Solving a Rubik's Cube is Easier Than You Think!
Solving
a Rubik's Cube may seem to be impossible. In fact most people give up
on it after playing with it for only a few minutes and never pick it up
again, while others are willing to tame the beast no matter how long it
takes.
To solve a Rubik's Cube, there's no need for super long algorithms or any other complicated stuff. If you can remember a phone number, then you can solve a Rubik's Cube. It's that easy!
Here is the secret that most people do not know: You cannot solve the Cube without knowing the basic solution method. You can find the method from a friend who has already solved the Cube, from tutorials on the web such as this one, or from the instruction manual that comes with the Cube - though the manual can be confusing for first-time users. There are a few things that you have to learn, though they are not difficult.
For instance, you may think that the way to solve the cube is to do one side at a time. This is not true. As a matter of fact, that strategy is almost impossible and would require very long computer generated algorithms that would overwhelm even the most experienced cubers.
For beginners, the Layer by Layer method is the best and most common way to solve the Cube. There are other methods that are more advanced, but they are used for Speed Cubing (the art of solving the cube in the fastest time possible rather than just solving it). The first step in the Layer by Layer method is done by picking a color (most common is the white side, which has the white center dot) to make the "White Cross". Then comes inserting the corners to complete the first layer, then fixing the edge pieces in the 2nd layer to complete it, and then completing the last layer.
I'll explain each step in an easy to understand way with pictures and video to demonstrate the basic solution. If you are prepared to spend some time, even if its only 10 to 20 minutes at a time, you will shortly be solving the Cube faster than you could ever have imagined. Don't give up if you get anything wrong in any of the steps: you can always start over no matter how bad the mistake.
To solve a Rubik's Cube, there's no need for super long algorithms or any other complicated stuff. If you can remember a phone number, then you can solve a Rubik's Cube. It's that easy!
Here is the secret that most people do not know: You cannot solve the Cube without knowing the basic solution method. You can find the method from a friend who has already solved the Cube, from tutorials on the web such as this one, or from the instruction manual that comes with the Cube - though the manual can be confusing for first-time users. There are a few things that you have to learn, though they are not difficult.
For instance, you may think that the way to solve the cube is to do one side at a time. This is not true. As a matter of fact, that strategy is almost impossible and would require very long computer generated algorithms that would overwhelm even the most experienced cubers.
For beginners, the Layer by Layer method is the best and most common way to solve the Cube. There are other methods that are more advanced, but they are used for Speed Cubing (the art of solving the cube in the fastest time possible rather than just solving it). The first step in the Layer by Layer method is done by picking a color (most common is the white side, which has the white center dot) to make the "White Cross". Then comes inserting the corners to complete the first layer, then fixing the edge pieces in the 2nd layer to complete it, and then completing the last layer.
I'll explain each step in an easy to understand way with pictures and video to demonstrate the basic solution. If you are prepared to spend some time, even if its only 10 to 20 minutes at a time, you will shortly be solving the Cube faster than you could ever have imagined. Don't give up if you get anything wrong in any of the steps: you can always start over no matter how bad the mistake.
Get To Know Your Cube
Before
getting started on the Layer by Layer method, it's important to go over
the Rubik's Cube and familiarize ourselves with its parts and features.
On each side, the Cube has 3 kinds of parts:
On each side, the Cube has 3 kinds of parts:
- The center dot that never moves
- The 4 corner pieces
- The 4 edge pieces in between the corner pieces.
In total, there are:
- 6 Center dots, that are each one color
- 12 edge pieces, which have 2 colors each
- 8 corner pieces, which have 3 colors each
Rubik's Cube Notations
Since
every cube will look different, these instructions will use a set of
notations that make it easy to label and refer to the different sides.
Standard notation for the cube is UP, DOWN, RIGHT, LEFT, FACE, and BACK,
or U, D, R, L, F, B for short.
With the above picture as a reference, the table below indicates the side each notation refers to.
