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. Check both colours, since white alone does not identify the matching wing.

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 mirrored arrangement. Position the wings so their front-facing stickers match in colour. A wide U turn can move the upper wing across while keeping the lower wing in place, forming a pair.

Before slicing, work out which wing each of Uw and Uw′ would move into FR. Check both stickers and choose the direction that brings the intended wing there.

3. Join, store, and restore

Use the chosen wide U turn to join the matching wings at FR. The centres may look mixed temporarily.
Lift the completed FR group out of the working slice with R U R' or R U' R'. Choose the direction of U so that an unpaired group from the top replaces it at FR.
Reverse the exact wide turn from step 1. This restores the centres while the completed pair stays stored outside that slice.

Repeat. Use outer turns to move completed groups to U or D and to bring unpaired groups into the working positions. If the replacement group is already paired, choose another one; otherwise you may split your finished work.

4. Reorient a working group when needed

R U R' F R' F' R

This flips the FR group as a unit. It changes which wing is on top and which way the two colours face, while preserving the centre colours. Use it to arrange the working 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. If they are in opposite slices, use the FR flip above. Now slice the selected wing from FL towards FR, perform the FR flip and undo the slice.

For the prepared upper-slice case below, that is Uw, then R U R' F R' F' R, then Uw'. The flip changes which wing returns, allowing both pairs to form. Match your setup to both visible colours in the example before using that exact version.

If either pair is still mismatched, check the other colour and adjust the orientation of the working group 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 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

This example shows how to finish the last two pairs. Follow Uw, the seven-move FR flip, and Uw′. The starting and ending nets show both colours of each wing. Reversing the slice restores the centres and swaps the selected wings.

Starting grip. Yellow up · blue at the front · 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 focus.

Copy this exact example on your own cube

Start with a solved 4×4, yellow up and blue front. Apply the setup below from left to right. This creates the example’s starting position. Keep this separate from the ongoing scramble you are solving through the course.

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

Then 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

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. Count complete groups on both faces.

Open a 4×4 Digital Cube for practice

Opens 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

A completed edge splits when I restore the slice.

Move the completed pair out of the working horizontal slice first, then put an unpaired group in 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

Your cube at this stage

All twelve edges paired

The two wings in each edge match on both faces, and the centres are restored. You can now solve the edge groups as you would on a 3×3.

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

On all twelve edges, the two wings 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.