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NYT Pips answers — Friday, April 3, 2026

Pips #229 · 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.

Jump to: Easy · Medium · Hard

Easy Pips answer — April 3, 2026

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

Easy today is a 4×4 board with 5 dominoes and 5 regions. Rules on the board: 3 sum regions, 1 "all equal", 1 free region. Best foothold — the "=" pair at row 4, column 3 needs two identical pips — a double, or matching halves from two dominoes.. After that, the pair at row 2, column 2 adds to 6; list the ways to make 6 with the rack you have.. Rack check: 2 doubles, 4 blank halves.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The "=" pair at row 4, column 3 needs two identical pips — a double, or matching halves from two dominoes.

Hint 2 — first domino

Place the 3–0 domino with its 3 at row 4, column 2 and its 0 at row 4, column 3.

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 5–5 goes at row 1, column 2 → 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: 6 must add up to 6; 3 must add up to 3; 7 must add up to 7; = must all be the same number.

6
3
7
=
Solution as text
  1. 0–0 — 0 at row 3, column 1, 0 at row 4, column 1
  2. 3–1 — 3 at row 3, column 3, 1 at row 2, column 3
  3. 4–0 — 4 at row 3, column 4, 0 at row 4, column 4
  4. 5–5 — 5 at row 1, column 2, 5 at row 2, column 2
  5. 3–0 — 3 at row 4, column 2, 0 at row 4, column 3

Medium Pips answer — April 3, 2026

4×5 board · 7 dominoes · 8 regions · by Ian Livengood

7 dominoes, 8 regions, a 4×5 grid — that's the medium puzzle for April 3, 2026. Rules on the board: 3 sum regions, 2 "all equal", 2 "greater than", 1 free region. Best foothold — the single cell at row 1, column 5 is marked 2, so it can only hold a 2. After that, the "=" region starting at row 2, column 2 has 3 cells that must all match — every 4 in the puzzle should come here.. Rack check: 1 double, 1 blank half, 3 sixes.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The single cell at row 1, column 5 is marked 2, so it can only hold a 2. Find the domino with a 2 that fits there.

Hint 2 — first domino

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

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 4–6 goes at row 2, column 2 → row 1, 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: >4 must add up to more than 4; 2 must add up to 2; = must all be the same number; 6 must add up to 6; 8 must add up to 8.

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

Hard Pips answer — April 3, 2026

8×6 board · 15 dominoes · 12 regions · by Rodolfo Kurchan

The hard board runs 8 rows by 6 columns: 15 dominoes to place across 12 regions. The mix is 4 sum regions, 6 "all equal", 1 free region. Best foothold — the single cell at row 4, column 1 is marked 4, so it can only hold a 4. After that, the single cell at row 8, column 4 is marked 4, so it can only hold a 4. Rack check: 4 doubles, 3 blank halves, 5 sixes.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The single cell at row 4, column 1 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 2–4 domino with its 2 at row 3, column 1 and its 4 at row 4, column 1.

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 1–4 goes at row 8, column 5 → row 8, column 4. 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; 11 must add up to 11; ≠ must all be different; 4 must add up to 4; 12 must add up to 12.

=
=
=
11
≠
4
12
=
=
=
4
Solution as text
  1. 2–4 — 2 at row 3, column 1, 4 at row 4, column 1
  2. 5–6 — 5 at row 3, column 6, 6 at row 4, column 6
  3. 1–2 — 1 at row 5, column 3, 2 at row 6, column 3
  4. 0–4 — 0 at row 1, column 4, 4 at row 1, column 5
  5. 2–2 — 2 at row 1, column 1, 2 at row 2, column 1
  6. 1–6 — 1 at row 6, column 6, 6 at row 5, column 6
  7. 4–5 — 4 at row 5, column 4, 5 at row 4, column 4
  8. 0–2 — 0 at row 1, column 3, 2 at row 1, column 2
  9. 6–6 — 6 at row 8, column 2, 6 at row 8, column 3
  10. 1–1 — 1 at row 7, column 5, 1 at row 7, column 6
  11. 3–5 — 3 at row 8, column 1, 5 at row 7, column 1
  12. 1–4 — 1 at row 8, column 5, 4 at row 8, column 4
  13. 0–3 — 0 at row 4, column 3, 3 at row 3, column 3
  14. 4–6 — 4 at row 2, column 5, 6 at row 2, column 6
  15. 5–5 — 5 at row 5, column 1, 5 at row 6, column 1

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