With the above picture as a reference, the table below indicates the side each notation refers to.
Notation
|
Color of Side
|
|---|---|
UP
|
White
|
FACE
|
Red
|
RIGHT
|
Blue
|
Not pictured are:
Helpful Hints: Color Pairings
In American models, the following color pairs are always opposite of each other.
- LEFT Side - which would be Green
- BACK Side - which would be Orange
- DOWN Side - which would be Yellow.
Helpful Hints: Color Pairings
In American models, the following color pairs are always opposite of each other.
- Green and Blue
- Orange and Red
- White and Yellow
NOTATION
How to Read Rubik's Cube Notations
Rubik's
Cube instructions will tell you to rotate different sides. So when the
instructions tell you to move UP, it means to turn the UP side clockwise
90 degrees (1/4 the way around the top of the cube). Another way to
look at it is to imagine you are looking at the top of the cube and you
want to turn a hand on a clock from 12 o'clock to 3 o'clock, so you
would turn the top layer to the right one time.
To move RIGHT, then you would imagine your looking at the RIGHT side (blue) and do the same, turn it clockwise one time.
FACE is the same, your already looking straight at it, just turn the red side to the right one time.
For example, the notations F U R, would instruct you to turn the FACE side clockwise 90 degrees, then the UP side clockwise 90 degrees, and finally the RIGHT side clockwise 90 degrees.
A Few More Notations
If you need to move a side counter-clockwise, that's called INVERT and is denoted with an apostrophe. So F' means you should move the FACE side counter-cockwise 90 degrees.
If you need to rotate a side more than once, there will be a number preceding the notation. So, 2F means you should turn the FACE side clockwise 180 degrees.
To move RIGHT, then you would imagine your looking at the RIGHT side (blue) and do the same, turn it clockwise one time.
FACE is the same, your already looking straight at it, just turn the red side to the right one time.
For example, the notations F U R, would instruct you to turn the FACE side clockwise 90 degrees, then the UP side clockwise 90 degrees, and finally the RIGHT side clockwise 90 degrees.
A Few More Notations
If you need to move a side counter-clockwise, that's called INVERT and is denoted with an apostrophe. So F' means you should move the FACE side counter-cockwise 90 degrees.
If you need to rotate a side more than once, there will be a number preceding the notation. So, 2F means you should turn the FACE side clockwise 180 degrees.
Step 1: How to Make the Daisy Cross
To
make the white cross, it is easiest to turn the cube upside down, so
that yellow is now the TOP side. Then, find the white edge pieces and
put them on the TOP layer to form a TOP layer them to the yellow center
dot, this looks like a daisy flower when done.
If you go to put a white edge on top, and there is another white edge in the way, do a U or U' until a spot is open to put the white edge in.
If the white edge piece is on the bottom layer or if the piece is in the right position but the white sticker is on the wrong side, do a F or F' to orient it. You should double-check the U layer first, because you may need to turn it so as to avoid displacing any white edge pieces that are already in their correct position.
Check out the video below for further help in making the daisy cross.
If you go to put a white edge on top, and there is another white edge in the way, do a U or U' until a spot is open to put the white edge in.
If the white edge piece is on the bottom layer or if the piece is in the right position but the white sticker is on the wrong side, do a F or F' to orient it. You should double-check the U layer first, because you may need to turn it so as to avoid displacing any white edge pieces that are already in their correct position.
Check out the video below for further help in making the daisy cross.
Step 2: How to Make the White Cross
To
finish making the white cross, look for a white edge that is lined up
with one of the middle layer centers.. for example, in the picture
above, the white/red edge piece is already lined up (connected) to the
RED CENTER.. since it is, you can easily place that white edge on the
white side by turning the right side twice (180 degrees), in either
direction. That transfers the white edge from the yellow side to the
white side and leaves it connected to the red center.
