CUBE BASICS
Rubik’s Cube notation explained
A letter names the face to turn. A plain letter means a 90° clockwise turn, an apostrophe means a 90° counterclockwise turn, and 2 means a 180° turn. Judge clockwise while looking directly at the face you are turning.
The six face letters
Hold the cube in one orientation while reading a sequence. Right and left describe your view of the cube, not permanent sticker colors. In QuickCubeSolve’s starting reference, white is U, green is F, and red is R.
| Letter | Face | Position |
|---|---|---|
| U | Up | Top |
| L | Left | Left-hand side |
| F | Front | Facing you |
| R | Right | Right-hand side |
| B | Back | Facing away |
| D | Down | Bottom |
Plain, prime and double turns
- R: Turn the right face clockwise by one quarter turn, as seen from the right side.
- R': Turn the same face counterclockwise by one quarter turn. The apostrophe is pronounced “prime.”
- R2: Turn the right face halfway around. Either direction reaches the same position.
The same suffix rules apply to all six letters. B and D can feel reversed because you usually cannot look straight at those faces while holding the cube normally.
Read an example: R U R' U'
- Turn the right face clockwise.
- Turn the upper face clockwise, viewed from above.
- Turn the right face counterclockwise.
- Turn the upper face counterclockwise.
Keep the whole cube facing the same direction throughout. This sequence changes the cube; it is a practice example, not a solution for every scramble. Its inverse is U R U' R', which undoes it.
Turning a face versus rotating the whole cube
During scanning, rotate the whole cube to show the next center to the camera, keeping all layers together. During solution playback, turn only the layer indicated by the move. Follow the player’s reference orientation before starting.
For additional diagrams, see the official Rubik’s notation reference.
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