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Matchbox at a glance
Tool Tools
Box of matches for lighting fires.
Matchbox
Box of matches for lighting fires. Where to find it and how to use it below. Updated for Build 42.21, November 2026.
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Where to find it
Kitchens, stores, houses. The Matchbook is the smaller version.
Town by town: loot locations.
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How to use it
Kilns and forges each use up a fire-starting item per firing.
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How to get it and use it
Box of matches for lighting fires.
How to get it
Kitchens, stores, houses. The Matchbook is the smaller version.
Tip
Kilns and forges each use up a fire-starting item per firing.
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Where it spawns: the loot tables
Matchbox is on 17 loot tables in the game files. Share is how much of a table's total weight this item takes, before your sandbox loot settings. Each container rolls its table several times, so a bigger share and more rolls both mean you see it more often.
| Loot table | Where that table is used | Share | Rolls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tobacco Store Accessories | Tobacco store (shelves) | 39% | 4 |
| Smoking Room Pipes | Smoking room (shelves) | 19% | 4 |
| Police Captain Cabinet | Captain office (cabinet) | 13% | 4 |
| Smoking Room Cigars | Smoking room (shelves) | 11% | 4 |
| Army Surplus Misc | Army Surplus Store (cupboard, crate, shelves) | 6.5% | 4 |
| Camping Store Lighting | Camping (box, shelves); Camping storage (box, crate); Outdoor supply (shelves); and 1 more place | 6.2% | 4 |
| Police Captain Desk | Captain office (desk) | 5.7% | 2 |
| Crate Humanitarian | Any building (military crate) | 5.6% | 4 |
It is on 9 more tables with smaller shares.
On zombies: zombies in these outfits can carry it: Bandit Late, Bandit Mid, Bandit Early, Bandit, Private Militia.
Inside bags and cases: Duffel Bag.
Town by town: loot locations.
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Recipes: how to make it and what it makes
What it is used for
Used up as an ingredient in 26 recipes: Fire 2 Limestone, Fire 3 Bricks, Fire 4 Limestone, Fire 6 Bricks, Fire 8 Clay Tiles, Fire Clay Bar Mold, Fire Clay Blacksmith Anvil Mold, Fire Clay Bowl, Fire Clay Crucible, Fire Clay Ingot Mold, Fire Clay Jar, Fire Clay Mug, Fire Clay Pipe Segment, Fire Clay Plate and 12 more.
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Related items
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Quick answers
Where do you find the Matchbox in Project Zomboid?
Kitchens, stores, houses. The Matchbook is the smaller version.
What is the Matchbox used for?
Box of matches for lighting fires. Kilns and forges each use up a fire-starting item per firing.
How do you get the Matchbox in Project Zomboid?
Kitchens, stores, houses. The Matchbook is the smaller version.
Item data from the ProjectZom item database, with stats from the Build 42 game data as published by pzfans.com and pindrop.gg.