NYT Pips Hint, Answer & Solution for January 4, 2026

Jan 4, 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

Start your Sunday, January 4, 2026, with a calm but satisfying logic ritual in the Daily Domino Puzzle—a perfect way to ease into the day while keeping your brain engaged.

This Sunday puzzle encourages the community to slow down and think carefully.

From comparing pips hint today ideas to spotting subtle number relationships, every move invites discussion and shared discovery. There’s a special pleasure in watching the grid open up as each domino finds its correct place.

With easy, medium, and hard grids available, today’s puzzle solution journey works for every kind of solver.

Some players jump in with a quick pips hint, others prefer a full breakdown of regions, sums, and equals—but the real fun comes from exchanging insights and celebrating those quiet “aha” moments together.

Edited by Ian Livengood, with puzzles constructed by Ian Livengood (easy and medium) and Rodolfo Kurchan (hard), the January 4, 2026 Daily Domino Puzzle balances relaxation and challenge.

It’s a Sunday community puzzle built for thoughtful analysis, clean solutions, and the simple joy of solving side by side.

Written by Joe

Puzzle Analyst – Mark

💡 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

Enjoy it

💡 Hint #1 - Count Scarce High and Low Pips

Start with a full pips inventory. There are only two halves with 3 pips available, both needed for the >2 regions, while zero pips are heavily demanded by <1 regions. This pips hint sets strict limits before any placement begins.

💡 Hint #2 - Force Extremes in Inequality Regions

Less-than and greater-than regions often force extremes. This pips hint shows why <1 regions must absorb zeros, while >2 regions immediately claim the scarce 3s, creating early anchors.

💡 Hint #3 - Use Remaining Zeros to Unlock Neighbors

After placing double-zero, leftover zeros must go into remaining <1 or <2 regions. This pips hint highlights how a single 0–1 domino satisfies two inequalities at once.

💡 Hint #4 - Equal Regions Collapse Choices

Equal regions shrink possibilities fast. This pips hint explains how confirming a single value (1) in the Light Blue Equal region simultaneously resolves the adjacent >2 constraint.

💡 Hint #5 - Lock Doubles When Forced

When only one value fits an Equal region, the double becomes mandatory. This pips hint shows why Purple Equal can only be filled by 2–2 once higher and lower pips are eliminated.

💡 Hint #6 - Finish with Sum-by-Exclusion

In the endgame, leftover dominoes solve remaining inequalities automatically. This pips hint demonstrates how the final >3 region forces a 2+2 total, fixing orientation and completing the grid cleanly.

💡 Hint #1 - Inventory First: Count Critical Pips

Begin with a full pips count. Only five halves contain 6 pips, yet four are immediately reserved for the two 12-sum regions. This pips hint shows why every remaining 6 becomes highly constrained, and why the 5–1 domino is forced to sit between two Equal regions.

💡 Hint #2 - Lock the 12-Sum Regions Early

High-sum regions with strict totals collapse options fast. This pips hint explains why Blue 12 can only be 6+6 and how that instantly fixes the Green Equal region to value 1, triggering a chain of forced placements around it.

💡 Hint #3 - Equal Regions Dictate Value, Not Position

When an Equal region’s value is determined, orientation becomes secondary. This pips hint highlights how confirming Light Blue Equal = 5 forces all remaining 5-pip dominoes to resolve neighboring >4 and Equal constraints.

💡 Hint #4 - Use Doubles to Stabilize the Grid

Doubles act as anchors. This pips hint shows why Red Equal must lock into 3–3 and Yellow 12 must absorb 6–6, removing ambiguity and simplifying all remaining number-4 regions.

💡 Hint #5 - Exploit Shared Boundaries in Same-Number Regions

Adjacent regions with the same target value often share a critical domino. This pips hint explains why 3–2 must sit on the boundary between Yellow 4 and Purple 4, allowing all four ‘4’ regions to be satisfied cleanly.

💡 Hint #6 - Finish by Elimination, Not Guessing

With all other regions resolved, the final Equal region becomes automatic. This pips hint demonstrates how the last remaining domino fits Red Equal by pure elimination, completing the grid with certainty.

🎨 Pips Solver

Jan 4, 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 4, 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 4, 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: [6-1], [6-0], [5-5], [4-3], [4-2].

2

Step 2: Purple <1 + Red Equal + Light Blue Equal --(Arrows ①②③)

Confirmed by neighboring region and step 1 and relative position. The domino halves in Red Equal region must be 6. Need one domino with the same number placed in Light Blue Equal region, the domino halves in Light Blue Equal region must be 5. The answer is 0-6 (0 into Purple <1 region), placed horizontally; 6-1 (1 right into blank), placed horizontally; 5-5 (whole domino), placed horizontally.

3

Step 3: Blue >2 + Yellow Equal --(Arrows ④⑤)

Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (4-3, 4-2). The domino halves in Yellow Equal region must be 4. The answer is 3-4 (3 into Blue >2 region), placed horizontally; 4-2 (2 left into blank), placed horizontally.

