You know the four-move trigger. Nothing needs to be solved yet.
White down. Put the destination for each new corner at bottom-front-right.
1. Place your first corner
Choose any white corner and rotate the cube until its white sticker faces down. Treat that piece as solved. The three remaining white corners must fit around it according to their side colors.
Two corners sharing a non-white color belong next to each other on that colored side. A corner sharing neither side color with the reference belongs diagonally across from it.
2. Choose a white corner on top
Find a white corner in the top layer. Work out where it belongs using the already placed pieces. Rotate the whole cube sideways to put its destination at bottom-front-right, keeping white down.
Use U to place the target corner at top-front-right, directly above that destination. White can point in any of the three directions.
3. Insert it with the trigger
R U R' U'
Repeat complete four-move blocks until the selected corner is in the bottom-front-right slot with white down and its side colors matching its neighbors. Depending on orientation, this takes one, three, or five repetitions.
Keep the same front and do not add U turns between repetitions. Check only after finishing U′.
4. Recover a misplaced bottom piece
If a needed white corner is already below but twisted or in the wrong place, hold that slot at bottom-front-right and perform the trigger once to eject it. Then identify its correct home, put it above that home, and insert it normally.
Do not eject your reference corner unless you intentionally choose a new reference. The other white pieces should be fitted around the solved work.
5. Check all four side pairs
After all four whites face down, inspect the bottom pair on every side. If any pair is mixed, the white face contains misplaced corners. Recover those pieces before proceeding; the next lesson assumes the whole first layer is correct.
Watch, then try
Work through an example
Use one move at a time first. This prepared case teaches a specific action; use the lesson’s setup instructions to recognize when it applies to your own scramble.
Watch one worked example
The target white corner starts directly above its front-right destination. Watch one trigger insert it while preserving the other solved bottom corners.
Example grip: yellow up · blue front · red right at the start. Follow any written whole-cube rotations.
0 / 4
Loading 3D cube…
Prepared position · 0 / 4 moves
Use Next move to follow the sequence.
Drag to inspect other faces. Arrow keys rotate the view when the cube is focused.
Copy this exact example on your own cube
Start with a solved 2×2, 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.
U R U' R'Then follow the lesson sequence. If your cube’s color scheme differs, match the piece relationships using your own colors.
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
Place one reference corner, then insert its three white neighbors. After each insertion, check both side colors as well as white.
Open a 2×2 Digital Cube for practiceOpens in a new tab so you can keep this lesson beside your practice. Check the lesson goal yourself; the Digital Cube does not grade it.
If you get stuck
White is finished but the bottom side pairs do not match.
Identify the white corner that disagrees with its neighbors. Eject it, find its true home using both side colors, and reinsert it.
Before moving on
Check your result
Your cube at this stage
A complete white layer
White faces down, and each side has a matching bottom pair. The yellow corners are still unfinished.
Confirm these on your cube. Watching the animation alone does not complete the lesson.
Check every item when you can do it yourself.