NYT Pips Hint, Answer & Solution for January 28, 2026

Jan 28, 2026

🚨 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!

Click here to play today's official NYT Pips game first.

Want hints instead? Scroll down for progressive clues that won't spoil the fun.

🎲 Today's Puzzle Overview

On Wednesday, January 28, 2026, the NYT Pips puzzle arrives with a fresh midweek energy — and the community is already buzzing about today’s clever grids and satisfying logic twists.

Edited by Ian Livengood, this thoughtfully balanced set blends warmth, accessibility, and depth across all three difficulties.

It starts with the easy puzzle, ID 523, designed by Ian Livengood — a gentle, confidence-building opener that’s perfect for spotting early patterns and sharing your very first Pips Hint today.

If you enjoy easing into logic flow, this grid rewards calm observation and small “aha” moments that feel genuinely earned.

The medium challenge, ID 547, also by Ian Livengood, tightens the logic just enough to keep things interesting.

Here, every domino placement starts to matter, and each region nudges you toward more deliberate reasoning.

This is the sweet spot for exchanging pips hints today and comparing different solution paths with friends.

Then comes the hard puzzle, ID 568, crafted by Rodolfo Kurchan — a bold, brain-stretching grid filled with tricky sums, unequal regions, and beautifully deceptive constraints.

It’s the kind of puzzle that delivers real satisfaction when everything finally clicks into place.

Jump in, explore today’s puzzle, swap your NYT Pips hints, and enjoy solving together on January 28, 2026.

This Wednesday challenge isn’t just about the solution — it’s about the shared journey, the logic breakthroughs, and the fun of discovering smart strategies as a community.

Written by Anna

Puzzle Analyst – Lucas

💡 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 Pip Values

Begin by counting how many times each pip appears across all dominoes. When a number like 3 shows up only twice and two regions demand it, those regions become tightly constrained and guide your opening moves.

💡 Hint #2 - Force Equal Regions with Overlapping Needs

When equal regions intersect with scarce pip totals, use overlapping requirements to pin down a single value. Here, competing demands for 3s and 4s force the equal region to settle on 5s.

💡 Hint #3 - Use Leftover Pips to Complete Sum Regions

After key placements, reassess which pips remain. If only one domino can supply a missing pip, that piece becomes locked in, especially for fixed-sum regions like a 9.

💡 Hint #4 - Accept Multiple Paths, Then Reconcile

In late stages, some regions may allow more than one theoretical fit. Try one consistent option, propagate its consequences, and confirm whether it satisfies all remaining region rules to close the puzzle.

💡 Hint #1 - Count Rare Pips Early

Start by scanning for pip values that appear only once or twice in the set. Rare numbers like 3s or 6s often have forced destinations in tight regions, making them ideal anchors for your first deductions.

💡 Hint #2 - Lock High-Sum Regions First

For regions with large minimums like >10, prioritize dominoes containing the highest pips. When only one high-value domino exists, it can immediately fix both placement and orientation.

💡 Hint #3 - Use Leftover Pip Elimination

After a key placement, recheck which pips remain unused. If a required pip appears on only one remaining domino, that domino’s position becomes forced, especially in small or equal regions.

💡 Hint #4 - Resolve Equal Regions via Scarcity

When an equal region must contain identical pips, look for the only domino that can supply that number. Scarce pips often determine both the value and the specific domino to place.

💡 Hint #5 - Exploit Zero and Low-Pip Constraints

Low-target regions like <2 or strict red limits naturally funnel zeros into place. Use these tight constraints to park 0-heavy dominoes and simplify the remaining grid.

💡 Hint #6 - Finish with Forced Complements

In the endgame, check which dominoes remain and which region requirements are still unmet. When only two pieces are left, their placements usually resolve automatically by matching leftover region rules.

🎨 Pips Solver

Jan 28, 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

Pips hint for January 28, 2026 – hard level puzzle grid with critical first placements and strategy

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

NYT Pips January 28, 2026 hard puzzle full solution grid showing final answer with hints

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: [5-5], [5-1], [4-4], [4-1], [2-0].

2

Step 2: Blue 8 --(Arrows ①)

Confirmed by neighboring region and step 1 and relative position. Need one domino sum to be 8 placed in this region. The answer is 4-4, placed horizontally.

3

Step 3: Light Blue 4 + Yellow Equal + Red Equal + Purple 5 --(Arrows ②③④⑤)

Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (5-5, 5-1, 4-1, 2-0). The domino halves in Yellow Equal region must be 1. The domino halves in Red Equal region must be 5. The domino halves in Purple 5 region must be 5+0. The answer is 4-1 (4 into Light Blue 4 region), placed vertically; 1-5, placed horizontally; 5-5 (one 5s into Purple 5 region), placed horizontally; 0-2 (2 left into blank), placed horizontally.

