Start every pattern below with a solved 3×3 cube. Keep the same front face and top colour while following the sequence. Each linked pattern opens its exact notation and an interactive player, so you can stop at a difficult turn and inspect the other faces.
These patterns are for practice and are listed in no particular order of difficulty. Start with a short sequence that produces an easy-to-recognise pattern, then explore the designs that interest you.
Fifteen patterns to try
- Checkerboard: compare alternating stickers across several faces. This is a useful first test of slice turns.
- Six Spots: inspect the centre of every face instead of checking only the three visible sides.
- Cube in a Cube: rotate the finished cube to see how the nested-cube illusion connects around a corner.
- Cube in a Cube in a Cube: follow the nested outlines and compare them with the simpler design above.
- Anaconda: trace the band as it crosses from one face to the next.
- Python: compare this linked design with Anaconda rather than memorising its name alone.
- Black Mamba: watch the whole sequence before trying it from memory.
- Green Mamba: compare its arrangement with Black Mamba using the final-state previews.
- Four Spots: check which faces change and which ones preserve a larger solid area.
- Cross: inspect the arms of the cross and their surrounding corner colours.
- Four Crosses: count the finished faces and inspect the remaining two.
- Gift Box: follow the contrasting bands as they wrap around the cube like a ribbon.
- Spiral Pattern: inspect the result from several angles to see the repeating path.
- Vertical Stripes: compare the direction of the bands on adjacent faces.
- Superflip: all twelve edges are flipped while corners and centres stay in their solved positions. It is a legal 3×3 position, unlike a single flipped edge.
Read through the moves before you start
A plain letter means a clockwise quarter-turn when looking directly at that face. A prime (') reverses it, and 2 makes a half-turn. M, E, and S turn a middle slice. The notation reference explains their direction. A move changes the cube; rotating your viewpoint does not.
When using a physical cube, work on a stable surface and avoid forcing a layer that is out of alignment. On the website, use Next move and Previous move to compare the cube immediately before and after a move. Use the final preview to check the finished pattern, not each intermediate step.
Undo a pattern reliably
To undo any sequence, read the moves in reverse order and reverse each quarter-turn. Keep half-turns unchanged. For example, the inverse of R U F2 is F2 U' R'. Repeating a pattern algorithm does not always undo it in one go: some patterns need several repetitions to return the cube to its solved state.
Reset returns the Digital Cube to its solved state. If you lose your place on a physical cube, reverse the sequence or use the solver. Do not scramble the cube before trying the pattern again: these instructions depend on starting with a solved cube.
Explore other cube sizes
The pattern library includes designs and interactive playback for every size from 2×2 to 17×17. Select the correct size before following a sequence. An algorithm that turns only the outer layers of a 3×3 can produce a different design on a 4×4, and numbered inner-layer moves require enough layers. Each pattern includes its complete notation, a final reference image and a Digital Cube link that opens the matching size.
