Smite is the enchantment the table keeps offering you when you wanted Sharpness. What it does depends entirely on the target. Against a zombie, Smite V beats every other melee enchantment in the game by a wide margin. Against a creeper it does nothing. So whether it belongs on your main sword comes down to what you fight, and the numbers below settle that quickly.
Quick answer
Those are Java Edition figures. Bedrock uses the same 2.5 per level but rounds down at some levels, so Smite I deals 2 there instead of 2.5. The three enchantments are mutually exclusive. A sword can carry only one of them, and an anvil refuses to combine two.
What "undead" covers
Smite applies to every mob the game tags as undead. In 26.2 that list is:
Creepers, spiders, endermen, piglins, pillagers, the Warden and the Ender Dragon are not undead, so Smite adds nothing against any of them. Bogged was the last commonly fought addition. It arrived with the trial chambers in 1.21 and takes full Smite damage like any other skeleton.
In practice, Smite is a night-time and Nether enchantment. Zombies, skeletons, drowned, phantoms and wither skeletons are most of what attacks you after dark and in a fortress. It's also the best enchantment you can bring to the Wither fight, where Smite V on a netherite sword cuts the second phase down a lot.
Smite vs Sharpness
Sharpness V adds 3 damage to every hit. Smite V adds 12.5 to hits on undead and 0 to everything else. So the real question is what fraction of your hits land on undead.
- General survival sword. Take Sharpness. You'll hit creepers, spiders, endermen and players, and the +3 applies to all of them.
- Mob farm or a dedicated night sword. Take Smite. A netherite sword deals 8 base damage. With Smite V it does 20.5 to a zombie, which one-shots it (20 health). With Sharpness V it does 11 and needs two hits.
- Wither and wither skeleton farms. Smite, and it isn't close.
- PvP. Sharpness, because players aren't undead.
Plenty of players run two swords, Sharpness for carrying and Smite for the farm. Both enchant the same way, so the enchanting table and a stack of lapis get you either one. Books from villager trades or trial chamber vaults let you pick the exact level.
What Smite can go on
- Swords and axes, in both editions.
- Maces, where it competes with Density and Breach. A mace can carry only one of the three, and Density scales with fall distance, so Smite on a mace mostly makes sense for wither skeleton farms.
- Spears, the newest melee weapon, take Smite as a primary enchantment.
Tridents, bows and crossbows don't accept it.
Getting Smite V
Unlike Sharpness V, Smite V can show up directly at a level-30 enchant, but you can't count on the roll. The usual routes to V are:
- Combine two Smite IV books or swords in an anvil.
- Trade with a librarian villager, who can sell a Smite V book directly once levelled up.
- Loot it. Enchanted books from trial chamber vaults and ancient city chests can roll Smite V.
Anvil costs stack, so combine the books first and put the finished book on the sword last.
FAQ
Is Smite better than Sharpness?
Against undead mobs, by a lot. Smite V adds 12.5 damage per hit where Sharpness V adds 3. Against everything else Smite adds nothing, which makes Sharpness the better all-round pick. Most players keep Sharpness on their main sword and use Smite on a second sword for mob farms and the Wither.
Does Smite work on the Wither?
Yes. The Wither is an undead boss, so Smite V adds 12.5 damage to every melee hit on it. No other enchantment gives you a bigger damage boost for the melee phase. That's why a Smite V netherite sword, paired with a bow for the flying phase, is the standard Wither loadout.
Does Smite work on the Warden or Ender Dragon?
No. Neither counts as undead. The Warden is its own category, and the dragon is a boss with no mob tag Smite applies to. Sharpness is the only damage enchantment that helps against both, and for the dragon a bow with Power matters more than any sword.
Can you put Smite and Sharpness on the same sword?
No. Smite, Sharpness and Bane of Arthropods are mutually exclusive on Java and Bedrock. An anvil won't combine them, and an enchanting table never offers two together. If you want both effects, you need two swords.