🚨 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
Ian Livengood designs today's easy around one blunt, generous idea: two less-than-1 regions that leave 0 as the only legal filler. Rather than hide that, he uses it as a welcome mat — the eye lands on the teal block in the bottom-left, sees three cells that can only hold nothing at all, and the 0/0 drops in almost before you have decided to look. His signature here is the bookend: the equals column standing at the top-right asks for the mirror image of the same stunt, one value repeated three times over, so the board teaches its own rule twice before a third tile is placed. It is a lovely bit of on-boarding for anyone new to the format.
Rodolfo Kurchan's medium is a lesson in reading the board by rows. The top-left corner is deliberately cramped — a sum-1 cell and a greater-than cell shoulder to shoulder — and between them they eliminate nearly every tile in the tray. What looks like clutter, the trio of free squares studding the lower half, is really breathing room he has left himself so the pairs across the right side can resolve one at a time. Note how each tile in his tray is spent exactly once on a different species of constraint: nothing here is decorative, and the doubles in particular are rationed out to the two regions that could not possibly accept anything else.
The hard is Kurchan at his most architectural. Nineteen regions, thirteen of them single cells, turn the grid into a lattice of fixed pips — you read it less like a domino puzzle and more like a crossword whose across clues are already filled in. The cleverest touch is the two sum-0 cells he plants at the centre and on the right: two separate tiles in the tray can carry a zero, so what actually cracks this NYT Pips hard is the placement of their partners, not the zeros themselves. Patience at the edges, then a satisfying sweep along the middle.
💡 Progressive Hints
Try these hints one at a time. Each hint becomes more specific to help you solve it yourself!
💡 Read the less-than regions first
Start with the two less-than-1 regions. A less-than-1 clue is the tightest instruction on the whole board — it does not merely narrow a cell down, it settles it outright. One of those regions is large enough to swallow an entire domino by itself, and that domino is your first placement of the day.
💡 The teal block wants a double
The teal less 1 block sits at the bottom-left in an L shape, and two of its three cells stand stacked in its left-hand column. That vertical pair is begging for the 0/0 double, while the third cell of the teal block, out to the right, still needs a zero of its own — and that one has to come from a different tile.
💡 Full answer for the easy
The 0/0 stands vertically in the teal block's left column — 0 in the upper cell, 0 in the lower cell. The 0/1 lies flat across the top of that block: 0 on the left in the teal block's top-right cell, 1 on the right in the lower cell of the pink equals pair. The 3/1 lies flat along the row above, 3 on the left in the uncoloured free square and 1 on the right in the pink pair's upper cell, giving pink its matching 1s. Finally the 5/5 stands vertically at the top of the purple equals column, 5 up and 5 down, and the 5/0 continues that column downward — 5 in the purple column's bottom cell, 0 in the orange less 1 singleton at the bottom-right corner.
💡 Begin at the bossiest corner
Head for the single-cell targets in the top-left. A sum-1 cell can only hold one thing, and the greater-than-2 cell beside it is barely more generous. Between them they hand you the first tile and — just as usefully — tell you which pips are already spoken for before you touch the pairs.
💡 The sum-4 pair has to be a double
The green sum 4 region in the bottom-right is a vertical pair of cells filled by a single tile, so its two halves must be equal. Scan the tray: only the 2/2 can make four that way, sitting 2 up and 2 down. Its fellow double, the 3/3, has an obvious home waiting in the orange equals pair across the centre of the board.
💡 Full answer for the medium
The 2/1 stands vertically in the left column, 1 up in the purple sum 1 corner and 2 down in the uncoloured square beneath it. The 4/0 lies flat at the bottom-left: 4 on the left in the purple greater 3 cell, 0 on the right in the lower cell of the teal less 3 pair. The 2/3 stands vertically with 3 up in the pink greater 2 and 2 down in the teal pair's upper cell, so teal reads 2 over 0. The 3/3 stands vertically through the orange equals pair, 3 in each half, while the 2/2 does the same through the green sum 4 pair. The 5/3 lies flat on the right, 3 on the left in the orange pair's right cell and 5 on the right in the blue sum 7's upper cell; the 2/0 finishes along the bottom, 0 on the left in the uncoloured square, 2 on the right in the blue pair's lower cell.
💡 Start where zero is the only option
Hunt for the sum-0 clues. A single cell that must total zero has exactly one legal occupant, and this board gives you two of them. Reading those first tells you which tiles in the tray carry a zero — and, just as importantly, where their partner halves are then forced to land.
