Updated for October 22, 2026. New hints go up when the puzzle changes at midnight Eastern time.
Pips has three boards a day. Each section below starts with a nudge and ends with the full solved board.
Welcome to today’s Pips puzzle trio. Easy, medium, and hard are ready when you are.
Easy board
5 dominoes, 5 rule sections.
| 6 | |||
| >4 | |||
| = | 6 | ||
| 6 |
Easy hint 1: The rule sections
- 2 cells that add up to 6
- 1 cell over 4
- 2 cells that are all the same number
- 2 cells that add up to 6
- 2 cells that add up to 6
Easy hint 2: Where one domino goes
Place the 0|5 domino so the 0 sits in row 3, column 3 and the 5 sits in row 2, column 3.
Show the solved easy board
| 63 | |||
| 3 | >45 | ||
| =0 | 0 | 60 | 6 |
| 4 | 60 | 6 |
Each number is the pip count on that square. Blank squares are not part of the board.
Medium board
7 dominoes, 7 rule sections.
| 6 | |||
| <6 | |||
| = | 7 | ||
| ≠ | 0 | ||
| 1 |
Medium hint 1: The rule sections
- 2 cells that add up to 6
- 2 cells that add up to less than 6
- 2 cells that are all the same number
- 2 cells that add up to 7
- 3 cells that are all different
- 1 cell showing 0
- 1 cell showing 1
Medium hint 2: Where one domino goes
Place the 4|3 domino so the 4 sits in row 4, column 2 and the 3 sits in row 4, column 3.
Show the solved medium board
| 64 | 2 | ||
| <64 | 1 | 3 | |
| =6 | 6 | 75 | 2 |
| ≠4 | 3 | 00 | |
| 5 | 11 |
Each number is the pip count on that square. Blank squares are not part of the board.
Hard board
11 dominoes, 13 rule sections.
| ≠ | 2 | 6 | <2 | |||||
| 9 | 2 | 0 | ||||||
| 2 | 6 | |||||||
| = | 2 | ≠ | ||||||
| 2 | ||||||||
Hard hint 1: The rule sections
- 3 cells that are all different
- 1 cell showing 2
- 2 cells that add up to 6
- 2 cells that add up to less than 2
- 2 cells that add up to 9
- 1 cell showing 2
- 1 cell showing 0
- 1 cell showing 2
- 1 cell showing 6
- 2 cells that are all the same number
- 1 cell showing 2
- 3 cells that are all different
- 1 cell showing 2
Hard hint 2: Where one domino goes
Place the 4|6 domino so the 4 sits in row 4, column 7 and the 6 sits in row 3, column 7.
Show the solved hard board
| ≠4 | 0 | 6 | 22 | 60 | 6 | <20 | 1 | |
| 94 | 22 | 00 | ||||||
| 5 | 22 | 4 | 66 | |||||
| =1 | 22 | ≠4 | ||||||
| 1 | 22 | 1 | ||||||
| 3 |
Each number is the pip count on that square. Blank squares are not part of the board.
Play today's Pips at The New York Times
Recent Pips hints
Pips questions
How does Pips work?
You place dominoes on a board so that every colored region meets its rule, such as adding up to a number or having all equal pips. Every domino must be used.
What do the region symbols mean?
A number means the pips in that region add up to it. An equals sign means all pips match, a not-equal sign means they all differ, and less-than or greater-than signs set a limit on the total.
How many puzzles are there each day?
Three: easy, medium and hard. They use different boards and domino sets.
When does the new Pips come out?
A new set of boards appears at midnight local time each day.
Where should I start a Pips board?
Start with the tightest rules: single-cell regions, small sums and regions where only one domino can fit. They usually force the first placements.