How to Solve a 2x2 Rubik's Cube: Beginner Method

The 2x2 looks like the easy sibling of the classic Rubik's Cube, and in part it is: it has fewer pieces and can be solved with fewer algorithms. But it has a catch that trips up people coming from the 3x3: it has no fixed centers, so no piece tells you which color each face should be. This tutorial explains how to solve a 2x2 from scratch with the layer-by-layer beginner method, using just the notation you need, diagrams of every case and the mistakes learners make most often. If you can already solve a 3x3, you will see that the 2x2 is the same as solving only its corners.

What is the 2x2 Rubik's Cube (Pocket Cube)

The 2x2 (also called the Pocket Cube or Mini Cube) is a cube cut once along each of its three axes. The result is 8 pieces, and all 8 are corners: each one has three stickers of different colors. There are no edges or centers, which on the 3x3 are the pieces that set the color of each face. That is why on the 2x2 you choose the color of a face when you start, and what matters is that the corners fit together.

Its history has a curious twist. The first patented 2x2x2 puzzle belongs to Larry D. Nichols, an American inventor who in 1970 applied for a patent on a cube of rotating pieces held together with magnets (the US patent was granted in April 1972, before Ernő Rubik invented his 3x3 cube). The 2x2 that became popular, Rubik's Pocket Cube, was sold by Ideal Toy in the early 1980s, and Rubik patented it in the United States in 1983. Moleculon, the company that held Nichols's patent, sued Ideal, and in 1986 a US federal appeals court upheld the finding that the Pocket Cube infringed that patent, although it did not uphold the ruling against the 3x3. If you read in one place that Rubik invented the 2x2 and in another that Nichols did, this is why.

The figure of 3,674,160 comes from a simple calculation. The 8 corners can be arranged in 8! ways and each can be twisted in 3 ways, but the orientation of the last corner is fixed by the others (hence 3⁷ and not 3⁸). Also, since there are no centers, rotating the whole cube in your hand doesn't change the position, and there are 24 ways to hold it. That leaves (8! × 3⁷) / 24 = 7! × 3⁶ = 3,674,160. That is far fewer than on a 3x3, but more than enough to make random turning pointless.

Basic notation: R, U, F, prime and 2

Algorithms are written with letters. Each letter is a face of the cube, and the turn is always clockwise as if you were looking straight at that face. For this method you only need three faces and two modifiers:

• R (right): the right layer.
• U (up): the top layer.
• F (front): the layer facing you.
• Prime ( ' ): the same turn in the opposite direction. R' is read “R prime”.
• 2: a half turn (180°). U2 means turning the top layer twice; direction doesn't matter.

In other guides you will also see L (left), D (down) and B (back), which follow the same logic. You don't need them in this article.

The easiest way to understand each move is to do it on a solved cube and look at what changes. The diagrams below show three faces at once: top (yellow), front (green) and right (red), with white on the bottom.

The 2x2 beginner method in three steps

This is the method usually taught to beginners. It solves the cube layer by layer: first the whole bottom layer, then the top one in two phases (first orienting, meaning everything on top becomes yellow, then permuting, meaning each corner goes to its place). In this tutorial we use white on the bottom and yellow on top; if your cube has other colors, the procedure is the same with its opposite colors.

Step 1: the first layer (white)

The goal is a white bottom face where, on every side, the two stickers in the bottom row are also the same color. A white face with mismatched sides is no good, because the last steps won't work out.

1.1 Pick your first corner

Find any corner with a white sticker and hold the cube with that sticker facing down. That piece is now “solved” and becomes your reference: its other two colors set the colors of two of the sides.

1.2 Work out where each white corner goes

Find another white corner in the top layer and compare it with the one already on the bottom (ignoring white):

• If they share a color, the new one goes right next to the solved one, on the side of that shared color.
• If they share no color, it goes diagonally, in the position opposite the solved one.

1.3 Insert it with R U R' U'

Turn only the top layer (U) until the new corner is right above its slot, then rotate the whole cube in your hand (without flipping it: white stays on the bottom) so that slot is at the bottom front right. The corner is now at the top front right. Repeat this four-move sequence until the piece drops in correctly:

You don't need to count: just repeat the whole sequence and stop as soon as the corner is on the bottom with white facing down. It works because R U R' U' repeated six times brings the cube back exactly to where it was; along the way, the piece goes through all its possible orientations.

Repeat 1.2 and 1.3 with the other two white corners. If a white corner is stuck in the bottom layer in a slot that isn't its own (or in its own slot but twisted), put it at the bottom front right and do R U R' U' once: it will come up to the top layer and you can insert it like the others.

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Step 2: orient the last layer with the Sune

Keep the white layer on the bottom and the yellow face on top. From now on the bottom layer stays as it is (the algorithms mix it up for a moment but put it back by the end). The goal of this step is to make all four top stickers yellow, without worrying yet about whether the corners are in their places.

To remember it: it is the right hand going up and down (R and R') around three top-layer turns in the same direction, the last one a double.