💡 Both zeros leave home at once
The green sum 0 cell sits at the centre of the board, directly above the left half of the pink sum 9 pair. The 0/5 stands vertically there: 0 up in the green cell, 5 down in that left half of the pink pair. Its twin out on the right, the teal sum 0 cell, takes the 0 from the 3/0 laid flat, with the 3 left in the uncoloured square beside it.
💡 The equals block is the skeleton
The blue equals block down the left side needs three identical pips, and its top two cells sit side by side — a double's job. The 6/6 lies flat across them, 6 in the top-left cell and 6 in the top-right. The 2/6 reaches the block's third cell: 6 on the left dropping into the bottom-right cell of the block, 2 on the right into the lower cell of the green sum 6 pair beside it.
💡 The bottom-left corner unrolls
With a 2 already in the lower cell of the green sum 6 pair, its upper cell must be a 4, and the 4/3 lies flat there — 4 on the left up in the green pair, 3 on the right in the purple sum 3 singleton. On the other side of the board the pink sum 9 still wants a 4 in its right half, which the 4/5 supplies standing vertically, its 5 falling below into the left cell of the orange sum 6 pair.
💡 Full answer for the hard
0/5 vertical — 0 up in the green sum 0, 5 down in the left cell of the pink sum 9. 3/0 flat — 3 on the left in the uncoloured square, 0 on the right in the teal sum 0. 6/6 flat across the top two cells of the blue equals block, and 2/6 flat beneath it, 6 on the left into the block's bottom-right cell and 2 on the right into the lower cell of the green sum 6. 4/3 flat — 4 on the left in the green pair's upper cell, 3 on the right in the purple sum 3. 4/5 vertical — 4 up in the pink sum 9's right cell, 5 down in the orange sum 6's left cell; then 2/1 vertical — 2 up in the teal sum 2, 1 down in the orange sum 6's right cell. Along the middle row: 4/4 flat, 4 in the purple sum 4 with 4 in the pink sum 4 beside it; 6/4 flat, 6 on the left in the teal sum 6 and 4 on the right in the orange sum 4; 3/5 flat, 5 on the left in the orange sum 5 and 3 on the right in the blue sum 3. Top-right: 6/1 vertical, 6 up in the purple sum 6, 1 down in the pink less 2. Along the bottom: 3/3 flat inside the blue less 7 pair, and 4/1 flat inside the green sum 5 — 4 on the right, 1 on the left.
🎨 Pips Solver
Oct 30, 2026
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✅ 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: The less-1 block gives itself away
The teal less 1 block in the bottom-left corner holds three cells, and every one of them must stay below 1 — which in pip terms means 0, the only value that fits. Two of those cells stand stacked in the block's left-hand column, so the 0/0 double takes them: 0 in the upper cell, 0 in the lower cell. The orange less 1 singleton at the bottom-right is asking for a 0 as well; it just has to wait for a different tile.
2
Step 2: Three cells, one value, top-right
The purple equals column at the top-right is three cells that must all match. The 5/5 double claims the two upper cells, 5 in the top one and 5 in the middle one. That leaves the column's bottom cell needing the same value — and after the double is spent, the only tile left in the tray carrying a matching pip is the 5/0.
3
Step 3: One tile, two constraints
Stand the 5/0 vertically: 5 up in the bottom cell of the purple column, 0 down in the orange less 1 cell at the bottom-right corner. That single placement closes the equals column and satisfies the last less-1 region in the same stroke — the reason Livengood's small boards feel so tidy.
4
Step 4: Pink pairs up and the free square takes a 3
The third teal cell, out to the right of its block, still needs a 0, and the 0/1 is the last tile with one to offer: lay it flat with 0 on the left in the teal block's top-right cell and 1 on the right in the lower cell of the pink equals pair. Pink now wants a partner 1, which the 3/1 provides from the row above — 1 on the right in the pink pair's upper cell, 3 on the left in the uncoloured free square, the one cell on this board with no rule attached.
🔧 Step-by-Step Answer Walkthrough For Medium Level
1
Step 1: The corner that cannot argue
The purple sum 1 cell in the top-left admits exactly one pip: 1. The tray has a single tile carrying a 1, the 2/1, and it stands vertically in the left column — 1 up in the purple corner, 2 down in the uncoloured square directly beneath it. One tile placed, and 1 is now off the table for every other region.
