Pair all twelve two-piece edges — 4×4 Reduction

Before you start

All six centres are solved and in the correct order.

How to hold your cube

Use front-left (FL) and front-right (FR) as the working edge positions.

1. Find both wings of one edge

For example, the two white-blue wings belong together. Both colours must match, so check the blue stickers as well as the white ones.

Use outer turns to bring the selected wings to the FL and FR edge positions. These are the vertical edges beside the front centre. Outer turns move groups between slots without splitting their wings or mixing centre colours.

2. Place the wings in opposite horizontal slices

Choose the upper wing at FL and the lower wing at FR (or use the mirror image of that arrangement). Set them up so their front-facing stickers are the same colour. A wide U turn can bring the upper wing across to form a pair while leaving the lower wing in place.

Before turning the slice, work out which wing Uw or Uw′ will move into FR. Check both stickers before choosing the direction that brings the wing you want into that position.

3. Join, store, and restore

Use the chosen wide U turn to join the matching wings at FR. The centres may look scrambled for a moment.
Lift the completed FR group out of the working slice with R U R' or R U' R'. Turn U in the direction that brings an unpaired group from the top into FR.
Reverse the exact wide turn from step 1. This restores the centres while keeping the completed pair outside the slice.

Repeat the process. Use outer turns to move completed groups to U or D and bring unpaired groups into the working positions. If the replacement group is already paired, choose another one to avoid splitting a pair you’ve already completed.

4. Reorient a working group when needed

R U R' F R' F' R

This turns the FR group over as a unit, changing which wing is on top and which way its two colours face. The centre colours stay intact. Use this flip to arrange the wings before slicing. A flipped last-layer edge needs a different repair.

5. Finish the last two pairs

Place the two remaining unpaired groups at FL and FR. Put the wings with matching colours in the same horizontal slice. Use the FR flip above if they’re in opposite slices. Now turn the slice to move the selected wing from FL towards FR, perform the FR flip and undo the slice turn.

For the prepared case in the upper slice, use Uw, then R U R' F R' F' R, then Uw'. The flip changes which wing returns, so both pairs can form. Before using this exact sequence, check that both visible colours in your setup match the example.

If either pair still has mismatched wings, check the other colour and adjust the working group’s orientation before trying again. Finish with twelve complete pairs and six solid centres. The pairs can still be out of their final positions.

Watch, then try

Work through an example

Start by stepping through one move at a time. This prepared example shows a specific action. Use the lesson’s setup instructions to recognise when to use it on your own scramble.

Watch one worked example

For the final two pairs in this example, do Uw, then the seven-move FR flip, then Uw′. The starting and ending cube nets show both colours of each wing. The return turn restores the centres and exchanges the selected wings.

Example grip: Start with yellow on top, blue at the front and red on the right. Follow any written instructions for rotating the whole cube.

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Loading 3D cube…

Drag to inspect other faces. Use the arrow keys to rotate the view when the cube has keyboard focus.

Copy this exact example on your own cube

Start with a solved 4×4, with yellow up and blue at the front. Apply the setup below from left to right to create the example’s starting position. Keep this example separate from the scramble you’re solving throughout the course.

Uw R' F R F' R U' R' Uw'

Then follow the lesson sequence. If your cube has a different colour scheme, use the relationships between your own colours to identify the equivalent pieces.

Compare the starting position and the result

Before the example

After the full sequence

Drag each cube to inspect its other faces.

Explain it to yourself

Check your understanding

Now use your own cube

Your turn

Find two wings with the same two colours. Join them, move the completed group out of the working slice and restore the slice. Check both faces as you count the completed groups.

Open a 4×4 Digital Cube for practice

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. The Digital Cube doesn’t assess your result.

If you get stuck

A completed edge splits when I restore the slice.

Store it outside the active horizontal slice first and bring an unpaired group into its place.

The final two pairs are still mismatched.

Before the slice–flip–slice-back sequence, check that the matching wings are in the same horizontal slice. Compare both outward-facing colours with the example.

Before moving on

Check your result

4×4 lesson result. All twelve edges are paired. The two wings of each edge match on both faces, and the centres are restored. Each pair can now be treated as a single edge in a 3×3 solve.

Your cube at this stage

All twelve edges paired

The two wings of each edge match on both faces, and the centres are restored. Each pair can now be treated as a single edge in a 3×3 solve.

Confirm these on your cube. Watching the animation alone does not complete the lesson.

All twelve edges have two wings that match on both faces.All six centres are restored after pairing.I can distinguish a complete but reversed pair from two unmatched wings.

Tick each item once you can do it yourself.