Do the same thing for the 3 other edges. If you do not see an edge connected to a center dot, rotate the top layer until one is, then rotate that face twice to put the edge on the white side.
Do the same thing for the 3 other edges. If you do not see an edge connected to a center dot, rotate the top layer until one is, then rotate that face twice to put the edge on the white side.
Step 3: Insert the White Corners (F2L Part 1)
F2L is First 2 Layers.
Now that you have the white cross.. it's time to put in the corners to complete the first layer.
Flip the cube upside down again.. so that White is on top (UP) and Yellow is on bottom (DOWN).
Now that you have the white cross.. it's time to put in the corners to complete the first layer.
Flip the cube upside down again.. so that White is on top (UP) and Yellow is on bottom (DOWN).
Case 1
Look
on the DOWN layer for a corner piece that has a white sticker, then
rotate the DOWN layer until that corner piece is directly below the spot
that it belongs in on the top layer. You know a corner piece is
directly below the spot it needs to be, when the two center dots it's
placed between correspond to the corner piece's other two colors. So, as
in the picture below, a white/orange/green corner should be placed
between the green and orange center dots
Once you have the corner piece lined up, rotate the Cube so that the white side of the corner piece you wish to move is facing you. It should be on the bottom right hand side of the FACE side (in the example below, this would be the side with the orange center piece). Then perform the following moves: F D F'
Or, turn the FACE (orange side) 90 degrees, then the DOWN side (bottom side) 90 degrees, then FACE INVERT to its original position.
Once you have the corner piece lined up, rotate the Cube so that the white side of the corner piece you wish to move is facing you. It should be on the bottom right hand side of the FACE side (in the example below, this would be the side with the orange center piece). Then perform the following moves: F D F'
Or, turn the FACE (orange side) 90 degrees, then the DOWN side (bottom side) 90 degrees, then FACE INVERT to its original position.
Case 2
In this picture, the white sticker is on the bottom left side of the cube. To put it in its place, do the following:
- Hold the cube with the white sticker facing you, and do
- F' D' F
Case 3
3rd Case: In this picture, the white sticker is on the bottom, do this to put it in place:
Hold the cube with the white sticker facing down and on the right hand side of the cube, just like the picture, then do R' D' R D (x3).
Hold the cube with the white sticker facing down and on the right hand side of the cube, just like the picture, then do R' D' R D (x3).
4th Case
In
this picture, the corner piece is already in the correct spot, but it
is twisted the wrong way. To fix this, make the following moves: R' D' R
D.
These moves will put the piece in the bottom layer. Now, you just need to rotate it until it is under the corner it belongs in. Then look to see which one of the 3 cases above it matches and fix it accordingly.
These moves will put the piece in the bottom layer. Now, you just need to rotate it until it is under the corner it belongs in. Then look to see which one of the 3 cases above it matches and fix it accordingly.
Here
is what it will look like with the first layer complete. The white side
is finished, the edges are connected to the center dots, and the corner
pieces are in place.
Next we will fix the four edge pieces in the second layer.
Next we will fix the four edge pieces in the second layer.
STEP 3: Complete the 2nd Layer (F2L Part 2)
For
this step, turn the cube so that the white side is to the left, and
yellow is to the right. It's just easier that way when it comes to the
two algorithms that fixes the second layer.
As in the picture below, line up an edge piece with it's corresponding center piece. You can do this either by turning the right side until the edge is connected to its center dot.
Remember to keep the white side to the left and yellow to the right while doing this.
As in the picture below, line up an edge piece with it's corresponding center piece. You can do this either by turning the right side until the edge is connected to its center dot.
Remember to keep the white side to the left and yellow to the right while doing this.
