NYT Pips HelperWednesday, August 26, 2026
Hints, answers & a solver for the New York Times Pips puzzle
Today's hintHint archiveAll answers

Pips hints — Wednesday, May 6, 2026

An archived puzzle. Pick your difficulty for a spoiler-safe nudge, then reveal the full board if you want it.

Wednesday, May 6, 2026Archived board

The Easy grid runs to 6 regions and 5 tiles, with target-sum and less-than rules in play. We give you a light nudge first — enough to get unstuck without spoiling the fun — and the full answer only when you ask for it.

Hint 1 — where to start

Easy
Look at the amber region first. Across one cell it has to be exactly 6. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Easy
Lay the 6–1 down column 1, rows 2–3 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must add up to exactly 6. The 6 half sits in the amber region, which must be exactly 6.
Reveal the full Easy answer

Easy solution — May 6, 2026

65
46
55
61
25

blue (=15): 5 · 5 · 5 | purple (=3): 1 · 2 | green (<5): 4 | amber (=6): 6 | orange (=12): 6 · 6 | slate: 5

Prefer to watch it worked out step by step? Try the Pips Solver.

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue15 — Add up to exactly 153
Purple3 — Add up to exactly 32
Green<5 — Be less than 51
Amber6 — Be exactly 61
Orange12 — Add up to exactly 122
SlateTake any value it likes1

The Medium grid runs to 7 regions and 7 tiles, with less-than, greater-than and all-equal rules in play. We give you a light nudge first — enough to get unstuck without spoiling the fun — and the full answer only when you ask for it.

Hint 1 — where to start

Medium
Look at the purple region first. Across one cell it has to be more than 3. Only 3 pip combinations fit it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Medium
Lay the 6–4 across row 2, columns 1–2 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because purple must add up to more than 3. The 6 half sits in the green region, which must show the same number on every cell.

Hint 3

Medium
Place the 4–4 domino across row 2, columns 4–5. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must show the same number on every cell.
Reveal the full Medium answer

Medium solution — May 6, 2026

44
36
00
64
22
04
62

blue (<7): 0 · 0 · 3 | purple (>3): 4 | green (=): 6 · 6 | amber (=): 4 · 4 · 4 | orange (=): 2 · 2 · 2 | slate: 6 | teal (<6): 0

Prefer to watch it worked out step by step? Try the Pips Solver.

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue<7 — Add up to less than 73
Purple>3 — Be more than 31
Green= — Show the same number on every cell2
Amber= — Show the same number on every cell3
Orange= — Show the same number on every cell3
SlateTake any value it likes1
Teal<6 — Be less than 61

The Hard grid runs to 16 regions and 15 tiles, with target-sum, all-equal, greater-than and less-than rules in play. We give you a light nudge first — enough to get unstuck without spoiling the fun — and the full answer only when you ask for it.

Hard is where most players get stuck.We break it into small, spoiler-safe nudges so you can stop the moment you’re unstuck.

Hint 1 — where to start

Hard
Look at the green region first. Across one cell it has to be exactly 4. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Hard
Lay the 2–4 down column 5, rows 1–2 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because green must add up to exactly 4. The 2 half sits in the slate region, which must show the same number on every cell.

Hint 3

Hard
Place the 3–2 domino down column 6, rows 1–2. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must add up to exactly 3. The 3 half sits in the amber region, which must be exactly 3.

Hint 4

Hard
The 2–1 belongs across row 2, columns 3–4. It is the only tile that works there, because orange must add up to exactly 1. The 2 half sits in the slate region, which must show the same number on every cell.
Reveal the full Hard answer

Hard solution — May 6, 2026

21
60
53
00
31
24
33
44
30
52
43
10
32
66
14

blue (=9): 3 · 6 | purple (=0): 0 · 0 · 0 · 0 · 0 | green (=4): 4 | amber (=3): 3 | orange (=1): 1 | slate (=): 2 · 2 · 2 | teal (=): 4 · 4 · 4 | pink (>3): 4 | lime (<3): 2 | brown (=2): 1 · 1 | blue (<4): 3 | purple (=5): 5 | green (=): 6 · 6 | amber (=): 3 · 3 · 3 · 3 | orange (=1): 1 | slate (=5): 5

Prefer to watch it worked out step by step? Try the Pips Solver.

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue9 — Add up to exactly 92
Purple0 — Add up to exactly 05
Green4 — Be exactly 41
Amber3 — Be exactly 31
Orange1 — Be exactly 11
Slate= — Show the same number on every cell3
Teal= — Show the same number on every cell3
Pink>3 — Be more than 31
Lime<3 — Be less than 31
Brown2 — Add up to exactly 22
Blue<4 — Be less than 41
Purple5 — Be exactly 51
Green= — Show the same number on every cell2
Amber= — Show the same number on every cell4
Orange1 — Be exactly 11
Slate5 — Be exactly 51
All hintsFull answers for this dayJun 28 →