Notation

Understand the letters R, U, F… that describe every move.

Each face of the cube has a letter. This notation is the same all over the world:

  • R (Right): the right face
  • L (Left): the left face
  • U (Up): the top face
  • D (Down): the bottom face
  • F (Front): the front face, the one facing you
  • B (Back): the back face

A letter on its own means: turn that face a quarter turn clockwise. An apostrophe (R’, read “R prime”) means a quarter turn counter-clockwise. A 2 (R2) means a half turn.

A sequence like R U R' U' is called an algorithm: do the moves one by one, from left to right. Press play under each cube to see the move.

R
R'
R2
L
U
U'
D
F
B

Tips

  • To know which way to turn, imagine looking straight at that face: clockwise means like the hands of a clock.
  • Always keep yellow on top. You may turn the whole cube (keeping yellow on top) to bring the piece you are working on to the front.