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NYT Pips answers — Friday, January 9, 2026

Pips #145 · Edited by Ian Livengood · Easy by Ian Livengood · Medium by Ian Livengood · Hard by Rodolfo Kurchan

Stuck on today's New York Times Pips? Below are three progressive hints for each difficulty, then the full solution as a tap-to-reveal board. Hints first — the answer only when you want it.

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Easy Pips answer — January 9, 2026

3×5 board · 5 dominoes · 7 regions · by Ian Livengood

The easy board runs 3 rows by 5 columns: 5 dominoes to place across 7 regions. Rules on the board: 3 sum regions, 1 "all equal", 1 "less than", 1 "greater than", 1 free region. The way in: the single cell at row 1, column 3 is marked 3, so it can only hold a 3. After that, the "<2" region at row 2, column 1 leaves almost no room: only 0s and a single 1 can go here.. Rack check: 2 doubles, 2 sixes.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The single cell at row 1, column 3 is marked 3, so it can only hold a 3. Find the domino with a 3 that fits there.

Hint 2 — first domino

Place the 6–3 domino with its 6 at row 2, column 3 and its 3 at row 1, column 3.

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 6–1 goes at row 2, column 2 → row 2, column 1. From there the rest should fall into place.

Solution

Tap any cell to reveal its pips, or reveal the whole board. Region rules: 3 must add up to 3; <2 must add up to less than 2; 9 must add up to 9; >4 must add up to more than 4; = must all be the same number.

3
<2
9
>4
=
8
Solution as text
  1. 1–1 — 1 at row 2, column 4, 1 at row 2, column 5
  2. 3–3 — 3 at row 3, column 2, 3 at row 3, column 3
  3. 6–3 — 6 at row 2, column 3, 3 at row 1, column 3
  4. 4–5 — 4 at row 3, column 5, 5 at row 3, column 4
  5. 6–1 — 6 at row 2, column 2, 1 at row 2, column 1

Medium Pips answer — January 9, 2026

5×4 board · 8 dominoes · 10 regions · by Ian Livengood

The medium board runs 5 rows by 4 columns: 8 dominoes to place across 10 regions. The mix is 3 sum regions, 1 "all equal", 1 "less than", 2 "greater than", 3 free regions. The single cell at row 3, column 3 is marked 3, so it can only hold a 3. After that, the "=" region starting at row 1, column 1 has 3 cells that must all match — every 3 in the puzzle should come here.. Rack check: 2 doubles, 1 blank half, 2 sixes.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The single cell at row 3, column 3 is marked 3, so it can only hold a 3. Find the domino with a 3 that fits there.

Hint 2 — first domino

Place the 4–3 domino with its 4 at row 3, column 2 and its 3 at row 3, column 3.

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 5–3 goes at row 2, column 1 → row 1, column 1. From there the rest should fall into place.

Solution

Tap any cell to reveal its pips, or reveal the whole board. Region rules: = must all be the same number; >3 must add up to more than 3; 17 must add up to 17; 14 must add up to 14; 3 must add up to 3.

=
>3
17
14
3
<1
>1
Solution as text
  1. 3–3 — 3 at row 1, column 2, 3 at row 1, column 3
  2. 5–2 — 5 at row 5, column 2, 2 at row 5, column 3
  3. 5–3 — 5 at row 2, column 1, 3 at row 1, column 1
  4. 0–2 — 0 at row 4, column 1, 2 at row 3, column 1
  5. 4–5 — 4 at row 1, column 4, 5 at row 2, column 4
  6. 6–6 — 6 at row 3, column 4, 6 at row 4, column 4
  7. 4–3 — 4 at row 3, column 2, 3 at row 3, column 3
  8. 1–5 — 1 at row 4, column 3, 5 at row 4, column 2

Hard Pips answer — January 9, 2026

6×6 board · 12 dominoes · 9 regions · by Rodolfo Kurchan

The hard board runs 6 rows by 6 columns: 12 dominoes to place across 9 regions. The mix is 5 "all equal", 4 free regions. The "=" region starting at row 1, column 3 has 4 cells that must all match — every 4 in the puzzle should come here.. After that, the "=" region starting at row 2, column 1 has 4 cells that must all match — every 2 in the puzzle should come here.. Rack check: 4 doubles, 1 blank half, 3 sixes.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The "=" region starting at row 1, column 3 has 4 cells that must all match — every 4 in the puzzle should come here.

Hint 2 — first domino

Place the 4–4 domino with its 4 at row 1, column 3 and its 4 at row 2, column 3.

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 2–6 goes at row 2, column 1 → row 2, column 2. From there the rest should fall into place.

Solution

Tap any cell to reveal its pips, or reveal the whole board. Region rules: = must all be the same number.

=
=
=
=
=
Solution as text
  1. 1–1 — 1 at row 6, column 4, 1 at row 6, column 5
  2. 3–6 — 3 at row 5, column 1, 6 at row 6, column 1
  3. 0–3 — 0 at row 6, column 3, 3 at row 6, column 2
  4. 1–5 — 1 at row 5, column 5, 5 at row 4, column 5
  5. 1–3 — 1 at row 5, column 4, 3 at row 5, column 3
  6. 2–3 — 2 at row 4, column 2, 3 at row 5, column 2
  7. 5–5 — 5 at row 3, column 5, 5 at row 3, column 6
  8. 4–5 — 4 at row 4, column 3, 5 at row 4, column 4
  9. 2–2 — 2 at row 3, column 1, 2 at row 4, column 1
  10. 4–6 — 4 at row 3, column 3, 6 at row 3, column 2
  11. 2–6 — 2 at row 2, column 1, 6 at row 2, column 2
  12. 4–4 — 4 at row 1, column 3, 4 at row 2, column 3

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Pips is a game by The New York Times. This page is an independent solving guide and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The New York Times Company. Puzzle layouts are described here for the purpose of commentary and help.