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NYT Pips answers — Sunday, February 22, 2026

Pips #189 · 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 — February 22, 2026

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

5 dominoes, 8 regions, a 4×5 grid — that's the easy puzzle for February 22, 2026. You're working with 3 sum regions, 2 "greater than", 3 free regions. The single cell at row 2, column 1 is marked 0, so it can only hold a 0. After that, the single cell at row 4, column 4 is marked 0, so it can only hold a 0. Rack check: 1 double, 2 blank halves, 2 sixes.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The single cell at row 2, column 1 is marked 0, so it can only hold a 0. Find the domino with a 0 that fits there.

Hint 2 — first domino

Place the 4–0 domino with its 4 at row 1, column 1 and its 0 at row 2, column 1.

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 0–2 goes at row 4, column 4 → row 4, column 3. From there the rest should fall into place.

Solution

Tap any cell to reveal its pips, or reveal the whole board. Region rules: >9 must add up to more than 9; 9 must add up to 9; 0 must add up to 0; >1 must add up to more than 1.

>9
9
0
>1
0
Solution as text
  1. 4–0 — 4 at row 1, column 1, 0 at row 2, column 1
  2. 0–2 — 0 at row 4, column 4, 2 at row 4, column 3
  3. 6–6 — 6 at row 1, column 2, 6 at row 1, column 3
  4. 3–5 — 3 at row 2, column 3, 5 at row 3, column 3
  5. 2–1 — 2 at row 3, column 5, 1 at row 4, column 5

Medium Pips answer — February 22, 2026

4×7 board · 8 dominoes · 10 regions · by Ian Livengood

Medium today is a 4×7 board with 8 dominoes and 10 regions. Rules on the board: 4 sum regions, 1 "all equal", 1 "less than", 1 "greater than", 3 free regions. The way in: the single cell at row 1, column 3 is marked 4, so it can only hold a 4. After that, the "=" pair at row 2, column 1 needs two identical pips — a double, or matching halves from two dominoes.. Rack check: 1 double, 1 blank half, 3 sixes.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The single cell at row 1, column 3 is marked 4, so it can only hold a 4. Find the domino with a 4 that fits there.

Hint 2 — first domino

Place the 5–4 domino with its 5 at row 1, column 2 and its 4 at row 1, column 3.

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 3–2 goes at row 2, column 1 → row 3, 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: 4 must add up to 4; >4 must add up to more than 4; 2 must add up to 2; = must all be the same number; 10 must add up to 10.

4
>4
2
=
10
22
<3
Solution as text
  1. 3–2 — 3 at row 2, column 1, 2 at row 3, column 1
  2. 4–6 — 4 at row 4, column 5, 6 at row 4, column 6
  3. 5–1 — 5 at row 1, column 5, 1 at row 1, column 6
  4. 1–3 — 1 at row 2, column 6, 3 at row 2, column 7
  5. 3–5 — 3 at row 2, column 2, 5 at row 3, column 2
  6. 5–4 — 5 at row 1, column 2, 4 at row 1, column 3
  7. 0–5 — 0 at row 4, column 3, 5 at row 4, column 2
  8. 6–6 — 6 at row 3, column 6, 6 at row 3, column 7

Hard Pips answer — February 22, 2026

8×8 board · 13 dominoes · 17 regions · by Rodolfo Kurchan

13 dominoes, 17 regions, a 8×8 grid — that's the hard puzzle for February 22, 2026. Rules on the board: 9 sum regions, 2 "all equal", 1 "less than", 5 free regions. Best foothold — the single cell at row 8, column 3 is marked 1, so it can only hold a 1. After that, the single cell at row 8, column 6 is marked 1, so it can only hold a 1. Rack check: 1 double, 4 blank halves, 4 sixes.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The single cell at row 8, column 3 is marked 1, so it can only hold a 1. Find the domino with a 1 that fits there.

Hint 2 — first domino

Place the 1–6 domino with its 1 at row 8, column 3 and its 6 at row 7, column 3.

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 1–0 goes at row 8, column 6 → row 7, column 6. From there the rest should fall into place.

Solution

Tap any cell to reveal its pips, or reveal the whole board. Region rules: <2 must add up to less than 2; 1 must add up to 1; = must all be the same number; 11 must add up to 11; 4 must add up to 4.

<2
1
=
=
11
4
9
9
12
4
1
1
Solution as text
  1. 4–6 — 4 at row 7, column 5, 6 at row 6, column 5
  2. 3–2 — 3 at row 3, column 1, 2 at row 3, column 2
  3. 1–0 — 1 at row 8, column 6, 0 at row 7, column 6
  4. 3–4 — 3 at row 6, column 3, 4 at row 5, column 3
  5. 0–5 — 0 at row 6, column 4, 5 at row 5, column 4
  6. 3–0 — 3 at row 2, column 1, 0 at row 1, column 1
  7. 1–6 — 1 at row 8, column 3, 6 at row 7, column 3
  8. 2–2 — 2 at row 2, column 4, 2 at row 3, column 4
  9. 6–5 — 6 at row 6, column 6, 5 at row 5, column 6
  10. 0–2 — 0 at row 2, column 6, 2 at row 3, column 6
  11. 3–6 — 3 at row 1, column 8, 6 at row 2, column 8
  12. 2–5 — 2 at row 3, column 7, 5 at row 3, column 8
  13. 3–1 — 3 at row 1, column 7, 1 at row 1, column 6

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