Monday brings a fresh set of NYT Pips puzzles to kick off the week. This Monday's set offers a balanced mix of logic and constraint satisfaction, with the same core puzzle layout escalating in strategic demands across Easy, Medium, and Hard. We've got hints, step-by-step walkthroughs, and full solutions for all three difficulty levels.
How to Play Pips
Pips is a domino placement puzzle where you fill a grid of color-coded zones. Each zone has a condition you must satisfy using the pip values on your dominoes. The twist: you must use every domino and meet every condition to win.
Zone Conditions:
- = All pips in this zone must equal the same number
- Not Equal All pips must be different numbers
- > Pips must be greater than the listed number
- < Pips must be less than the listed number
- Exact Number Pips must total that exact value
- No Color Free space, any domino value works
Click or tap dominoes to rotate them. Each puzzle has one or more valid solutions.
Today's Easy Pips
Today's Medium Pips
Today's Hard Pips
Quick Hints (No Spoilers)
Starting Point: The left board's purple (=) zone is your most restrictive condition. Figure out which domino doubles you have available and how they can fill this zone before committing to placements elsewhere.
Key Insight: The right board has multiple overlapping constraints. The navy (10) zone spans multiple cells, and you will need to track running totals across dominoes that straddle zone boundaries. The teal (>4) zone is the final gatekeeper.
Watch Out For: The green (3) zone on the right board is easy to overshoot. Dominoes from adjacent zones feed into it, so check cumulative totals before placing each piece. One wrong domino here can cascade errors through the navy (10) and teal (>4) zones.
Step-by-Step Walkthrough
- 1.Start on the left board. The pink (10) zone is a single-cell exact sum. The only domino that hits 10 exactly is the 5/5 double. Place it horizontally to lock in this zone immediately.
- 2.The purple (3) zone needs a total of 3. Place the 3/4 domino vertically so the 3 lands in the purple zone and the 4 extends into the green (4) zone below. This satisfies both zones in one move.
- 3.The teal (3) zone also needs a total of 3. Place the 3/0 domino horizontally, with the 3 in the teal zone and the 0 feeding into the purple (=) zone.
- 4.Now the purple (=) zone has a 0 placed. This zone requires all pips to be equal, so you need doubles that match. Place the 0/0 domino vertically in the purple (=) zone, then place the 2/2 domino vertically to fill the remaining cells.
- 5.Move to the middle board. Place the 5/4 domino vertically. The 5 (>4) satisfies the pink (>4) zone, and the 4 (>3) satisfies the orange (>3) zone below it. Clean two-zone coverage.
- 6.The pink (>10) zone on the middle board is a single cell requiring a sum greater than 10. Only the 6/6 double (sum 12) works. Place it vertically here.
- 7.Transition to the right board. The teal (4) zone needs an exact sum of 4. Place the 4/0 domino vertically so the 4 lands in the teal zone.
- 8.The orange (3) zone needs an exact sum of 3. Place the 3/1 domino horizontally so the 3 occupies the orange zone and the 1 extends into the navy (4) zone to its right.
- 9.The navy (10) zone is a multi-cell zone. Start building its total. Place the 5/1 domino horizontally so both values land in the navy (10) zone, with the 1 on the right side extending into the green (3) zone.
- 10.The green (3) zone now has a 1 from the previous placement. It needs a total of 3, so you need exactly 2 more. Place the 3/2 domino vertically with the 3 in the navy (4) zone and the 2 in the green (3) zone. This gives green a total of 1+2=3, satisfying the condition.
- 11.Finally, the remaining navy (10) zone cells and the teal (>4) zone. Place the 5/6 domino vertically so the 5 contributes to the navy (10) total and the 6 (>4) satisfies the teal (>4) zone.
Hard Pips Solution
Last chance to solve independently
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- 1.Place the 3/4 domino vertically in the purple (3) zone and green (4) zone
- 2.Place the 5/5 domino horizontally in the pink (10) zone
- 3.Place the 3/0 domino horizontally in the teal (3) zone and purple (=) zone
- 4.Place the 0/0 domino vertically in the purple (=) zone
- 5.Place the 2/2 domino vertically in the purple (=) zone
- 6.Place the 5/4 domino vertically in the pink (>4) zone and orange (>3) zone
- 7.Place the 6/6 domino vertically in the pink (>10) zone
- 8.Place the 4/0 domino vertically in the teal (4) zone
- 9.Place the 3/1 domino horizontally in the orange (3) zone and navy (4) zone
- 10.Place the 5/1 domino horizontally in the navy (10) zone and green (3) zone
- 11.Place the 3/2 domino vertically in the navy (4) zone and green (3) zone
- 12.Place the 5/6 domino vertically in the navy (10) zone and teal (>4) zone
Puzzle Debrief
Overall Difficulty: Moderate challenge with a consistent layout across all three tiers. The puzzle structure repeats the same zone configuration, so mastering the logic on Easy directly prepares you for the harder variants.
Trickiest Puzzle: Hard - The purple (=) zone on the left board is the main bottleneck. Managing the equal-pips condition while feeding correct values into adjacent zones requires forward-thinking placement, and one misstep with the doubles can break the entire left board.
Our Take: Today's set is a solid Monday workout. The same board layout across difficulties means you are refining your approach rather than learning new patterns, which makes the progression from Easy to Hard feel earned. The purple (=) zone is the star of the show -- it forces you to think about domino orientation before you have placed a single tile. Tomorrow's Pips drops at midnight. See you then.
