You have studied all 4×4 stages and can solve a 3×3.
Restore your chosen orientation after reduction; use white down and yellow up for the shared solve.
1. Start with a new scramble
Scramble the cube with outer and wide turns so that both the centres and the edges need work. Use your own cube for this lesson. The animation below reviews the final edge cycle; it doesn’t show how to solve your particular scramble.
2. Check each stage before moving on
| Stage | Checkpoint | Review |
|---|---|---|
| Centres | Six solid blocks in the colour order set by the corners | Build centres |
| Pairing | Twelve pairs of matching wings | Pair edges |
| Reduced solve | First layers, then last-layer orientation and positions | Use the 3×3 method |
| Orientation exception | One or three groups with yellow facing up → apply the repair, then return to the yellow cross | OLL parity |
| Position exception | Two swapped groups → apply the repair, then finish the edge cycle | PLL parity |
Apply each repair only if its case occurs. Leave your cube as it is while you review a lesson.
3. Find the first stage that needs work
If the centres are solid but the wings are still mixed, keep pairing. If all the edge groups are complete but out of place, you’re ready for the usual 3×3 solve. Even one unmatched piece leaves a virtual edge incomplete, no matter how much of the cube looks solved.
If the centres are solid but the colour order is wrong, correct it before you resume pairing. Use the corners as a reference, because a 4×4 has no fixed centres.
4. Work more independently on a second solve
Finish all six faces, then choose one skill to practise again. You could build centre bars, set up edges or read the move notation to work out how many layers to turn in a parity repair. On your next scramble, try that stage without replaying the worked example.
Completion means that you can identify what to do and check whether it worked. Looking up a long parity sequence is still fine.
Need a reminder of the move notation?
R right · L left · U top · D bottom · F front · B back. A plain letter means a 90° clockwise turn as you look directly at that face. An apostrophe (′) reverses the turn. A 2 means a 180° turn. Keep the same face towards you throughout the algorithm.
Rw turns the rightmost two layers together. 2R turns only the second layer from the right. 3Rw turns three layers. x rotates the whole cube like R, so the old front becomes the new top.
Watch, then try
Work through an example
Start by stepping through the example one move at a time. This example demonstrates a specific action. Use the lesson’s setup instructions to recognise when that action applies to your own scramble.
Watch one worked example
Review the final edge cycle on a prepared 4×4 using only outer turns. For the full exercise, start with a fresh scramble and follow the checkpoints above.
Example grip: yellow up · blue front · red right at the start. Follow any written whole-cube rotations.
0 / 11
Loading 3D cube…
Prepared position · 0 / 11 moves
Use Next move to follow the sequence.
Drag to inspect other faces. When the cube has focus, use the arrow keys to rotate the view.
Copy this exact example on your own cube
Start with a solved 4×4, with yellow on top and blue at the front. Apply the setup moves below from left to right. This gives you the starting position for the example. Keep this separate from the scramble you’re solving throughout the course.
R2 U R U R' U' R' U' R' U R'Then follow the lesson sequence. If your cube has a different colour scheme, use your own colours to identify the corresponding pieces.
Compare the starting position and the result
Drag each cube to inspect its other faces.
Explain it to yourself
Check your understanding
Now use your own cube
Your turn
Scramble your cube with outer and wide turns. Build the centres, pair the edges and solve the reduced cube. If you get stuck, use the checkpoint table to work out where to resume.
Open a 4×4 Digital Cube for practiceThe Digital Cube opens in a new tab so you can keep this lesson open while you practise. Check for yourself whether you’ve met the lesson goal, as the Digital Cube doesn’t assess your result.
If you get stuck
I’m unsure whether to keep pairing edges or start the 3×3 solve.
Check both faces of all twelve edge groups. The pieces in each group must match on both faces before you start solving the reduced cube.
Before moving on
Check your result
Your cube at this stage
All six faces solved
Every face is one colour. Check the back and bottom as well as the faces you can see here.
Confirm these on your cube. Watching the animation alone does not complete the lesson.
Tick each item when you can do it yourself.