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

Pips hints — Saturday, May 9, 2026

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

Saturday, May 9, 2026Archived board

The Easy grid runs to 7 regions and 5 tiles, with less-than, all-equal, greater-than and target-sum 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
The teal region is the anchor: one cell, and it must be exactly 2. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Easy
There is exactly one home for the 2–2: across row 4, columns 1–2. It is the only tile that works there, because teal must add up to exactly 2. The 2 half sits in the teal region, which must be exactly 2.
Reveal the full Easy answer

Easy solution — May 9, 2026

22
44
32
40
03

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

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue<2 — Be less than 21
Purple= — Show the same number on every cell2
GreenTake any value it likes1
Amber= — Show the same number on every cell2
Orange= — Show the same number on every cell2
Slate>2 — Be more than 21
Teal2 — Be exactly 21

The Medium grid runs to 9 regions and 8 tiles, with greater-than, all-equal, 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

Medium
The blue region is the anchor: one cell, and it must be more than 3. Only 3 pip combinations fit it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Medium
There is exactly one home for the 4–0: down column 6, rows 1–2. It is the only tile that works there, because blue must add up to more than 3. The 4 half sits in the blue region, which must be more than 3.

Hint 3

Medium
Lay the 1–0 down column 6, rows 3–4 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must add up to exactly 1. The 1 half sits in the pink region, which must add up to less than 3.
Reveal the full Medium answer

Medium solution — May 9, 2026

40
24
10
15
43
14
64
30

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

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue>3 — Be more than 31
Purple= — Show the same number on every cell2
Green>9 — Add up to more than 92
Amber1 — Add up to exactly 13
OrangeTake any value it likes1
Slate= — Show the same number on every cell2
Teal= — Show the same number on every cell2
Pink<3 — Add up to less than 32
LimeTake any value it likes1

The Hard grid runs to 14 regions and 15 tiles, with all-equal, target-sum, less-than and greater-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
The brown region is the anchor: one cell, and it must be exactly 5. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Hard
There is exactly one home for the 2–5: across row 6, columns 3–4. It is the only tile that works there, because brown must add up to exactly 5. The 2 half sits in the lime region, which must add up to exactly 4.

Hint 3

Hard
Lay the 3–6 down column 4, rows 9–10 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must add up to exactly 6. The 3 half sits in the green region, which must add up to exactly 6.

Hint 4

Hard
Place the 6–2 domino across row 4, columns 1–2. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must add up to exactly 12.
Reveal the full Hard answer

Hard solution — May 9, 2026

35
40
31
00
54
30
11
66
44
62
25
36
42
16
34

blue (=): 1 · 1 · 1 · 1 | purple (=): 0 · 0 | green (=6): 3 · 3 | amber (=12): 6 · 6 | orange (=5): 3 · 2 | slate (=): 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 | teal: 0 | pink (=10): 5 · 5 | lime (=4): 2 · 2 | brown (=5): 5 | blue (<3): 0 | purple (>8): 6 · 6 | green (=6): 3 · 3 | amber (=6): 6

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue= — Show the same number on every cell4
Purple= — Show the same number on every cell2
Green6 — Add up to exactly 62
Amber12 — Add up to exactly 122
Orange5 — Add up to exactly 52
Slate= — Show the same number on every cell6
TealTake any value it likes1
Pink10 — Add up to exactly 102
Lime4 — Add up to exactly 42
Brown5 — Be exactly 51
Blue<3 — Be less than 31
Purple>8 — Add up to more than 82
Green6 — Add up to exactly 62
Amber6 — Be exactly 61
All hintsFull answers for this dayJun 28 →