Pips hints and answers for Sunday, October 4, 2026
Pips is the NYT domino logic game: place every domino from the tray so that each colored region obeys its rule - a number means the pips in that region add to it, an equals region means every half in it matches, and a not-equal region means no two halves match. Sunday's three boards were edited by Ian Livengood: an Easy board by Livengood with just 4 dominoes, a Medium board by Rodolfo Kurchan with 7 dominoes, and a Hard board also by Kurchan with 14 dominoes. Each board gets its own hint ladder below, then its solved grid behind a tap.
Easy board - hints
Hint 0 of 3By Ian Livengood · Tap to show one hint at a time.
A tiny board with just four regions: the pair across the top row, columns 1-2, must match each other, the pair standing in column 3, rows 1-2, must add to 9, the pair standing in column 1, rows 2-3, must add to 7, and the pair across row 3, columns 2-3, must add to 9.
The equals pair is all 2s, arriving on two dominoes: the 2-2 domino standing in column 1, rows 1-2, gives the top cell, and the 2 at row 1, column 2 is the end of the 4-2 domino lying across the top row, columns 2-3, whose 4 starts the sum-9 column. The sum-7 column reads 2 over 5: the bottom of the 2-2 domino over the 5 at the start of the 5-6 domino lying across row 3, columns 1-2.
The sum-9 column is completed by the 5 at row 2, column 3, the bottom of the 3-5 domino standing in column 3, rows 2-3, whose 3 at row 3 completes the bottom sum-9 pair beside the 6 at the end of the 5-6 domino.
The Easy solution
The solved Easy board: every cell shows its pip count, then the placements and a check of every region rule.
Placements: 2-2 down column 1, rows 1-2 · 4-2 across row 1, columns 2-3 · 3-5 down column 3, rows 2-3 · 5-6 across row 3, columns 1-2
- All equal 2 = 2
- Adds to 9 4 + 5
- Adds to 7 2 + 5
- Adds to 9 6 + 3
Medium board - hints
Hint 0 of 3By Rodolfo Kurchan · Tap to show one hint at a time.
Start with the two group regions: the three cells across row 2, columns 2-4, must all be different from each other, and the four cells at row 3, columns 2-4, plus row 4, column 2, must all match. Single cells carry their own rules: row 1, column 4 must be less than 3, row 3, column 1 must beat 3, and row 4, column 1 must add to exactly 1, while the pinned cells at row 5 must add to exactly 2 in column 3 and exactly 1 in column 4.
The four-cell equals region is all 5s, arriving on three dominoes: the 6-5 domino lying across row 3, columns 1-2, the 5-5 domino lying across row 3, columns 3-4, and the 5-1 domino lying across row 4, columns 1-2, whose 5 sits at column 2 and whose 1 fills the pinned sum-1 cell. The unequal row reads 3, 5, 4: the 5-3 domino lying across row 2, columns 2-3, and the 4 at row 2, column 4, from the 4-2 domino standing in column 4, rows 1-2, whose 2 fills the less-than-3 cell at the top.
The greater-than-3 cell at row 3, column 1 is the 6 of the 6-5 domino. At the bottom, the 2-3 domino standing in column 3, rows 4-5, puts its 2 in the pinned sum-2 cell and its 3 in the empty cell above, and the 1-3 domino standing in column 4, rows 4-5, puts its 1 in the pinned sum-1 cell and its 3 in the other empty cell.
The Medium solution
The solved Medium board: every cell shows its pip count, then the placements and a check of every region rule.
Placements: 4-2 down column 4, rows 1-2 · 5-3 across row 2, columns 2-3 · 6-5 across row 3, columns 1-2 · 5-5 across row 3, columns 3-4 · 5-1 across row 4, columns 1-2 · 2-3 down column 3, rows 4-5 · 1-3 down column 4, rows 4-5
- Less than 3 2 = 2
- All different 3, 5, 4
- Greater than 3 6 = 6
- All equal 5 = 5 = 5 = 5
- Adds to 1 1
- Adds to 2 2
- Adds to 1 1
- No rule 2 cells in blank regions, free to take any value
Hard board - hints
Hint 0 of 3By Rodolfo Kurchan · Tap to show one hint at a time.
