OLL

oll is a term that can refer to different concepts depending on context. The most widely recognized use is as an acronym in Rubik’s Cube solving: Orientation of the Last Layer, commonly abbreviated as OLL. In this setting, OLL denotes the step in which the orientation of all pieces in the cube’s final layer is adjusted so that the top face becomes a single, uniform color, regardless of the other colors around the layer.

In many speedsolving methods, including CFOP, OLL is followed by PLL (Permutation of the Last Layer). Mastery of OLL typically involves learning a set of algorithms that transform a given last-layer pattern into a solved orientation. There are 57 distinct OLL cases in the full orientation set; for beginners, a two-look variant (two-look OLL) reduces the problem to 10 more approachable cases, making the learning process more gradual.

Notation for OLL algorithms uses standard cube notation and is applied without disturbing the previously solved portions of the cube. While OLL is most commonly discussed in the context of the Rubik’s Cube, the acronym can appear in other domains as well; however, in cubing literature it denotes Orientation of the Last Layer and is the primary associations readers expect.

See also: PLL, CFOP, speedcubing, cube notation.