HOW TO SOLVE A 3X3 RUBIK’S CUBE

The first thing to learn is that the center pieces always stay in the same place relative to each
other. White is always opposite yellow, orange is always opposite red, and blue is always
opposite green. No matter how many times you turn anything, this will always be true. The
center pieces therefore determine what colour a side is. The white side is the side with the white
center, red side is the side with the red center, and so on. When you see something in this guide
that references a side by colour, it is the side with that colour in the center.
The next thing to learn is the name of each piece. There are centers, edges, and corners. Centers
are self-explanatory. Edges are the pieces that touch the centers. Corners are the pieces diagonal
to the centers. In the following cube, the yellow piece is a center, the red piece is an edge, and
the blue piece is a corner piece.

The final thing to learn before you get started is notation. When writing algorithms, we use a
special notation based on what the various sides of the cube are called. There are 6 sides:
L = Left
R = Right
F = Front
B = Back
U = Up
D = Down
For example, if you hold the cube with white on top and red facing you, the sides are as follows:
L = Green
R = Blue
F = Red
B = Orange
U = White
D = Yellow
We use the following notation when determining which way to turn a face:
L = Turn the left face one quarter turn clockwise
L’ = Turn the left face one quarter turn counter-clockwise
L2 = Turn the left face two quarter turns in either direction
When you see one of these written in an algorithm, it means you move that face as if you turned
the cube to look at that face. This is very important! One wrong turn can mess up your entire
cube! In the beginning, it is helpful to actually turn the cube and look at the side you need to turn
until you get used to it. Eventually, you will be able to read algorithms without having to turn the
cube. Also, it is very important that you hold the cube the same way when doing an algorithm.
For example, if you start an algorithm with yellow on top and red on the right, the cube must stay
in that position throughout the whole sequence. Once the sequence is done, you can turn the cube
any way you like to look at it. You’ll also find that some sequences have brackets around groups
of moves, like this: (U’ L’ U L) (U F U’ F’). This is to help break down long sequences and to
help with memorization.
In this guide, greyed-out pieces are pieces that are not relevant to that step. If a piece has a line of
colour next to it, that means the side hidden from view is that colour.
Let’s get started!
STEP 1: The First Layer Cross
For now, the first layer is on top. The goal of the first layer cross is to solve the four white edge
pieces, like so:

Always solve the cross on the same side. You will start to see familiar patterns and automatically
know how to solve them if you always solve the cross on the same side. Also, solve with the
cross side facing up. The first layer cross should be solved intuitively, that is, without using or
memorizing any specific sets of moves. Learning to solve it intuitively will eventually make it
much easier than if you used algorithms. This is mainly because there are so many different
cases that coming up with and memorizing algorithms for them is much harder than learning to
solve it without algorithms. That being said, I’ll give a couple of common cases and their
solutions in case you get stuck. It helps to watch what happens to the pieces when you use them
so you can understand what’s happening. Try not to use them if you can, but if you really need
to, here they are:
Single Flipped Edge:

Hold the cube with white on top and the unsolved edge facing you, and do: F R’ D’ R F2
Adjacent Edges:

Hold the cube with white on top, one unsolved edge facing you, and the other unsolved edge
facing right, and do: R’ U’ R U R’
Opposite Edges:

Hold the cube with white on top and the unsolved edges on the left and right, and do: R2 L2 D2
R2 L2

STEP 2: FIRST LAYER CORNERS

Now it’s time to flip the cube over so that yellow is on top. This also means that the first layer is
on the bottom. From here on, all algorithms assume that yellow is on top. The goal of this step is
to finish solving the white side, like so:
We will do this with white on the bottom because it is easier to find the target pieces, which are
the white corners. With white on the bottom, turn the cube until you find a white corner that has
the white side facing out, like this:

With yellow facing up, turn the U face until that corner is above the centers of the two other
colours on it, and then hold the cube with yellow on top and the white side of the corner facing
you. There are two cases. Either the white side will face you from the top right, or the top left.
Top right: Top left:

Hold the cube so that the white side of the corner faces you and do the following:
If white is on the right do U R U’ R’
If white is on the left do U’ L’ U L
If there is a white corner in the first layer but turned the wrong way, like this:

Hold the cube so that the white side of the corner faces you, and do one of the above algorithms
according to which side the white corner is on.
You may also find that there is a corner in the top layer that has the white side facing up. If that
is the case, use one of the above algorithms to put it in the bottom layer, then reassess and use the
appropriate algorithm to bring it out again, then solve.
STEP 3: SECOND LAYER EDGES
The goal of this step is to solve the second layer entirely:

