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

Pips hints — Thursday, July 16, 2026

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

Thursday, July 16, 2026Archived board

The Easy grid runs to 5 regions and 5 tiles, with 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
Look at the blue region first. Across one cell it has to be more than 5. Only 1 pip combination fits it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Easy
The 6–6 belongs down column 1, rows 1–2. It is the only tile that works there, because blue must add up to more than 5. The 6 half sits in the blue region, which must be more than 5.
Reveal the full Easy answer

Easy solution — July 16, 2026

55
66
41
33
00

blue (>5): 6 | purple (=6): 3 · 3 | green (=1): 0 · 0 · 1 | amber (=16): 6 · 5 · 5 | orange: 4

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue>5 — Be more than 51
Purple6 — Add up to exactly 62
Green1 — Add up to exactly 13
Amber16 — Add up to exactly 163
OrangeTake any value it likes1

The Medium grid runs to 7 regions and 7 tiles, with target-sum 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 blue region first. Across two cells it has to add up to exactly 10. Only 3 pip combinations fit it at all, which is why it gives way first.

Hint 2

Medium
The 5–5 belongs across row 1, columns 1–2. It is the only tile that works there, because blue must add up to exactly 10.

Hint 3

Medium
There is exactly one home for the 4–5: down column 2, rows 3–4. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must add up to exactly 10. The 4 half sits in the slate region, which must add up to exactly 10.
Reveal the full Medium answer

Medium solution — July 16, 2026

36
55
15
45
33
06
14

blue (=10): 5 · 5 | purple: 1 | green (=): 3 · 3 · 3 | amber (=10): 5 · 5 | orange (=10): 6 · 4 | slate (=10): 4 · 6 · 0 | teal: 1

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

What each region asks for

RegionRuleCells
Blue10 — Add up to exactly 102
PurpleTake any value it likes1
Green= — Show the same number on every cell3
Amber10 — Add up to exactly 102
Orange10 — Add up to exactly 102
Slate10 — Add up to exactly 103
TealTake any value it likes1

The Hard grid runs to 14 regions and 15 tiles, with all-equal, less-than, 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.

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 purple 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

Hard
The 0–6 belongs across row 4, columns 7–8. It is the only tile that works there, because purple must add up to exactly 6. The 0 half sits in the lime region, which must show the same number on every cell.

Hint 3

Hard
There is exactly one home for the 0–1: down column 5, rows 5–6. It is the only tile that works there, because amber must add up to exactly 1. The 0 half sits in the blue region, which must add up to exactly 2.

Hint 4

Hard
Lay the 3–5 across row 2, columns 7–8 — no guesswork needed. It is the only tile that works there, because slate must add up to more than 3. The 3 half sits in the green region, which must show the same number on every cell.
Reveal the full Hard answer

Hard solution — July 16, 2026

00
01
02
03
04
05
06
11
13
14
23
24
33
35
44

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

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 cell3
Purple= — Show the same number on every cell3
Green= — Show the same number on every cell3
Amber<3 — Be less than 31
Orange<3 — Be less than 31
Slate>3 — Be more than 31
Teal>4 — Be more than 41
Pink= — Show the same number on every cell4
Lime= — Show the same number on every cell5
Brown<3 — Add up to less than 33
Blue2 — Add up to exactly 22
Purple6 — Be exactly 61
GreenTake any value it likes1
Amber1 — Be exactly 11
← Jul 15 All hintsFull answers for this dayJul 17 →