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NYT Pips answers — Thursday, April 9, 2026

Pips #235 · 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 9, 2026

6×5 board · 5 dominoes · 6 regions · by Ian Livengood

The easy board runs 6 rows by 5 columns: 5 dominoes to place across 6 regions. You're working with 1 sum region, 2 "all equal", 1 "less than", 2 free regions. The way in: three cells adding to 1 at row 4, column 5 means mostly zeros. After that, the "=" pair at row 1, column 1 needs two identical pips — a double, or matching halves from two dominoes.. Rack check: 2 doubles, 2 blank halves.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

Three cells adding to 1 at row 4, column 5 means mostly zeros. Count how many zeros the rack has.

Hint 2 — first domino

Place the 0–0 domino with its 0 at row 4, column 5 and its 0 at row 5, column 5.

Hint 3 — second domino

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

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

Medium Pips answer — April 9, 2026

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

The medium board runs 5 rows by 5 columns: 8 dominoes to place across 10 regions. The mix is 4 sum regions, 3 "all equal", 2 "greater than", 1 free region. The single cell at row 3, column 1 is marked 3, so it can only hold a 3. After that, the single cell at row 4, column 5 is marked 4, so it can only hold a 4. Rack check: 3 doubles, 3 blank halves, 2 sixes.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

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

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 4–0 goes at row 4, column 5 → row 4, 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: 5 must add up to 5; >4 must add up to more than 4; = must all be the same number; 3 must add up to 3; 10 must add up to 10.

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

Hard Pips answer — April 9, 2026

7×5 board · 12 dominoes · 15 regions · by Rodolfo Kurchan

Hard today is a 7×5 board with 12 dominoes and 15 regions. Rules on the board: 5 sum regions, 4 "all equal", 1 "less than", 5 "greater than". Best foothold — the single cell at row 1, column 4 is marked 3, so it can only hold a 3. After that, the "=" pair at row 1, column 1 needs two identical pips — a double, or matching halves from two dominoes.. Rack check: 2 doubles, 3 blank halves, 3 sixes.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The single cell at row 1, column 4 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 3–6 domino with its 3 at row 1, column 4 and its 6 at row 1, column 5.

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 5–2 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; 3 must add up to 3; <3 must add up to less than 3.

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

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