Find an edge piece in the top layer that doesn’t have yellow on it and then turn the yellow face
until the colour that’s not on the U face matches the center:
Hold the cube with the matching colour facing you, in the case above that would mean red facing
you. Now, look at the other colour on the edge. The matching center will either be on the L face
or the R face. In the case above, you’re looking at blue, and blue is on the L face. Do one of the
following algorithms based on which side the U colour is on.
If U colour is on the left:
U’ L’ U L U F U’ F’
If U colour is on the right:
U R U’ R’ U’ F’ U F
If you find an edge that’s in the right spot but flipped:

Simply perform one of the above algorithms, and then reassess. You’ll find the flipped edge in
the top layer, and you can do the appropriate algorithm to solve it. The same is true if two edges
are in the second layer but in the wrong spot. Just use one of the above algorithms to replace an
unsolved edge with an edge from the top layer, reassess, and solve.
STEP 4: U FACE CROSS
The goal of this step is to make a cross on the U face. There are 3 cases, plus the solved case.
L:

Do F U R U’ R’ F’
Line:

Do F R U R’ U’ F’
The third case is when none of the yellow edges face up. Simply do one of the above algorithms
and reassess. You will have one of the first two cases, which you can then solve.
STEP 5: LAST LAYER CORNER PERMUTATION
The goal of this step is to get the corner pieces in the right place, but not necessarily turned the
right way. The yellow face will not always be solved after this step, and in fact it is quite rare
that it is.
A corner is in the right place if the three colours on it are the three colours on the adjacent
centers:

The three colours of the corner must be the same as the adjacent centers in order for it to be in
the correct place. Without turning any face, turn the cube to look at all four corners of the U
layer, and count how many solved corners there are. You will always be able to get either two or
four solved corners. If you have zero or one solved corners, turn the yellow face a quarter turn in
either direction and reassess. Continue turning the yellow face until you find that you have either
two or four solved corners. There are two cases plus the solved case.
Adjacent Corners: Two adjacent corners need to switch places:

Hold the cube with yellow on top and the solved corners on the left and do
(L U’ R’ U) (L’ U’ R U) U
Diagonal Corners: Two diagonal corners need to switch places:

Hold the cube with yellow on top and do the above algorithm. Reassess, and you’ll find two
adjacent corners need to switch, so do the above algorithm again to solve.
STEP 6: LAST LAYER ORIENTATION
The goal of this step is to finish solving the yellow side, although the edge pieces of the last layer
will not necessarily be solved. There are many cases, too many to list and memorize. However,
we can reduce any case to one of two cases of three unsolved corners. This is perhaps the hardest
step to understand and recognize, so take your time, look carefully when determining which case
you have, and don’t give up!
Clockwise: Yellow corners need to rotate clockwise.

Hold the cube with yellow up and the solved corner in the near left corner, and do
(R U R’ U) (R U2 R’)
Counter-clockwise: Yellow corners need to rotate counter-clockwise.

Hold the cube with yellow up and the solved corner in the back left corner, and do
(R’ U’ R U’) (R’ U2 R)
If you have any other case, just do one of the two algorithms above, and reassess. You will find
sometimes that doing these algorithms on certain cases seems to produce the same case. If that
happens, try to remember what you did and do the other algorithm, or do the same algorithm but
with the U face turned differently. Again, this step can take a long time to understand and learn,
so be patient!
The last step!
STEP 7: LAST LAYER PERMUTATION
The goal of this step is to put the edges of the last layer in the correct position, and in doing so,
finish solving the cube!
Turn the yellow face until the corner pieces are in the right position, and then determine which
case you have. There are only 4 cases, plus the solved case, which we can reduce to 2 cases.
Clockwise: Three edges need to move clockwise:

Hold the cube with yellow on top and the solved edge on the left and do
R2 U F B’ R2 F’ B U R2
Counter-clockwise: Three edges need to move counter-clockwise:

Hold the cube with yellow on top and the solved edge on the left and do
R2 U’ F B’ R2 F’ B U’ R2
Adjacent Edges:

Do one of the first two algorithms, then reassess and solve.

Opposite Edges:

Do one of the first two algorithms, then reassess and solve.

That’s it!
At first, it will take 15 minutes or more to solve, but as you get more comfortable with each step
and start to naturally memorize the algorithms, you will find it quickly takes much less time with
each solve. If you can solve it from memory with this method, and you’re comfortable with the
moves, you can solve in an average of about 60 seconds!