Easy Difficulty

2×2 Pocket Cube The Mini Cube That Packs a Punch

The 2×2 Pocket Cube is essentially a 3×3 Rubik's Cube with only corner pieces — no edges and no centers. Despite having far fewer pieces, it's still a satisfying puzzle that introduces fundamental cubing concepts. With only 3.67 million possible states (compared to the 3×3's 43 quintillion), it's much simpler but still requires strategic thinking.

Pieces 8 corner pieces

Permutations 3,674,160

God's Number 11 (half-turn metric)

World Record 0.43s (Zamirbek Zhakypbekov)

Inventor Ernő Rubik

Year 1974

Interactive 3D 2×2 Pocket Cube

Scramble the pocket cube and watch our solver find the optimal solution with animated step-by-step rotations.

Loading 3D Model...

Camera Angle:

Solver Engine

Scramble Move Sequence

Solution

Step-by-Step Mode Step 0 / 0

Speed

Click Play or Next to start learning the moves!

Controls

History & Background

Originally designed by Ernő Rubik himself in 1974, the 2×2 was first commercially produced in 1981. It became popular as a gateway puzzle for beginners entering the world of speedcubing. Today it's a WCA (World Cube Association) competition event with world records under half a second.

Notation Guide

Standard WCA notation used for this puzzle. Prime (') means counter-clockwise, 2 means 180° turn.

R Right face 90° clockwise

R' Right face 90° counter-clockwise

R2 Right face 180°

U Up face 90° clockwise

U' Up face 90° counter-clockwise

F Front face 90° clockwise

F' Front face 90° counter-clockwise

Visual Guide & Cheat Sheet

A complete visual guide illustrating the puzzle's structure, standard layer movements, and key solving stages.

2×2 Pocket Cube Visual Guide Infographic

Step-by-Step Solving Guide

Step 1: Solve the First Layer

Orient the cube with the white face down. Place all 4 white corners in their correct positions, matching the side colors. This is mostly intuitive — experiment with R, U, and F moves to position each corner.


                                                R U R' U'


                                                F' U' F

Try to solve this step without algorithms first. Building intuition here pays off in speedcubing later.

Step 2: Orient Last Layer Corners (OLL)

Now orient the remaining 4 yellow corners so that yellow faces up on all of them. There are 7 possible cases. Hold the cube with the solved layer on the bottom.


                                                R U R' U R U2 R'


                                                R U2 R' U' R U' R'


                                                F (R U R' U') F'

The "Sune" algorithm (R U R' U R U2 R') is the most important one here — it handles most cases.

Step 3: Permute Last Layer Corners (PLL)

The final step is swapping the corners into their correct positions. There are only 2 cases to learn: adjacent swap and diagonal swap.


                                                R U' L' U R' U' L


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

Look for a "solved bar" — two adjacent matching colors — to identify which case you have.

Key Algorithms

Name	Algorithm	Use Case
Sune (OLL)	`R U R' U R U2 R'`	Orient last layer corners
Anti-Sune (OLL)	`R U2 R' U' R U' R'`	Orient last layer corners (mirror)
Adjacent Swap	`R U' L' U R' U' L`	Swap two adjacent corners
Diagonal Swap	`F R U' R' U' R U R' F'`	Swap two diagonal corners
Ortega OLL	`F (R U R' U') F'`	Ortega method OLL
T-Perm Shortcut	`R U R' U' R' F R F'`	Permutation shortcut

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Not matching corner colors to adjacent faces when solving the first layer.

Holding the cube incorrectly during OLL — always keep the solved face on the bottom.

Applying the wrong PLL algorithm — check if it's an adjacent or diagonal swap before executing.

Over-rotating moves — sloppy turning leads to lockups and slower times.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the 2×2 just a 3×3 without edges?

Mechanically, yes! The 2×2 is equivalent to the corners of a 3×3. If you can solve a 3×3, you already know how to solve a 2×2 — just ignore edges and centers.

What is the fastest method for the 2×2?

The EG method (Erik-Gunnar) is the fastest, used by top speedcubers. It requires learning ~120 algorithms. For intermediate solvers, the Ortega method (only ~12 algorithms) gives excellent results.

Can a 2×2 always be solved in 11 moves or less?

Yes! God's Number for the 2×2 is 11 in the half-turn metric, meaning every possible scramble can be solved in at most 11 moves.

What 2×2 should I buy for speedcubing?

Popular choices include the MoYu RS2 M, YJ MGC 2×2, and QiYi MS 2×2. Look for magnetic cubes for better stability during fast solves.

Pro Tips & Tricks

Start by mastering the beginner layer-by-layer method, then learn the Ortega method for sub-5 second solves.
Since there are no centers on a 2×2, you can fix any face as the "bottom" — use this freedom to plan ahead.
Color neutrality is easier on the 2×2 than any other cube. Practice solving with any color on bottom.
The Ortega method solves the top and bottom independently before permuting — it's the best intermediate method.
For advanced solvers, the CLL (Corners of Last Layer) method solves orientation and permutation in one step.
Fingertrick the Sune algorithm — it should take under 0.5 seconds with good practice.

Try Our 3×3 Solver

Interactive 3D solver with step-by-step animations

Launch Solver