3×3 Cube

Three modes, three jobs

• Free play: scramble and solve. The timer starts on your first move and your best time is kept.
• Teach Me: the mode that makes the difference. The cube reads its own state and tells you: you are on step three of seven, here is the algorithm, and here is what it does. Tap the algorithm and watch it played out on your cube, move by move. And when you get stuck — the first step has no algorithm, so getting stuck there is normal — press Solve the next step: it works out the moves for your cube and lays them out as buttons in order (U, then R, then F…). Press them yourself one at a time and watch what each one does, or let it play them for you.
• Algorithm trainer: sets the cube to one specific OLL, PLL or F2L case so you can drill that case alone until your hands know it.

Why it is built this way

Most cube tutorials — written or filmed — hand you a sheet of algorithms and leave: memorise these, then apply them. The trouble is that you do not know when to apply them, or what each one actually does.

Teach Me fixes both halves: it identifies the step from the state of your cube rather than from your guess, and it explains the job each algorithm does in plain words before it shows you the letters.

Notation in one line

Every letter is a face: U up · D down · R right · L left · F front · B back. The letter alone is a quarter turn clockwise as you look at that face, ʼ after it reverses the direction, and 2 is a half turn.

Where the cases come from

No stored pictures and no hand-typed tables. Every case is derived from its own algorithm: the engine applies the inverse of the algorithm to a solved cube, and the result is exactly the case that algorithm solves. The picture therefore cannot disagree with the solution.

And every algorithm is machine-checked: 57 OLL cases, 21 PLL cases and 40 F2L cases, each verified to leave the layers beneath it untouched, and each case verified to be distinct from every other in its set.

The written guide

This page is for practice. The written explanation — notation, the seven steps in detail, the mistakes beginners make, and when to move on to CFOP — is in how to solve a Rubik's Cube step by step.

FAQ

How many algorithms do I need for my first solve?

Eight, and some repeat. The first step — the white cross — has no algorithm at all; it is pure intuition. If that leaves you stuck, press Solve the next step in Teach Me mode and it works the cross out for your own cube, move by move.

Is the game free?

Free, no subscription, nothing to install. You start as a guest, and signing in only saves your points and best time.

Is this the official Rubik's game?

No. This is our own independent 3×3 cube game, with no connection to the "Rubik's" trademark or its owner. We use the familiar name in the writing only to describe the well-known puzzle.

More games on Mind Sprint

Matchstick puzzles: a false equation you fix by moving one stick. Plus Sudoku and NumGrid. And to put numbers on your own speed, memory and focus, take the brain test.