.
- Stonecutter — every stone piece, plus thrones and benches, and the Sharpening Stone (which the Forge's level 6 upgrade needs).
- Artisan Table — the Blast Furnace, Spinning Wheel, Windmill and Stone Oven.
- Black Forge — Carapace, Ask and Flametal armour, and the endgame weapons Himminafl, Jotun Bane and Dyrnwyn, plus specialised arrows and bolts.
- Cauldron — every cooked dish, spread across its six levels.
- Forge — all metal weapons and armour, and its own upgrades.
The Artisan Table is the branch point of the whole late game. Those four structures it unlocks are the Plains production chain — the Windmill and Spinning Wheel turn the Barley and Flax you farm into flour and Linen Thread, and the Blast Furnace is the only thing that smelts Black Metal.
Note the Stonecutter's quiet dependency: it makes the Sharpening Stone required to reach Forge level 7. Skipping stone building therefore caps your Forge.
How to Set Up Your Stations
- Place the Workbench at the centre of your intended build, not the edge.
- Upgrade it for radius as much as recipes — 20 m to 36 m across five levels.
- Build the Cauldron as soon as you have Tin. Food is your character build.
- Get the Stonecutter early after Iron — it gates stone building and Forge level 7.
- Build the Artisan Table immediately after Moder. It costs 2 of your 10 Dragon Tears.
- Anchor a production wing on the Artisan Table's 40 m radius.
Practical tips
- You can only build and repair inside a station's radius. That is why the hammer refuses.
- Workbench: 20 m base, 36 m at level 5, gaining 4 m per upgrade.
- The Artisan Table has the largest radius at 40 m and no upgrades — it is a key, not a bench.
- Moder drops 10 Dragon Tears and the table costs 2. Build several.
- Workbench level 5 needs Obsidian from the Mountain.
- The Stonecutter makes the Sharpening Stone that Forge level 7 requires.
Running your own Valheim server
Stations are shared infrastructure — one player upgrades the Forge, everyone gets the recipes and the reach. A gamever Valheim server keeps that base standing for up to 10 players, so the bench someone spent an evening upgrading is there for whoever logs in next. One-click backups protect a workshop that took several biomes' worth of materials, and automatic updates keep client and server aligned.
Conclusion
Valheim's six crafting stations run in progression order by their materials: Workbench (Wood ×10), Cauldron (Tin ×10), Forge (Copper ×6), Stonecutter (Iron ×2), Artisan Table (Dragon Tear ×2) and Black Forge (Black Core ×5). The Forge goes deepest at 7 upgrade levels and the Cauldron has 6, while the Artisan Table and Stonecutter have none at all — they are keys rather than benches, unlocking the Blast Furnace, Spinning Wheel, Windmill and Stone Oven and all stone building respectively. The stat most people ignore is radius: a Workbench covers 20 m at level 1 and 36 m fully upgraded, the Forge reaches 38 m and the Artisan Table 40 m — and you cannot build or repair outside that circle, which is why a hammer sometimes refuses a wall you are standing next to. Place stations centrally, and upgrade for reach as much as for recipes.
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