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

Pips hints — Sunday, July 12, 2026

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

Sunday, July 12, 2026Archived board

Today's Easy board has 5 dominoes across 8 regions, mixing greater-than and target-sum rules. 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 exactly 3. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Easy
The 3–1 belongs across row 4, columns 4–5. It is the only tile that works there, because pink must add up to exactly 9.
Reveal the full Easy answer

Easy solution — July 12, 2026

35
32
66
31
02

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

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
BlueTake any value it likes1
Purple>4 — Be more than 41
GreenTake any value it likes1
Amber3 — Be exactly 31
OrangeTake any value it likes1
Slate3 — Add up to exactly 32
TealTake any value it likes1
Pink9 — Add up to exactly 92

Today's Medium board has 7 dominoes across 8 regions, mixing target-sum and all-equal rules. 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 slate region: one cell that must be exactly 2. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Medium
The 2–5 belongs down column 3, rows 2–3. It is the only tile that works there, because green must add up to exactly 2.

Hint 3

Medium
There is exactly one home for the 4–1: across row 3, columns 1–2. 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 — July 12, 2026

25
20
41
00
53
01
04

blue: 0 | purple (=8): 5 · 3 | green (=2): 2 · 0 | amber (=): 4 · 4 | orange (=7): 1 · 5 · 1 | slate (=2): 2 | teal: 0 | pink (=): 0 · 0

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
BlueTake any value it likes1
Purple8 — Add up to exactly 82
Green2 — Add up to exactly 22
Amber= — Show the same number on every cell2
Orange7 — Add up to exactly 73
Slate2 — Be exactly 21
TealTake any value it likes1
Pink= — Show the same number on every cell2

Today's Hard board has 16 dominoes across 29 regions, mixing target-sum rules. 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 blue region: one cell that must be exactly 3. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

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

Hint 3

Hard
There is exactly one home for the 2–4: across row 8, columns 1–2. It is the only tile that works there, because slate must add up to exactly 2. The 2 half sits in the slate region, which must be exactly 2.

Hint 4

Hard
Lay the 4–5 down column 2, rows 1–2 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because slate must add up to exactly 4. The 4 half sits in the slate region, which must be exactly 4.
Reveal the full Hard answer

Hard solution — July 12, 2026

01
02
03
04
05
12
13
14
15
23
24
25
34
35
45
36

blue (=3): 3 | purple (=5): 5 | green (=0): 0 | amber (=2): 2 | orange (=2): 2 | slate (=4): 4 | teal (=4): 4 | pink (=2): 2 | lime (=5): 5 | brown (=1): 1 | blue (=18): 3 · 5 · 6 · 4 | purple (=0): 0 | green (=3): 3 | amber (=3): 3 | orange (=0): 0 | slate (=0): 0 | teal (=1): 1 | pink (=3): 3 | lime (=1): 1 | brown (=5): 5 | blue (=1): 1 | purple (=5): 5 | green (=1): 1 | amber (=2): 2 | orange (=3): 3 | slate (=2): 2 | teal (=4): 4 | pink (=4): 4 | lime (=0): 0

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue3 — Be exactly 31
Purple5 — Be exactly 51
Green0 — Be exactly 01
Amber2 — Be exactly 21
Orange2 — Be exactly 21
Slate4 — Be exactly 41
Teal4 — Be exactly 41
Pink2 — Be exactly 21
Lime5 — Be exactly 51
Brown1 — Be exactly 11
Blue18 — Add up to exactly 184
Purple0 — Be exactly 01
Green3 — Be exactly 31
Amber3 — Be exactly 31
Orange0 — Be exactly 01
Slate0 — Be exactly 01
Teal1 — Be exactly 11
Pink3 — Be exactly 31
Lime1 — Be exactly 11
Brown5 — Be exactly 51
Blue1 — Be exactly 11
Purple5 — Be exactly 51
Green1 — Be exactly 11
Amber2 — Be exactly 21
Orange3 — Be exactly 31
Slate2 — Be exactly 21
Teal4 — Be exactly 41
Pink4 — Be exactly 41
Lime0 — Be exactly 01
← Jul 11 All hintsFull answers for this dayJul 13 →