🚨 SPOILER WARNING
This page contains the final **answer** and the complete **solution** to today's NYT Pips puzzle. If you haven't attempted the puzzle yet and want to try solving it yourself first, now's your chance!
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Want hints instead? Scroll down for progressive clues that won't spoil the fun.
🎲 Today's Puzzle Overview
NYT Pips is back for Thursday, February 19, 2026, and today’s set feels like a perfect midweek logic sprint.
With editor Ian Livengood guiding the pack, you’ll be moving through Easy ID 593, Medium ID 625, and Hard ID 649, each one offering a different flavor of domino deduction and region math.
If you’re searching for a NYT Pips solution, quick hints, or a full breakdown of how to read the grid efficiently, February 19 is all about clean arithmetic traps, tight sum regions, and smart domino inventory management.
Written by Nikki
Puzzle Analyst – Sophia
💡 Progressive Hints
Try these hints one at a time. Each hint becomes more specific to help you solve it yourself!
💡 Hint #1 - A piece of cake
Just do it.
💡 Hint #1 - Track Scarce Digits Before Placing Anything
Start by counting limited numbers in the domino pool. Here, zeros are heavily demanded (three spots in Red 1 plus one in Yellow 0), so every 0-half becomes a critical resource. At the same time, only two 3-halves exist, meaning Blue 3 and Green 5 will immediately compete for them and create forced placements.
💡 Hint #2 - Use Region Totals to Lock a Multi-Cell Structure
Green 5 has only one workable breakdown given the remaining pieces: it must be built from 3+1+1. That instantly forces the 3-0 domino into the region, and the 0 side automatically feeds Red 1, creating an early anchor that reduces later branching.
💡 Hint #3 - Solve Equal Regions by Reserving the Only Valid Digit
Once Green 5 is fixed, the remaining pool makes the Equal zones straightforward: Light Blue Equal can only be 5, and Purple Equal can only be 6. After those are locked, Red 1 becomes a pure digit accounting exercise, forcing the remaining zeros and the single 1 into place with no guesswork.
💡 Hint #4 - Finish by Spending the Last Required Zero
After Red 1 consumes nearly all zero-halves, Yellow 0 becomes a cleanup step. With the final 0 already reserved, the 1-0 domino is automatically forced into Yellow 0, and its 1 side neatly fills the last open space.
💡 Hint #1 - Count Scarce Numbers First (5s and 0s Lock Key Regions)
Start by scanning the domino pool for rare digits. With only two 5-pip dominoes available, the Blue 5 region becomes a priority constraint, forcing Blue 10 to resolve as 6+4 early. At the same time, only three total 0-pip halves exist, and the puzzle demands all of them across Purple 1 and Purple <1, meaning every zero placement will later become a hard anchor.
💡 Hint #2 - Use Small Sum Regions to Force Doubles
When a region target is extremely low like Green 2, the most reliable approach is checking whether it must be built from identical halves. Here, Green 2 collapses into 1+1, so placing the 4-1 domino immediately locks both the red 4 requirement and the future structure of the Green area.
💡 Hint #3 - Solve the Largest Sum Region Before the Grid Gets Crowded
High targets like Blue 10 are easiest to confirm early because they have fewer valid combinations. Once Blue 10 is forced into 6+4, it automatically restricts which 4s remain for Red 8. Then the <3 and <1 regions become simple filters, letting you place 6-1, 4-2, and 4-0 with almost no branching.
💡 Hint #4 - Zero Management Creates the Cleanest Chain Reaction
When a puzzle requires multiple zeros across neighboring regions, treat them like limited resources. After confirming Purple 1 must be 1+0+0, the remaining 0-halves can only come from 3-0 and 2-0, which also forces Green Equal to become 3. Once the 0 placements are fixed, the rest of the middle board becomes mechanically solvable.
💡 Hint #5 - Save One High-Value Domino to Complete the Final Sum
A sum like Light Blue 9 is usually resolved by the last remaining high pair. Once the grid eliminates other combinations, the only viable build becomes 5+4, which immediately forces the 5-1 placement and locks the 4-3 orientation. This is a classic moment where holding back the 5 until the board confirms it prevents wrong-path guessing.
💡 Hint #6 - Finish with Not-Equal Regions by Listing Required Digits
For Not Equal regions, the fastest method is to write out the exact digit set the region must contain. Yellow Not Equal must become 6+3+2+1, so the remaining dominoes practically place themselves. Once 6-5 is used to satisfy Blue 5, the 3-2 and 1-1 placements become forced and the puzzle closes cleanly.
🎨 Pips Solver
Feb 19, 2026
Click a domino to place it on the board. You can also click the board, and the correct domino will appear.
✅ Final Answer & Complete Solution For Hard Level
The key to solving today's hard puzzle was identifying the placement for the critical dominoes highlighted in the starting grid. Once those were in place, the rest of the puzzle could be solved logically. See the final grid below to compare your solution.
Starting Position & Key First Steps
This image shows the initial puzzle grid for the hard level, with a few critical first placements highlighted.
Final Answer: The Solved Grid for Hard Mode
Compare this final grid with your own solution to see the correct placement of all dominoes.
