To solve a 2x2 Rubik's Cube as a beginner, solve it in 3 steps: (1) solve the white layer one corner at a time, (2) twist the top corners until the top is all yellow, and (3) swap the top corners into place. You need three move sequences: R U R' U', R' D' R D and the T perm. The first two are the same corner moves as in our 3x3 beginner guide.
Every sequence below comes with an animated 2x2. Press Play to watch it, or step through one move at a time with ◀ and ▶. In step 1, pieces that don't matter yet are gray.
Before You Start: How a 2x2 Works
A 2x2 is made of just 8 corner pieces, each with three stickers. There are no centers and no edges. That makes it simpler than a 3x3, but it also means there's no fixed center to tell you which color goes on which side. In this method, the first corner you place decides that (see step 1).
On a standard cube, white is opposite yellow, green is opposite blue, and red is opposite orange. If your cube uses other colors, the steps still work. Just swap the color names.
How to hold the cube
Hold the cube with white on the bottom and yellow on top, and keep it that way for the whole solve. You never flip it over. In step 1 you turn the whole cube left or right to bring a spot to the front, but white stays on the bottom. The animations use green in front and orange on the right.
How to read the moves
| Letter | Side | Clockwise turn (as you look at that side) |
|---|---|---|
| R | Right | The front of the right side moves up |
| U | Up (top) | The front of the top layer moves to the left |
| D | Down (bottom) | The front of the bottom layer moves to the right |
| F | Front | Turn it like a steering wheel to the right |
An apostrophe means the opposite direction (R' moves the front of the right side down), and a 2 means a half turn (U2). Do the moves of a sequence in order, without turning the whole cube in your hands. The notation guide has more detail. A 2x2 uses the same letters as a 3x3.
Step 1: Solve the White Layer
Goal: all four white corners on the bottom, white facing down, and each side showing two matching colors in the bottom layer.
1a. Place the first corner
If a white corner is already on the bottom with white facing down, use it as your first corner. If not, take a white corner from the top layer, turn the top until it sits at the front right, top, and repeat R U R' U' as in the table below until it drops in with white facing down. For the first corner, any bottom spot is fine.
The first corner's two other colors now name two sides of the cube. Say it shows green on one side and orange on the other: that's now the green side and the orange side. The opposite colors go opposite, so blue goes opposite green and red goes opposite orange.
1b. Place the other three corners
Find a white corner in the top layer. Look at its other two colors. It belongs on the bottom between the sides of those colors. For example, the white, green and red corner goes between the green side and the red side. Turn the top until the corner sits directly above that spot. Then turn the whole cube, white still on the bottom, so the spot is at the front right, bottom. Repeat R U R' U' until the corner drops in:
| White sticker faces | Repeat R U R' U' |
|---|---|
| Right | 1 time |
| Up | 3 times |
| Front (toward you) | 5 times |
R U R' U'
White corner above its spot, white sticker facing right.
(R U R' U') × 3
White sticker facing up.
Corners you've already placed stay where they are. R U R' U' only uses the front-right spot and never touches the other three bottom spots.
(R U R' U') × 5
White sticker facing you.
When all four white corners are in, step 1 is done. Turn the cube to check: each side should show two matching colors in the bottom layer.
A white corner is on the bottom in the wrong spot, or twisted
Turn the whole cube so that corner is at the front right, bottom, and do R U R' U' once. That lifts it to the top, directly above the spot it was in, without moving the other bottom corners. Then place it like any top-layer corner.
(R U R' U') × 4
A white corner is in its spot on the bottom, but twisted: white faces you.
Step 2: Make the Top Yellow
Goal: all four top corners show yellow on top. Their sides don't need to match yet.
Hold the cube so a top corner that doesn't show yellow on top is at the front right, top. Repeat R' D' R D until that corner's yellow sticker faces up. That takes either 2 or 4 times.
Then turn only the top layer (U) to bring the next corner without yellow on top to the front right, and repeat R' D' R D again until its yellow faces up. Keep going until every top corner shows yellow on top.
