CFOP step 2: F2L, the first two layers together
In the beginner method you put in four white corners, then four middle-layer edges: eight separate jobs. F2L does them in four. Each white corner goes in together with the edge that sits above it, as a pair.
U R U' R'
The idea
Start with the cross on the bottom and yellow on top. There are four slots left: the four columns between the side centres, each holding one white corner and one middle-layer edge.
For each slot:
- Find the pair. The white corner and the edge with the same two side colours.
- Join them in the top layer, so they sit side by side with matching colours.
- Insert the pair into its slot with three moves.
Work on the slot at the front-right. To work on another slot, turn the whole cube with y until it's at the front-right.
The demos dim everything except the pair. The other three slots are already solved, so you can see that F2L moves leave them alone.
Inserting a joined pair
These are the moves every other case ends with, so learn them first.
Corner above the slot, white facing right
The edge is at the back of the top layer. R lifts the corner to the back, where it joins the edge. U carries the pair over the slot, and R' drops it in.
R U R'
Corner above the slot, white facing front
The mirror image, on the left side of the slot. The edge is on the left of the top layer.
F' U' F
Corner and edge side by side
The corner is above the slot and the edge is right next to it, but they aren't joined: the edge's top colour matches the corner's top colour.
White facing front, edge on the right
U moves both pieces away from the slot. R U' R' lifts the empty slot, brings the pieces back joined to each other, and drops the pair in.
U R U' R'
White facing right, edge at the front
The mirror image.
U' F' U F
White facing up
The trickiest pairs have the corner's white sticker on top. Turn it sideways first: R U2 R' moves the corner to the front-left with its white facing you. Then U' brings it over the slot with white facing right, and the edge round to the back: that's the basic insert, R U R'.
R U2 R' U' R U R'
One piece is already in the slot
The corner is in, the edge is on top
If the corner is solved and the edge is on top, this is exactly the second-layer step of the beginner method. Line the edge's front sticker up with the front centre and use the insert you already know.
U R U' R' U' F' U F
The edge is in, the corner is on top
Bring the corner out with its white facing sideways, join it with the edge, then insert.
R U R' U' R U R' U' R U R'
Both are stuck in the wrong slot
Take them out first. Hold the slot at the front-right and do R U R' (or any insert): the pieces come up into the top layer and you're back to a normal case.
Tips
- Pairs, not pieces. Always look for the corner and the edge together. If they're split far apart, move one of them without disturbing the other, until they're side by side.
- Use empty slots. While a slot is still unsolved, you can lift pieces through it freely.
- Keep the cross. Every move above lifts a slot and puts it straight back. If the cross breaks, something was turned without being undone.
- There are 41 cases. You don't need to learn them as algorithms. The handful above, plus working out the rest by joining and inserting, is how most people learn F2L.
Common mistakes
- Turning the cube between every pair. First check whether any pair is already easy at its current angle.
- Joining the pair with the wrong colours. Joined pieces must show the same colour on each side they share. If one side mismatches, the pair goes in twisted.
- Inserting with
R U' R'instead ofR U R'. Follow where the edge goes: the top turn has to bring it to the corner, not away from it.