🔧 Step-by-Step Answer Walkthrough For Medium Level

1

Step 1

Dominoes Include: [6-6], [6-0], [5-4], [5-3], [5-2], [4-3], [1-1]. Only 2 domino halves that contain 3 pips, need one for Light Blue 3 region, need one for Purple 3 region.

2

Step 2: Light Blue 3 + Red Equal + Purple 4 --(Arrows ①②)

Confirmed by neighboring region and step 1 and relative position. Only 2 domino halves that contain 3 pips (5-3, 4-3), only 2 domino halves that contain 4 pips (5-4, 4-3). Therefore, the domino halves in Red Equal region must be 5. The answer is 3-5 (3 into Light Blue 3 region), placed horizontally; 5-4 (4 into Purple 4 region), placed vertically.

3

Step 3: Purple 3 + Yellow 9 --(Arrows ③④)

Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (6-6, 6-0, 5-2, 4-3, 1-1). Only one domino left that contain 3 pips (4-3), therefore, the domino halves in Yellow 9 region must be 4+5. The answer is 3-4 (3 into Purple 3 region), placed vertically; 5-2 (2 into Blue >2 region), placed horizontally.

4

Step 4: Blue >2 + Red Equal + Green >5 --(Arrows ⑤⑥⑦)

Confirmed by all left regions and remaining dominoes (6-6, 6-0, 1-1). There is no single placement to these regions. e.g: The domino halves in Blue >2 region must be 1+1, then the domino halves in Red Equal region must be 6. The answer is 1-1 (one 1s into Blue >2 region, one 1s up into blank), placed vertically; 6-6, placed horizontally; 6-0 (6 into Green >5 region, 0 down into blank), placed vertically.

🔧 Step-by-Step Answer Walkthrough For Hard Level

1

Step 1

Dominoes Include: [6-2], [5-5], [5-2], [5-1], [5-0], [4-3], [4-2], [3-0], [1-1], [0-0]. Only 2 domino with 3 pips (4-3, 3-0), need one for Purple 3 region.

2

Step 2: Green >10 + Light Blue 5--(Arrows ①②)

Confirmed by all regions and step 1 and relative position. Only one domino with 6 pips (6-2). The domino halves in Green >10 region must be 6+5. The domino halves in Light Blue 5 regiom must be 2+3. The answer is 6-2, placed vertically; 3-0 (0 into Red 5 region), placed horizontally.

3

Step 3: Purple 3 + Yellow Equal --(Arrows ③④)

Confirmed by neighboring region and step 2 and remaining dominoes. Only one domino left that contain 3 pips (4-3), therefore, the domino halves in Yellow Equal region must be 4. The answer is 3-4 (3 into Purple 3 region), placed vertically; 4-2 (2 down into blank), placed vertically.

4

Step 4: Red 5 + Blue 2 --(Arrows ⑤⑥)

Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (5-5, 5-2, 5-1, 5-0, 1-1, 0-0). The domino halves in Purple Not Equal region must be 0+1+2+5, only one domino half that contain 2 pips must placed in Purple Not Equal region. Therefore, the domino halves in Red 5 region must be 0+5 (0s already come from Arrows ②), the domino halves in Blue 2 region must be 1+1. The answer is 5-1, placed vertically; 1-1 (one 1s into Purple Not Equal region), placed vertically.

5

Step 5: Green >10 + Red <2 --(Arrows ⑦⑧)

Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (5-5, 5-2, 5-0, 0-0). The domino halves in Green >10 region must be 6+5 (6s already come from Arrows ①). The domino halves in Red <2 region must be 0+0. The answer is 5-0, placed vertically; 0-0 (one 0s into Purple Not Equal region), placed horizontally.

6

Step 6: Purple Not Equal + Bottom Blank--(Arrows ⑨⑩)

Confirmed by neighboring region nd remaining dominoes (5-5, 5-2). The answer is 5-2 (whole domino into Purple Not Equal), placed horizontally; 5-5 (whole domino into Bottom Blank), placedvertically.

🎥 NYT Pips Hints Today – January 28, 2026 | Easy 523, Medium 547, Hard 568 Explained

This is the sweet spot for exchanging NYT Pips hints and comparing different solution strategies.

💡 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.

🎓 Keep Learning & Improve

🧠 Strategy Guide

Master the core techniques to solve any Pips puzzle, no matter the difficulty.

🎮 How to Play

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