Now
look to see where that edge piece belongs. In the picture below,
because that edge piece has orange and green it belongs in the top
layer, between the orange and green center dots. So, we need to move
that edge piece counter-clockwise. To do so, make the following moves:
R' U' R U then R F R' F'
R' U' R U then R F R' F'
In the picture below is the opposite case, where the edge piece needs to be moved clockwise. To do so, make the following moves:
R D R' D' then R' F' R F
R D R' D' then R' F' R F
Sometimes,
as in the following picture, the edge piece is in the right spot, but
it's flipped incorrectly. When that happens, you will rotate the edge
piece into into the yellow layer, while keeping the white corner piece
in place by doing the "counter clockwise" algorithm from above. Then you
can spin the yellow layer around until the green sticker lines up with
its center piece, and then do the same algorithm again to fix it.
In
the picture below is another case you may run into: where you have a
piece on the opposite side of the cube from where it is supposed to be.
(Remember, green is always opposite blue). This is an easy fix. Orient
your Cube like the picture below and make the following moves:
U2 R2 U2 R2 U2*
*U2 means to turn the UP layer twice (180 Degrees).
In some cases, both of the edge pieces on the UP face will be in the opposite spot of where they belong, but have no fear! The same algorithm fixes the both of them at the same time!
U2 R2 U2 R2 U2*
*U2 means to turn the UP layer twice (180 Degrees).
In some cases, both of the edge pieces on the UP face will be in the opposite spot of where they belong, but have no fear! The same algorithm fixes the both of them at the same time!
The picture below shows what the cube looks like when you have the First 2 Layers solved.
Time for solving the last (yellow side) layer.
Time for solving the last (yellow side) layer.
Step 4: The Yellow Cross (OLL Part 1)
This is the first part of OLL (Orientate Last Layer). This step makes a yellow cross on the yellow side.
For this step, rotate the cube so that the yellow center dot is on the top, and white is on the bottom.
In order to get the yellow cross, you will have to use an algorithm and perhaps repeat it a few times. For right now, don't worry about whether the edge pieces line up with their appropriate center pieces - we'll get to that later.
Also, if you already have a yellow cross, you can skip down to the next section.
If you do not have a yellow cross, you will have one of the 3 cases shown below. In all 3 cases, you will make the same sequence of moves. Just orient the cube so that it matches the picture and do the following:
F R U R' U' F'
For this step, rotate the cube so that the yellow center dot is on the top, and white is on the bottom.
In order to get the yellow cross, you will have to use an algorithm and perhaps repeat it a few times. For right now, don't worry about whether the edge pieces line up with their appropriate center pieces - we'll get to that later.
Also, if you already have a yellow cross, you can skip down to the next section.
If you do not have a yellow cross, you will have one of the 3 cases shown below. In all 3 cases, you will make the same sequence of moves. Just orient the cube so that it matches the picture and do the following:
F R U R' U' F'
STEP 5: COMPLETE THE YELLOW SIDE (OLL PART 2)
Now
that you have the yellow cross, it's time to complete the yellow side
(UP side). You still do not have to worry about either lining up the top
edge pieces with the appropriate center dots or placing the top corner
pieces. All you have to do right now is get all the yellow stickers
facing up.
This step only takes 2 algos (one is the mirror of the other) to complete, and you may have to repeat it a few times.
IF YOU HAVE THE YELLOW SIDE COMPLETE ALREADY, YOU CAN SKIP DOWN TO THE NEXT SECTION.
Keep in mind that the pictures below show you the UP side of the cube, so be sure that you've oriented the cube so that yellow is UP.
Your cube will now look like one of the seven pictures below, which are called the Seven Sunes. Notice the placement of the yellow stickers on the corner pieces, some of them may be on top or on the sides.
This step only takes 2 algos (one is the mirror of the other) to complete, and you may have to repeat it a few times.
IF YOU HAVE THE YELLOW SIDE COMPLETE ALREADY, YOU CAN SKIP DOWN TO THE NEXT SECTION.
Keep in mind that the pictures below show you the UP side of the cube, so be sure that you've oriented the cube so that yellow is UP.
Your cube will now look like one of the seven pictures below, which are called the Seven Sunes. Notice the placement of the yellow stickers on the corner pieces, some of them may be on top or on the sides.