🔧 Step-by-Step Answer Walkthrough For Medium Level

1

Step 1

Dominoes Include: [3-1], [3-0], [2-2], [2-1], [2-0], [1-1], [1-0], [0-0]. Only 2 domino halves that contain 3 pips for Red >2 region and Blue >2 region. Only 5 domino halves that contain 0 pips for number <1 regions.

2

Step 2: Green <1 + Blue >2 --(Arrows ①②)

Confirmed by neighboring region and step 1 and relative position. The domino halves in Green <1 region must be 0+0+0. The domino halves in Blue >2 region must be 3. The answer is 0-0, placed vertically; 0-3 (3 into Blue >2 region), placed vertically.

3

Step 3: Light Blue <1 + Purple <2 --(Arrows ③)

Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (3-1, 2-2, 2-1, 2-0, 1-1, 1-0). The answer is 0-1 (0 into Light Blue <1 region, 1 into Purple <2 region), placed vertically.

4

Step 4: Red >2 + Light Blue Equal --(Arrows ④⑤)

Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (3-1, 2-2, 2-1, 2-0, 1-1). The domino halves in Light Blue Equal region must be 1. The answer is 3-1 (3 into Red >2 region), placed vertically; 1-1, placed vertically.

5

Step 5: Purple Equal --(Arrows ⑥)

Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (2-2, 2-1, 2-0). The domino halves in this region must be 2. The answer is 2-2, placed vertically.

6

Step 6: Red <1 + Yellow >3 --(Arrows ⑦⑧)

Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (2-1, 2-0). The domino halves in Yellow >3 region must be 2+2. The answer is 0-2 (0 into Red <1 region), placed vertically; 2-1 (1 down into blank), placed vertically.

🔧 Step-by-Step Answer Walkthrough For Hard Level

1

Step 1

Dominoes Include: [6-6], [6-5], [6-2], [6-1], [5-5], [5-3], [5-1], [5-0], [4-3], [4-2], [4-1], [3-3], [3-2], [3-1], [1-1]. Only 5 domino halves that contain 6 pips, need four for Blue 12 region and Yellow 12 region. Only 6 domino halves that contain 3 pips, at least one is required for Number 4 regions. Only 6 domino halves that contain 5 pips and 6 domino halves that contain 1 pips, [5-1] must placed in the boundary between Green Equal region and Light Blue Equal region.

2

Step 2: Blue 12 + Light Blue <4 + Green Equal + Blue <4 --(Arrows ①②③④⑤)

Confirmed by all regions and step 1 and relative position. Only 4 dominoes with 6 pips (6-6, 6-5, 6-2, 6-1). The domino halves in Blue 12 region must be 6+6. The domino halves in Green Equal region must be 1. The answer is 6-1, placed horizontally; 6-2 (2 into Light Blue <4 region), placed vertically; 1-1, placed vertically; 1-3 (3 into Blue <4 region), placed vertically; 1-5 (5 into Light Blue Equal region), placed vertically.

3

Step 3: Light Blue Equal + Purple >4 --(Arrows ⑥⑦⑧⑨)

The domino halves in Light Blue Equal region must be 5. Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes with 5 pips (6-5, 5-5, 5-3, 5-0). The answer is 5-5, placed horizontally; 5-6 (6 into Purple >4 region), placed vertically; 5-0 (0 up into blank), placed vertically; 5-3 (3 into Red Equal region), placed vertically.

4

Step 4: Red Equal + Yellow 12 --(Arrows ⑩⑪)

Confirmed by neighboring region and step 3 and remaining dominoes (6-6, 4-3, 4-2, 4-1, 3-3, 3-2). The domino halves in Red Equal region must be 3. The domino halves in Yellow 12 region must be 6+6. The answer is 3-3, placed horizontally; 6-6, placed horizontally.

5

Step 5: Green 4 + Yellow 4 + Purple 4 + Red 4 --(Arrows ⑫⑬⑭)

Confirmed by neighboring region and remaining dominoes (4-3, 4-2, 4-1, 3-2). [3-2] must placed in the boundary between Yellow 4 region and Purple 4 Equal region. e.g: The answer is 4-1 (4 into Green 4 region, 1 into Yellow 4 region), placed vertically; 3-2 (3 into Yellow 4 region, 2 into Purple 4 region), placed vertically; 2-4 (2 into Purple 4 region, 4 into Red 4 region), placed horizontally.

6

Step 6: Red Equal --(Arrows ⑮)

The answer is 3-4 (the last one 3s into Red Equal, 4 down into blank), placed vertically.

🎥 Sunday Domino Logic Breakdown｜Daily Domino Puzzle Solution & Pips Hints｜January 4, 2026

In this walkthrough, we slow the puzzle down and explain why each placement works.

💡 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

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🎮 How to Play

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