Don't panic: the white layer looks scrambled while you do this. That's expected. As long as you only turn the top between corners, the white layer comes back once every top corner shows yellow on top. Don't turn the whole cube during this step: that can leave the white layer broken.
(R' D' R D) × 2, U, (R' D' R D) × 4, U'
The bottom layer is done. Two top corners don't show yellow on top.
Step 3: Swap the Top Corners
Goal: every side of the cube is one color.
Look at the top layer from each of the four sides. On a side where both top corners show the same color, you have headlights. With the top yellow, you'll see headlights on exactly one side, on no side, or on all four sides:
- All four sides: the top is already right. Turn the top (U) until it lines up with the bottom, and you're done.
- One side: turn the top so the headlights are on the left. Then do the T perm, and turn the top until it lines up.
- No side: do the T perm once from any side. Now you have headlights on one side, so use the case above.
The T perm is:
R U R' U' R' F R2 U' R' U' R U R' F'
Its first four moves are the same R U R' U' as step 1. The T perm keeps the white layer and the yellow top. It only swaps the two top corners on the right, which is why the headlights go on the left. Held any other way, it doesn't finish the cube.
T perm
Headlights on the left: the two left corners match on the left side.
T perm, U2, T perm
No headlights: no side of the top layer has two matching colors.
So step 3 never needs more than two T perms.
Troubleshooting
I lost count of R U R' U'
Keep going. Six times in a row brings the cube back to where you started, so you can count from there. Or stop when the corner drops in white-down and the other white corners are still in place.
The white layer didn't come back after step 2
The whole cube was probably turned between corners, or a move went the wrong way. Go back to step 1 and solve the white layer again, then redo step 2.
I see headlights on two sides
Look again, and check that every top corner shows yellow on top. With the top done, headlights appear on exactly one side, no side, or all four. Two or three sides can't happen.
The T perm didn't solve it
The headlights must be on the left, facing the left side, before you start. If they were, a move was probably done the wrong way. Turn the top to find the headlights again and repeat.
All 3 Steps on One Page
| Step | Goal | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 1 White layer | White corners on the bottom, sides matching | Corner above its spot, spot at front right: R U R' U' × 1, 3 or 5 |
| 2 Yellow top | Yellow on top of every top corner | R' D' R D × 2 or 4, then U to the next corner |
| 3 Top corners | Every side one color | Headlights on the left: R U R' U' R' F R2 U' R' U' R U R' F' (T perm), then line up the top |
Stuck? Let the Solver Show You
If something goes wrong and you can't tell what, enter your cube's colors in the 2x2 solver. It works out a solution for your exact position, so you can get back to solved and try again.
What to Learn Next
Once you can solve it without looking at this page, the usual next step is the Ortega method. It makes the bottom face (without matching the sides), then the top face, then fixes both layers at once. It uses 12 algorithms, and the T perm you already know is one of them. See the 2x2 algorithms page. Time your solves with a cube timer to see your progress. Got a 3x3 too? The 3x3 beginner guide uses the same corner moves as steps 1 and 2.
FAQ
How many algorithms do I need to solve a 2x2?
Three with this method: R U R' U' for the white layer, R' D' R D to twist the top corners, and the T perm to swap them. Everything else is turning the top or the whole cube.
Do I need to know how to solve a 3x3 first?
No. This guide covers everything you need for a 2x2. If you do know the 3x3 beginner method, steps 1 and 2 will look familiar.
A 2x2 has no centers. How do I know which color goes where?
The first white corner you place decides it. Its two side colors name two sides of the cube, and the opposite colors go on the opposite sides. Every other white corner then has exactly one spot: between the sides of its two colors.
Can I use the 3x3 guide's corner-placing sequence instead of the T perm?
Not on its own. That sequence (U R U' L' U R' U' L) moves three corners at a time, and on a 2x2 you sometimes need to swap just two. If two top corners are in their spots and the other two are swapped, repeating it from either good corner goes round in circles. The T perm handles that case.
Is the T perm the same as on a 3x3?
Yes, it's the same sequence. On a 3x3 it also swaps two edges, but a 2x2 has no edges, so here you only see the corners swap. On the 2x2 algorithms page, it's the Adj U case.