Rubik's Cube Patterns: Checkerboard, Six Spots and More

What a Rubik's Cube pattern is

A cube pattern is a deliberate arrangement made by turning a solved cube and stopping at a recognizable position. It is not a new solving method and it does not make the cube impossible to solve: the same sequence, or its inverse, returns the puzzle to solved. The name describes the visible geometry, while the exact colors depend on which color scheme and orientation you start with.

The sequences here use standard face-turn notation. The World Cube Association defines F, B, R, L, U, and D as 90-degree face turns, an apostrophe as the opposite direction, and 2 as a 180-degree turn. The pattern source also warns that a sequence's appearance changes with the starting color arrangement and cube orientation, even when the pattern geometry is the same.

Prepare the cube before trying a sequence

Begin with a genuinely solved 3x3 and choose one front face. Keep that front face toward you while reading the whole sequence. Do not silently rotate the cube between tokens: an x, y, or z rotation changes your reference frame, and turning the wrong face can produce a different arrangement that looks like a failed pattern. If you need a refresher, read the Rubik's Cube notation guide before practicing.

Read the notation guide first if R, U, prime, or 2 turns are not automatic yet.

1. Six spots: the best first pattern

Sequence: U D' R L' F B' U D'. On a solved cube, each face keeps its center color while the surrounding stickers become one contrasting color, creating one spot on every face. The visible colors can differ from a diagram if your cube uses a different scheme, so judge the result by the one-center, one-surround pattern rather than by expecting a particular color.

Read the sequence in pairs: U D', then R L', then F B', then U D' again. After the final pair, inspect all six faces. If only one face looks right, check for a missed prime or for a cube rotation made while executing the middle of the sequence. The sequence is short enough that restarting from solved is usually faster than trying to repair a partially applied pattern.

2. Checkerboard: alternating face colors

Sequence: R2 L2 U B L2 D' F B2 R L' F' B R D F2 L' U'. This creates a checkerboard-style arrangement on the six faces: the face centers remain fixed and the surrounding stickers alternate across the grid. It is longer than six spots, so say each token aloud or group the sequence into short chunks instead of trying to remember it as one string.

The exact visual layout depends on the viewing orientation. The sequence was checked from a solved state with a cube-state simulator, including the direction of every prime and half turn. That check confirms the advertised geometry; it does not replace careful execution on your physical cube.

3. Cube in cube: a nested-looking design

Sequence: F L F U' R U F2 L2 U' L' B D' B' L2 U. The name refers to the nested bands and inner-square effect visible after the turns, not to a literal smaller cube being created inside the puzzle. The orientation you use can make the layers easier or harder to recognize, so compare all faces before deciding whether it worked.

This sequence contains several adjacent face turns, so it is a good test of cube orientation. Pause only between chunks, not halfway through a token. If you lose your place, finish the current move, return to solved with the inverse of the moves you know you completed, and restart rather than guessing the missing turn.

4. Superflip: every edge is flipped

Sequence: D' R2 F' D2 F2 U2 L' R D' R2 B F R' U2 L' F2 R' U2 R' U'. Superflip leaves the corner pieces in their solved positions while flipping the edge pieces. That gives each face a striking alternating edge appearance while the corners still match their centers. It is a useful demonstration that a cube can look highly scrambled even when its piece changes follow a precise, reachable state.

Do not use superflip as a first memorization exercise. It is 20 face turns and one missed direction changes the result substantially. The sequence and its edge-flip result were independently checked by applying the moves to a solved cube model; the CTAN documentation identifies this particular 20-move sequence as Reid's sequence, with Kociemba as the cited source.

How to practice patterns without losing your place

Practice one pattern at a time. Read the move sequence from left to right, keep the same grip, and compare the result with the stated geometry on every face. If you want to count the turns in a sequence, the TPS calculator can help you inspect the move count, but it does not verify whether a pattern algorithm is correct.

Use the TPS calculator only as a counting aid, not as a pattern checker.

For a learning path beyond visual tricks, continue through the cube-fundamentals guide and practice basic algorithms deliberately. CuberPal's algorithm trainer is a place to drill documented cases; it is not presented here as a pattern library or as proof that a sequence produced the intended design.

Follow the cube-fundamentals learning path, then use the algorithm-trainer guide when you want structured recall practice. Use the algorithm-trainer guide when you want structured recall practice.

Frequently asked questions

Return to solved before trying another pattern. That gives you a known starting state and makes a missed move easier to identify. If your goal is simply to solve the cube, use the beginner solving lesson instead of treating a pattern sequence as a solution method.