After
moving all the yellow stickers to the top, your Cube should look like
the one below. The rest of the stickers are jumbled up. Take note of the
"headlights" - the two blue squares sandwiched around a red square -
that will be important later. In the next section the stickers on the
four corner pieces on the top layer will be put in their proper place.
Step 6: Fix the Four Corners on Top
Its
time to fix the positions of the 4 corner piece on the top layer. In
the next section, we will fix the positions of the four edge pieces in
the top layer, which will solve the cube!
Your first step is to find a pair of "headlights." If there aren't any, hold the cube so that the white side is in the FACE position and the yellow side is in the BACK position, and do the following sequence of moves:
(U2, R2)(U, L, U') R2 (U, L', U)
This is the first time we have used the L move, but rotating it is no different than rotating any of the other faces. Just imagine you are looking straight at the left side of the cube and turn it clockwise 1 time (from 12 o'clock to 3 o'clock). L' is the opposite.
So, to rotate L, you would use your left hand to rotate the L layer toward you (toward the FACE side). To do Left Invert, you would spin the left layer so that the top of that layer moves away from you (towards the BACK side of the Cube).
Once you've made a pair of headlights, orient the cube so that the white side is in the FACE position and the yellow side is in the BACK position, and repeat the same algorithm as above, which should result in four pairs of headlights.
Your first step is to find a pair of "headlights." If there aren't any, hold the cube so that the white side is in the FACE position and the yellow side is in the BACK position, and do the following sequence of moves:
(U2, R2)(U, L, U') R2 (U, L', U)
This is the first time we have used the L move, but rotating it is no different than rotating any of the other faces. Just imagine you are looking straight at the left side of the cube and turn it clockwise 1 time (from 12 o'clock to 3 o'clock). L' is the opposite.
So, to rotate L, you would use your left hand to rotate the L layer toward you (toward the FACE side). To do Left Invert, you would spin the left layer so that the top of that layer moves away from you (towards the BACK side of the Cube).
Once you've made a pair of headlights, orient the cube so that the white side is in the FACE position and the yellow side is in the BACK position, and repeat the same algorithm as above, which should result in four pairs of headlights.
Next,
reorient the cube so that yellow is on top and white is on bottom. Look
around to make sure there are 4 sets of headlights, as in the picture
below. Now its on to fixing the last 4 edge pieces.
In some cases, the cube will be solved at this point. It's pure luck, but it does happen!
In some cases, the cube will be solved at this point. It's pure luck, but it does happen!
Final Step: Fix the Edge Pieces on Top
You're almost done - just one last step! Now we need to get the edge pieces into their correct positions.
There are four possible configurations of the edge pieces at this point, though a single sequence can account for all of them, though you may have to repeat it a few times.
All you have to do is look for one side where, as in the picture below, the three pieces in the top yellow layer bordering it are in the correct place. Put that side into the FACE position.
If there isn't a solved side, then do the sequence below from any side and look around after to see if you have one. If there still isn't one, continue to do the sequence until there is, and then spin UP to match it with the bottom two layers of the same colors.
Once you have a solved side perform the sequence below. If the cube is still not solved, do it again and it should be solved!
(R', U, R') (U', R', U', R') (U, R, U, R2)
There are four possible configurations of the edge pieces at this point, though a single sequence can account for all of them, though you may have to repeat it a few times.
All you have to do is look for one side where, as in the picture below, the three pieces in the top yellow layer bordering it are in the correct place. Put that side into the FACE position.
If there isn't a solved side, then do the sequence below from any side and look around after to see if you have one. If there still isn't one, continue to do the sequence until there is, and then spin UP to match it with the bottom two layers of the same colors.
Once you have a solved side perform the sequence below. If the cube is still not solved, do it again and it should be solved!
(R', U, R') (U', R', U', R') (U, R, U, R2)
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