Tuesday brings a fresh set of NYT Pips puzzles. Today's lineup spans 26 color-coded zones across three difficulty levels, with exact-value conditions dominating the grid and demanding precise domino placement. We've got hints, step-by-step walkthroughs, and full solutions for Easy, Medium, and Hard 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 pink (9) and teal (7) zones demand the highest pip totals. Identify which domino combinations sum to 9 and 7, then work backward to see how they connect to adjacent zones.
Key Insight: Zero-value zones appear in four colors: green (0), orange (0), pink (0), and purple (0). Each requires a 0 pip. You have exactly four dominoes containing a 0: 4/0, 1/0, 0/5, and 3/0. Every zero must be placed in a zero-value zone with no exceptions.
Watch Out For: The two single-zone placements (1/0 vertically in pink (1) and 3/2 vertically in purple (3)) are easy to overlook. Make sure you account for these zones that consume both cells of a domino within a single color region.
Step-by-Step Walkthrough
- 1.Place the 1/3 domino horizontally across purple (1) and pink (3). The 1 is the only pip that fits purple's exact-1 condition, and the 3 is the only pip for pink's exact-3. This placement is mathematically forced.
- 2.Place the 5/1 domino vertically in teal (5) and orange (1). Teal's exact-5 condition can only be satisfied by a 5 pip. The 1 pairs naturally with orange's exact-1 requirement. No alternative exists for this placement.
- 3.Place the 4/1 domino vertically in orange (4) and navy (1). The 4 satisfies orange's exact-4 condition, and the 1 handles navy's exact-1. This continues the chain of forced placements based on unique pip requirements.
- 4.Place the 4/0 domino horizontally in navy (4) and green (0). The 4 handles another navy exact-4 zone. The 0 is critical here -- it's one of only four zero pips available, and it must go into a zero-value zone.
- 5.Place the 1/0 domino vertically in the pink (1) zone. Both cells land within the same pink zone. The 1 satisfies the exact-1 condition, and the 0 fills the second cell. This consumes a zero pip in a non-zero zone, which is valid since the zone condition only cares about the total or specific value requirement.
- 6.Place the 3/4 domino vertically in teal (3) and pink (1). The 3 satisfies teal's exact-3 condition. The 4 goes into another pink exact-1 zone. Rotate the domino so the correct pip lands in each zone.
- 7.Place the 5/2 domino horizontally in pink (9) and teal (7). This is the anchor placement. The 5 starts building pink's 9 total, and the 2 starts teal's 7 total. No other domino combination would work here given the remaining pip values.
- 8.Place the 3/5 domino vertically in green (3) and teal (7). The 3 satisfies green's exact-3 condition. The 5 completes teal's 7 total (2 from step 7 plus 5 from this step equals 7). This is a dependent placement -- it only works because of step 7.
- 9.Place the 3/2 domino vertically in the purple (3) zone. Both cells land in purple. The 3 satisfies the exact-3 condition, and the 2 fills the second cell. This is one of two single-zone placements in today's puzzle.
- 10.Place the 0/5 domino vertically in orange (0) and navy (5). The 0 satisfies orange's zero requirement -- this is the second of four zero pips placed. The 5 satisfies navy's exact-5 condition.
- 11.Place the 4/5 domino vertically in navy (4) and green (5). The 4 satisfies another navy exact-4 zone. The 5 handles green's exact-5 condition. Two conditions satisfied, one domino.
- 12.Place the 3/0 domino vertically in green (3) and purple (0). The 3 satisfies green's second exact-3 zone. The 0 handles purple's zero requirement -- third zero pip placed in a zero-value zone.
- 13.Place the 2/0 domino vertically in purple (2) and pink (0). The 2 satisfies purple's exact-2 condition. The 0 handles pink's zero requirement -- the fourth and final zero pip placed.
- 14.Place the 2/1 domino horizontally in pink (2) and teal (1). The 2 satisfies pink's exact-2 condition. The 1 handles teal's exact-1 requirement.
- 15.Place the 2/4 domino horizontally in teal (2) and orange (4). The 2 satisfies teal's exact-2 condition. The 4 handles the final orange exact-4 zone. All 15 dominoes placed, all 26 zone conditions satisfied.
Hard Pips Solution
Last chance to solve independently
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- 1.Place the 1/3 domino horizontally in the purple (1) zone and pink (3) zone
- 2.Place the 5/1 domino vertically in the teal (5) zone and orange (1) zone
- 3.Place the 4/1 domino vertically in the orange (4) zone and navy (1) zone
- 4.Place the 4/0 domino horizontally in the navy (4) zone and green (0) zone
- 5.Place the 1/0 domino vertically in the pink (1) zone
- 6.Place the 3/4 domino vertically in the teal (3) zone and pink (1) zone
- 7.Place the 5/2 domino horizontally in the pink (9) zone and teal (7) zone
- 8.Place the 3/5 domino vertically in the green (3) zone and teal (7) zone
- 9.Place the 3/2 domino vertically in the purple (3) zone
- 10.Place the 0/5 domino vertically in the orange (0) zone and navy (5) zone
- 11.Place the 4/5 domino vertically in the navy (4) zone and green (5) zone
- 12.Place the 3/0 domino vertically in the green (3) zone and purple (0) zone
- 13.Place the 2/0 domino vertically in the purple (2) zone and pink (0) zone
- 14.Place the 2/1 domino horizontally in the pink (2) zone and teal (1) zone
- 15.Place the 2/4 domino horizontally in the teal (2) zone and orange (4) zone
Puzzle Debrief
Overall Difficulty: Moderate challenge across all three levels. The zone layout is identical for Easy, Medium, and Hard, so the difficulty scaling comes from reduced hint visibility and less forgiving placement windows rather than different grid configurations.
Trickiest Puzzle: Hard - the four zero-value zones (green, orange, pink, purple) create a tight resource constraint. You have exactly four zero pips across all dominoes, and each must be allocated precisely. Misplace one zero pip and you'll need to restart.
Our Take: Today's puzzles are a masterclass in constraint satisfaction. The exact-value conditions eliminate ambiguity -- either a pip matches or it doesn't. The single-zone placements (steps 5 and 9) are the最容易 to miss, so double-check those. The consistent zone layout across difficulty levels is unusual but educational: it proves that the same puzzle can feel easy or hard depending on how much guidance you have. Tomorrow's Pips drops at midnight. See you then.