Work the pinned cells first: row 2, column 2 must add to exactly 2, row 2, column 6 to exactly 2, row 5, column 5 to exactly 0, and row 6, column 3 to exactly 3. Around them: the pair across the top row, columns 1-2, must add to 3, the pair standing in column 3, rows 1-2, to 8, the pair across the top row, columns 5-6, to 3, the pair across row 6, columns 1-2, to 3, and the pair across row 2, columns 4-5, must be unequal while row 4, column 4 must be less than 2, row 1, column 4 must be less than 2, and row 5, column 2 must beat 5. Two equals regions must match within themselves: the three cells standing in column 1, rows 2-4, and the three cells standing in column 6, rows 3-5.
The column 1 equals region is all 4s, arriving on two dominoes: the 3-4 domino standing in column 1, rows 1-2, with its 4 at the bottom, and the 4-4 domino standing in column 1, rows 3-4. The column 6 equals region is all 2s: the 2-2 domino standing in column 6, rows 3-4, and the 2 at row 5, column 6, the top of the 4-2 domino standing in column 6, rows 5-6, whose 4 sits in the empty cell at row 6. The top sum-3 pair reads 3 beside 0: the 3 of the 3-4 domino and the 0 at the top of the 2-0 domino standing in column 2, rows 1-2, whose 2 fills the pinned 2 below it.
The sum-8 column is the 5-3 domino standing in column 3, rows 1-2. Across the top, the less-than-2 cell is the 1 of the 1-0 domino lying across columns 4-5, whose 0 starts the second sum-3 pair, completed by the 3 at the top of the 2-3 domino standing in column 6, rows 1-2, whose 2 fills the pinned 2 at row 2. At the bottom, the sum-3 pair in row 6 is the 0-3 domino lying across columns 1-2, whose 3 also sits beside the pinned 3 at row 6, column 3, the bottom of the 1-3 domino standing in column 3, rows 5-6, whose 1 is half of the unequal pair in row 5 beside the 5 of the 5-1 domino standing in column 4, rows 4-5, whose 1 fills the less-than-2 cell in row 4. The pinned zero at row 5, column 5 is the top of the 0-5 domino standing in column 5, rows 5-6, and the greater-than-5 cell at row 5, column 2 is the 6 of the 6-3 domino standing in column 2, rows 4-5, whose 3 sits in the empty cell in row 4.
The Hard solution
The solved Hard board: every cell shows its pip count, then the placements and a check of every region rule.
Placements: 3-4 down column 1, rows 1-2 · 2-0 down column 2, rows 1-2 · 5-3 down column 3, rows 1-2 · 1-0 across row 1, columns 4-5 · 2-3 down column 6, rows 1-2 · 4-5 across row 2, columns 4-5 · 4-4 down column 1, rows 3-4 · 2-2 down column 6, rows 3-4 · 6-3 down column 2, rows 4-5 · 5-1 down column 4, rows 4-5 · 1-3 down column 3, rows 5-6 · 0-5 down column 5, rows 5-6 · 4-2 down column 6, rows 5-6 · 0-3 across row 6, columns 1-2
- Adds to 3 3 + 0
- Adds to 8 5 + 3
- Less than 2 1 = 1
- Adds to 3 0 + 3
- All equal 4 = 4 = 4
- Adds to 2 2
- All different 5, 4
- Adds to 2 2
- All equal 2 = 2 = 2
- Less than 2 1 = 1
- Greater than 5 6 = 6
- All different 1, 5
- Adds to 0 0
- Adds to 3 0 + 3
- Adds to 3 3
- No rule 3 cells in blank regions, free to take any value