How to hold the cube before each Sune

Count how many yellow stickers are on the top face and follow this rule:

• 4 yellow: step done.
• 1 yellow: turn the top layer (U) until that corner is at the front left and do the Sune.
• 0 or 2 yellow: turn the top layer until the front left corner has its yellow sticker facing left and do the Sune.

After each Sune, count again and repeat. With this rule you never need more than three Sunes.

The diagrams are a top view: the central square is the top face and the strips around it are the side stickers of those corners (the bottom strip is the one facing you).

Step 3: put the top corners in place

The top face is now all yellow, but the sides of the top layer may not match the bottom. First turn the top layer (U) to find the best alignment and look at the four sides of that layer. Only one of these three things can happen:

Two adjacent corners swapped: the T-perm

Turn the top layer until the side with two matching stickers (the headlights) is on your left. The algorithm swaps the two corners on the right.

To memorize it, notice that it starts with the four moves from step 1 (R U R' U') and that the rest revolves around F and F'. When you finish, turn the top layer with U until all sides match.

Two diagonal corners swapped: the Y-perm

If no side has two matching stickers, two diagonal corners need to be swapped. Here you don't need any special position: do the algorithm with the yellow face on top, then adjust with U.

It is the longest algorithm in the method, but it splits into two halves: F R U' R' U' R U R' F' and R U R' U' R' F R F'. Practice each half separately, then put them together. After the last move, adjust the top layer with U and the cube is solved.

Common mistakes when solving the 2x2

What's next: Ortega, CLL and EG

Once the layer-by-layer method comes naturally, the next step is to learn methods designed specifically for the 2x2. We don't explain them step by step here, but it helps to know what each one is and the order in which they are usually learned.

Top cubers go further: during the 15 seconds of inspection the regulations allow before starting, they try to plan the whole solution of the cube in a single look (known as one-looking the solve).

The 2x2 world record

Official records are kept by the World Cube Association (WCA), which runs official speedcubing competitions. As of October 2026, the 2x2 world records are:

The average is calculated as in every WCA event: of five attempts, the best and worst are dropped and the remaining three are averaged. It is the figure that best reflects real skill, because a single can benefit from an especially easy scramble. To avoid trivial scrambles, the regulations require 2x2 scrambles to need at least 4 moves to solve.

Which 2x2 cube to choose for learning

You can learn the method on a toy 2x2, but a cube that turns badly makes algorithms catch and layers misalign. These are the features that matter most:

If you want to compare specific models from brands like MoYu, QiYi, YJ or GAN, our guide to the best Rubik's cubes for speedcubing covers what each one offers. And if you are thinking of giving one as a present, the guide on which Rubik's cube to give as a gift is sorted by age and level.

A good learning order is to start with the 2x2 and then move on to the 3x3: steps 2 and 3 of this guide are almost the same as the final steps of the 3x3 Rubik's Cube beginner method, except that on the 3x3 you also have to place edges and centers. To see what other puzzles there are from there, see our guide to types of Rubik's cubes.

Frequently asked questions

How many algorithms do you need to solve a 2x2?

With the beginner method in this guide, three sequences: R U R' U' for the first layer, the Sune for the yellow face and the T-perm or Y-perm to place the corners (four if you count T and Y separately). The Anti-Sune is optional.

Is the 2x2 easier than the 3x3?

Generally yes: it has only 8 pieces and takes fewer steps. The specific difficulty of the 2x2 is that it has no centers, so you have to watch the side colors from the first layer on.

How many combinations does a 2x2 have?

3,674,160 different positions. Any of them can be solved in 11 moves or fewer if 180° turns count as one move, or in 14 if only quarter turns are counted.

How long does it take to learn to solve a 2x2?

It depends on the person, but the layer-by-layer method can be learned in one or a few sessions because it has only three steps. With practice, getting under a minute is a reasonable goal; for times of a few seconds you need methods like Ortega or CLL.

What is the 2x2 world record?

According to the WCA (checked October 2026), 0.39 seconds for a single, by Ziyu Ye at the Hefei Open 2025, and 0.86 seconds for the average, by Sujan Feist.

What should I do if only one corner is twisted?

That position can't be solved by turning: the cube was assembled wrong or someone twisted a piece. You need to carefully pop out or twist that corner and put it back correctly oriented.

Who invented the 2x2 cube?

The first patent for a 2x2x2 cube belongs to Larry D. Nichols, filed in 1970 and granted in 1972 (its pieces were held together with magnets). Rubik's Pocket Cube arrived in the early 1980s, and in 1986 a US court upheld the finding that it infringed Nichols's patent.

If you are looking for your first 2x2 or want to move up to a magnetic one, our Rubik's cubes and speedcubing section has beginner models, multi-size packs and competition cubes.

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Keep exploring

• How to solve a Rubik's Cube step by step
• Types of Rubik's cubes: 3x3, 4x4, Megaminx, Pyraminx and more
• Best Rubik's cubes for speedcubing
• Rubik's Cube: the complete guide
• Which Rubik's cube to give as a gift

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