Cube notation is the language of algorithms. Each letter represents a face turn. Learn these before starting the CFOP roadmap.
Face Turns
The six basic face turns. Each letter turns the corresponding face 90 degrees clockwise (when looking directly at that face).
R
Right
Right
Right face clockwise (when looking at the right face).
U
Up
Up
Up face clockwise (when looking at the top).
F
Front
Front
Front face clockwise (when looking at the front).
L
Left
Left
Left face clockwise (when looking at the left face).
D
Down
Down
Down face clockwise (when looking at the bottom).
B
Back
Back
Back face clockwise (when looking at the back face).
Prime Turns
The apostrophe (') means turn the face counter-clockwise instead of clockwise.
R'
Right Prime
Right
Right face counter-clockwise.
U'
Up Prime
Up
Up face counter-clockwise.
F'
Front Prime
Front
Front face counter-clockwise.
L'
Left Prime
Left
Left face counter-clockwise.
D'
Down Prime
Down
Down face counter-clockwise.
B'
Back Prime
Back
Back face counter-clockwise.
Double Turns
The number 2 means turn the face 180 degrees (half turn). Direction doesn't matter for 180s.
R2
Right Double
Right
Right face 180 degrees.
U2
Up Double
Up
Up face 180 degrees.
F2
Front Double
Front
Front face 180 degrees.
L2
Left Double
Left
Left face 180 degrees.
D2
Down Double
Down
Down face 180 degrees.
B2
Back Double
Back
Back face 180 degrees.
Wide Turns
Lowercase letters mean turn two layers at once (the face layer plus the adjacent middle layer).
r
Right Wide
Right
Right two layers clockwise (lowercase = wide turn).
u
Up Wide
Up
Up two layers clockwise.
f
Front Wide
Front
Front two layers clockwise.
l
Left Wide
Left
Left two layers clockwise.
d
Down Wide
Down
Down two layers clockwise.
b
Back Wide
Back
Back two layers clockwise.
Cube Rotations
Rotations turn the whole cube, not just a face. x follows R direction, y follows U, z follows F.
x
X Rotation
Whole Cube
Rotate entire cube like R (x-axis rotation).
y
Y Rotation
Whole Cube
Rotate entire cube like U (y-axis rotation).
z
Z Rotation
Whole Cube
Rotate entire cube like F (z-axis rotation).
Slice Moves
Slice moves turn the middle layer between two opposite faces. M follows L, E follows D, S follows F.
M
Middle Slice
Middle (L-R)
Middle slice (between L and R), turn like L.
E
Equatorial Slice
Equatorial (U-D)
Equatorial slice (between U and D), turn like D.
S
Standing Slice
Standing (F-B)
Standing slice (between F and B), turn like F.
Standard Cube Color Scheme
The standard color scheme (BOY) has white opposite yellow, red opposite orange, and blue opposite green. White is on top, green on front.