2
Step 2: Teal's pair meets the greater-than corner
The teal less 3 pair in the bottom-left insists that both of its cells stay under three. The purple greater 3 singleton sits immediately to its left and demands the opposite — something above three. The 4/0 answers both, lying flat: 4 on the left in the purple greater 3 cell, 0 on the right in the lower cell of the teal pair, legal only because teal tolerates anything below three.
3
Step 3: The last small pip climbs into pink
With 0 and 1 already used, the only pip left under three is a 2, so the teal pair's upper cell must be a 2. That means the 2/3 stands vertically through that slot: 2 down in the teal pair's upper cell, 3 up in the pink greater 2 singleton above it, comfortably clearing a clue that only asks for more than two. Teal now reads 2 over 0 and is finished.
4
Step 4: The doubles spend themselves
Two doubles remain in the tray. The green sum 4 pair in the bottom-right is a vertical slot filled by one tile, so its halves must be equal and add to four — only the 2/2 can do that, 2 in the upper cell and 2 in the lower. The orange equals pair across the centre is a horizontal slot needing a double of its own, so the 3/3 stands vertically through it, 3 in the left cell, 3 in the right, with its lower half lodging in the uncoloured square below.
5
Step 5: Seven in the bottom-right, then the leftovers
The blue sum 7 pair still needs filling, and by now only the 5/3 and the 2/0 are unused. Five plus two makes seven, so the 5/3 lies flat with its 5 on the right in the blue pair's upper cell and its 3 on the left in the right cell of the orange equals pair, completing that trio of 3s. The 2/0 closes the board along the bottom row: 0 on the left in the uncoloured square, 2 on the right in the blue pair's lower cell.
🔧 Step-by-Step Answer Walkthrough For Hard Level
1
Step 1: Two zeros that have nowhere else to go
Two regions here are single cells asking for a sum of 0, and pips never go negative — each can only hold a 0. The tray carries exactly two tiles with a zero, the 0/5 and the 3/0, so both are accounted for before anything else moves. The 0/5 stands vertically with its 0 up in the green sum 0 cell at the centre and its 5 down in the left half of the pink sum 9 pair directly beneath. The 3/0 lies flat out on the right: 0 in the teal sum 0 cell, 3 in the uncoloured square immediately to its left.
2
Step 2: The equals block gets its skeleton
The blue equals block down the left side needs three identical pips. Its top two cells sit side by side, which is a double's job: the 6/6 lies flat, 6 in the top-left cell and 6 in the top-right. The block's third cell tucks below the top-right one, and the 2/6 reaches it — 6 on the left going into that bottom-right cell of the block, 2 on the right going into the lower cell of the green sum 6 pair beside it.
3
Step 3: Green's pair resolves and purple follows
The green sum 6 pair now reads 4 over 2, because its lower cell was taken by the 2 on that last tile and the upper must therefore be a four. The 4/3 lies flat through it: 4 on the left in the green pair's upper cell, 3 on the right in the purple sum 3 singleton next door. Two regions close at once, and the equals block is complete at three matching pips.
4
Step 4: Pink's nine and the orange pair beneath
The pink sum 9 pair already holds a 5 in its left half, courtesy of the very first tile placed. Its right half therefore needs a four, which the 4/5 supplies standing vertically — 4 up in the pink pair's right cell, 5 down in the left cell of the orange sum 6 pair. That leaves the orange pair wanting a 1 in its right cell, and the 2/1 brings it, also standing vertically: 2 up in the teal sum 2 singleton, 1 down in the orange pair's right cell.
5
Step 5: The sweep along the middle row
Now work across the crowded centre, where single-cell targets sit in a line. The purple sum 4 and the pink sum 4 are shoulder to shoulder, an obvious berth for the 4/4 double lying flat with 4 in each half. Further right the teal sum 6 and the orange sum 4 are neighbours, and the 6/4 lies flat between them: 6 on the left in the teal cell, 4 on the right in the orange cell. To their left the orange sum 5 and the blue sum 3 pair up on the 3/5 — 5 on the left in the orange cell, 3 on the right in the blue cell.
6
Step 6: The last two corners close the grid
Up in the top-right the purple sum 6 cell has the pink less 2 cell directly below it, and that vertical stack takes the 6/1 standing upright: 6 in the purple cell, 1 in the pink less 2 cell, comfortably under two. Along the bottom, the blue less 7 pair is the natural berth for the remaining double, the 3/3 lying flat with 3 in each half, and the green sum 5 pair takes the 4/1 flat alongside — 4 on the right, 1 on the left.
💡 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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