Any 2×2 cube, solved or scrambled.
Find a corner with a white sticker and hold the cube so that sticker faces down.
1. A 2×2 has only corners
There are eight pieces, each with three stickers. There are no edge pieces or visible centre stickers to solve. Each turn still moves a whole layer of four corners.
We will solve one white layer, turn the opposite stickers upward, then put those last corners in the correct order. You do not need to learn the 3×3 first.
2. Choose a reference corner
Find any corner with a white sticker and hold the cube with that sticker facing down. Treat this corner as your first solved piece and use it as a reference for the side colours.
For example, a white-blue-red corner has a white-blue neighbour on its blue side and a white-red neighbour on its red side. The white corner sharing neither blue nor red belongs diagonally across the white layer.
On the example cube, yellow is opposite white. If your cube has another colour opposite white, use that opposite colour wherever this course says yellow. The two corners with the same pair of side colours reveal the two opposite-face colours.
3. Aim for a layer, not just a face
A solved white layer has all four white stickers facing down and a matching pair along the bottom of each side. If the white corners are in the wrong order, the white face can look complete while the side pairs are still mixed.
There are no centre stickers to establish the order of the sides, so use the colours of the corners you’ve already placed. Keep your reference corner in its original slot as you fit the next piece.
4. Learn the moves next
This example is a turning drill. Six repetitions return the cube to its starting state. In the next lesson, you’ll learn the move letters and the four-move routine before using them to insert corners.
Watch, then try
Work through an example
Start by going through the moves one at a time. The prepared example shows a specific action. Use the lesson’s setup instructions to recognise when to apply it to your own scramble.
Watch one worked example
Watch how each corner moves as a whole piece. After six repetitions, the drill returns the cube to its starting state, leaving any initial scramble as it was.
Starting grip. Yellow up · blue at the front · red on the right. Follow any written instructions for rotating the whole cube.
0 / 24
Loading 3D cube…
Prepared position · 0 / 24 moves
Use Next move to follow the sequence.
Drag to inspect other faces. Use the arrow keys to rotate the view when the cube has focus.
Copy this exact example on your own cube
Start with a solved 2×2. Hold it with yellow on top and blue at the front. Apply the setup moves below from left to right to create the example’s starting position. Keep this example separate from the scramble you’re solving through the course.
R U R' F2 D L2 B U2Then follow the lesson sequence. If your cube’s colour scheme differs, match the piece relationships using your own colours.
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
Count the eight physical pieces. Choose one white corner as your reference and find the other white corners that share each of its side colours.
Open a 2×2 Digital Cube for practiceOpens in a new tab so you can refer to this lesson while you practise. Check for yourself whether you’ve met the lesson goal. The Digital Cube does not grade your work.
If you get stuck
There is no centre telling me which side is blue.
Use your first white corner as a reference. Its two non-white stickers establish the colours of the neighbouring sides. The other white corners complete that ring of side colours.
Before moving on
Check your result
Preparation · no solving yet
Recognise the eight corners
Every piece is a corner. Choose a white corner as your reference. You can start without a solved face.
Confirm these on your cube. Watching the animation alone does not complete the lesson.
Tick each item once you can do it yourself.