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Pips hints — Tuesday, May 12, 2026

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

Tuesday, May 12, 2026Archived board

The Easy grid runs to 6 regions and 5 tiles, with target-sum, 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

Easy
Your way in today is the amber region: one cell that must be more than 3. Only 3 pip combinations fit it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Easy
The 4–4 belongs across row 2, columns 2–3. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must add up to more than 3. The 4 half sits in the purple region, which must add up to exactly 6.
Reveal the full Easy answer

Easy solution — May 12, 2026

11
32
44
33
61

blue: 3 | purple (=6): 2 · 4 | green (=6): 3 · 3 | amber (>3): 4 | orange (=): 1 · 1 · 1 | slate: 6

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
BlueTake any value it likes1
Purple6 — Add up to exactly 62
Green6 — Add up to exactly 62
Amber>3 — Be more than 31
Orange= — Show the same number on every cell3
SlateTake any value it likes1

The Medium grid runs to 6 regions and 7 tiles, with target-sum, all-equal, 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.

Hint 1 — where to start

Medium
Your way in today is the amber region: two cells that must add up to less than 2. Only 3 pip combinations fit it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Medium
The 0–0 belongs across row 3, columns 2–3. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must add up to less than 2.

Hint 3

Medium
There is exactly one home for the 6–2: down column 1, rows 3–4. It is the only tile that works there, because purple must add up to exactly 9.
Reveal the full Medium answer

Medium solution — May 12, 2026

53
14
00
62
24
33
43

blue (=12): 3 · 1 · 4 · 4 | purple (=9): 3 · 6 | green (=): 3 · 3 | amber (<2): 0 · 0 | orange (=): 2 · 2 | slate (>5): 4 · 5

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue12 — Add up to exactly 124
Purple9 — Add up to exactly 92
Green= — Show the same number on every cell2
Amber<2 — Add up to less than 22
Orange= — Show the same number on every cell2
Slate>5 — Add up to more than 52

The Hard grid runs to 13 regions and 12 tiles, with target-sum, all-equal 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
Your way in today is the slate region: one cell that must be exactly 4. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Hard
The 5–4 belongs down column 2, rows 4–5. It is the only tile that works there, because slate must add up to exactly 4. The 5 half sits in the brown region, which must be more than 4.

Hint 3

Hard
There is exactly one home for the 2–1: across row 6, columns 2–3. It is the only tile that works there, because green must add up to exactly 1. The 2 half sits in the blue region, which must show the same number on every cell.

Hint 4

Hard
Lay the 0–1 down column 5, rows 3–4 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because pink must add up to exactly 0.
Reveal the full Hard answer

Hard solution — May 12, 2026

25
33
21
30
15
43
01
35
22
11
02
54

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

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue2 — Add up to exactly 22
Purple3 — Add up to exactly 32
Green6 — Add up to exactly 62
Amber= — Show the same number on every cell4
Orange2 — Add up to exactly 22
Slate4 — Be exactly 41
TealTake any value it likes1
Pink0 — Add up to exactly 02
Lime>4 — Be more than 41
Brown>4 — Be more than 41
Blue= — Show the same number on every cell4
Purple>4 — Be more than 41
Green1 — Be exactly 11
All hintsFull answers for this dayJun 28 →