🔧 Step-by-Step Answer Walkthrough For Easy Level
1
Step 1
Dominoes Include: [6-6], [6-5], [6-1], [5-1], [4-4].
2
Step 2: Yellow 16 --(Arrows ①②)
Confirmed by neighboring region and step 1 and relative position. The domino halves in this region must be 6+6+4. The answer is 6-6, placed horizontally; 4-4 (one 4s into Purple 10 region), placed vertically.
3
Step 3: Blue 5 + Light Blue 7 + Red 6 + Purple 10 --(Arrows ③④⑤)
Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (6-5, 6-1, 5-1). The domino halves in Light Blue 7 region must be 1+6. The domino halves in Red 6 region must be 1+5. The domino halves in Purple 10 region must be 4+6 (4 already come from Arrows ②). The answer is 5-1, placed horizontally; 6-1, placed vertically; 5-6, placed horizontally.
🔧 Step-by-Step Answer Walkthrough For Medium Level
1
Step 1
Dominoes Include: [6-5], [6-1], [5-3], [3-0], [1-1], [1-0], [0-0]. Only 4 domino halves that contain 0 pips (3-0, 1-0, 0-0), need three for Red 1 region, need one for Yellow 0 region. Only 2 domino halves that contain 3 pips (5-3, 3-0), need one for Blue 3 region, need one for Green 5 region.
2
Step 2: Green 5 --(Arrows ①②)
Confirmed by neighboring region and step 1 and relative position. The domino halves in this region must be 3+1+1. The answer is 3-0 (0 into Red 1 region), placed vertically; 1-1, placed horizontally.
3
Step 3: Blue 3 + Light Blue Equal + Purple Equal + Red 1 --(Arrows ③④⑤⑥)
Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (6-5, 6-1, 5-3, 1-0, 0-0). The domino halves in Light Blue Equal region must be 5. The domino halves in Purple Equal region must be 6. The domino halves in Red 1 region must be 0+0+0+1 (one 0s already come from Arrows ①). The answer is 3-5, placed horizontally; 5-6, placed horizontally; 6-1, placed horizontally; 0-0, placed vertically.
4
Step 4: Yellow 0 --(Arrows ⑦)
The answer is 1-0 (1 into blank), placed horizontally.
🔧 Step-by-Step Answer Walkthrough For Hard Level
1
Step 1
Dominoes Include: [6-5], [6-1], [5-1], [4-3], [4-2], [4-1], [4-0], [3-3], [3-2], [3-0], [2-2], [2-0], [1-1]. Only 2 dominoes with 5 pips (6-5, 5-1), need one for Blue 5 region, therefore, the domino halves in Blue 10 region must be 6+4. Only 3 domino halves contain 0 pips (4-0, 3-0, 2-0), need two for Purple 1 region, need one for Purple <1 region.
2
Step 2: red 4 +Green 2 --(Arrows ①)
Confirmed by neighboring region and step 1 and relative position. The domino halves in Green 2 region must be 1+1 (one 1s come from step 5). The answer is 4-1, placed vertically.
3
Step 3: Blue 10 + Yellow <3 + Purple <1 + Red 8 --(Arrows ②③④⑤)
Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes. The domino halves in Light Blue 10 region must be 6+4. The domino halves in Red 8 region must be 4+4 (need one domino sum to be 4). The dominoes left that contain 4 pips (4-3, 4-2, 4-0). The answer is 1-6 (1 into Purple 1 region), placed vertically; 4-2 (2 into Yellow <3 region), placed vertically; 0-4 (0 into Purple <1 region), placed horizontally; 2-2, placed horizontally.
4
Step 4: Purple 1 + Green Equal + Light Blue >1 --(Arrows ⑥⑦⑧)
Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes. The domino halves in Purple 1 region must be 1+0+0 (1 already come from ). Only 2 domino halves left that contain 0 pips (3-0, 2-0). The domino halves in Green Equal region must be 3. The answer is 0-3, placed vertically; 0-2 (2 into Light Blue >1 region), placed horizontally; 3-3, placed horizontally.
5
Step 5: Light Blue 9 --(Arrows ⑨⑩)
Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (6-5, 5-1, 4-3, 3-2, 1-1). The domino halves in Green Equal region must be 5+4. The answer is 5-1 (1 into Green 2 region), placed vertically; 4-3 (3 left into blank), placed horizontally.
6
Step 6: Blue 5 + Yellow Not Equal --(Arrows ⑪⑫⑬)
Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (6-5, 3-2, 1-1). The domino halves in Yellow Not Equal region must be 6+3+2+1. The answer is 5-6, placed horizontally; 2-3, placed vertically; 1-1 (one 1s right into blank), placed horizontally.
🎥 NYT Pips Feb 19, 2026 (Thursday) — Full Walkthrough for Easy 593 / Medium 625 / Hard 649
Smarter solving routes, and logic-based reasoning instead of trial-and-error
💡 Pro Tips for Similar Puzzles
Start with Constraints
Always begin with the most constrained regions - sum regions with small numbers or tight spaces.
Use Equal Regions
Use "equal" regions as anchors - they eliminate many possibilities quickly.
Work Systematically
Let the rules guide your placement rather than guessing randomly.
Double-Check
Verify each region's rules are satisfied before moving to the next.
💬 Community Discussion
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