Toe loop, loop, axel and more: how to tell the six jumps apart, why the axel is hardest, and why the learning order makes sense.
To spectators they all look nearly identical — jump, spin, land. The honest answer: there are exactly six jump types in figure skating, and they differ mainly at takeoff, not in the air. Once you understand that, you spot them instantly.
The six jumps split into two families. Toe jumps — toe loop, flip and lutz — use the toe pick to literally dig into the ice at takeoff. Edge jumps — salchow, loop and axel — take off purely from the edge, without toe-pick assist. In order of difficulty, easiest to hardest: toe loop, salchow, loop, flip, lutz, axel.
The axel is a special case — the only one of the six jumps with a forward takeoff. All the others start backward. That means: a "single" axel is actually one and a half rotations, because you take off forward but land backward — a double axel is correspondingly 2.5 rotations, a triple 3.5. That extra half-turn adds roughly 17% more rotational demand than equally "numbered" jumps, according to the physics — no wonder it's considered the hardest.
Toe loop, flip and lutz use the toe pick to push off — you essentially "pick" into the ice. Salchow, loop and axel do without that help and take off purely from the edge. This distinction is the fastest way to tell two similar-looking jumps apart.
Easiest to hardest: toe loop, salchow, loop, flip, lutz, axel. This order isn't arbitrary — it follows how much rotational momentum the takeoff delivers and how controllable the landing position is. Beginners in jump training almost always start with the toe loop.
The salchow comes from a deep knee bend and a powerful push out of the edge, combined with the swing of the free leg that converts forward motion into height and rotation. It needs no toe-pick help, but demands more edge feel from the leg.
The toe loop takes off from a backward-outside edge, assisted by the opposite toe pick. That exact toe-pick push is what makes it the easiest of the six jumps — and the classic first jump in training.
The axel is the only jump with a forward takeoff — which means you can't see your landing zone at takeoff, and your weight has to be actively thrown forward instead of carried along by a backward swing. Combined with the extra half rotation, it's clear why it's usually the last jump skaters learn.
Jump training belongs under supervision, not self-taught from video. The takeoff phase decides the landing position — a wrong angle leads to a hard fall faster than pure edge work does.
Always build new jumps low and slow first, before adding height and rotational speed. And: never train jumps on a crowded rink — the landing zone has to be clear, or a technical error turns into a collision.
Remember the mnemonic "toe pick first": toe loop, flip and lutz use the toe pick — all three names typically appear in that learning order in training. Salchow, loop and axel, by contrast, are the "pure" edge jumps.
A trick for spotting jumps as a spectator: watch the takeoff foot right before the jump. Does the other foot's toe pick briefly stab the ice? Then it's a toe jump. Does the blade stay clear? Then it's an edge jump.
Toe jumps — toe loop, flip, lutz — use the toe pick to push off. Edge jumps — salchow, loop, axel — take off purely from the edge, without toe-pick help. This split is the fastest way to sort the six jumps.
Because it's the only one with a forward takeoff, which automatically adds half a rotation more than other jumps of the same level — a "single" axel is already 1.5 rotations. Physics puts that at roughly 17% more rotational demand.
The usual order follows difficulty: toe loop, salchow, loop, flip, lutz, axel. This sequence builds rotational feel and edge control step by step, instead of starting with the hardest jump right away.
Watch the takeoff: if the skater briefly plants the free foot's toe pick in the ice, it's a toe jump (toe loop, flip, lutz). If the blade stays clear and the takeoff happens moving forward, it's almost certainly the axel.
Figure Skating: Takeoff, Rotation and Landing