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NYT Pips answers — Saturday, April 25, 2026

Pips #251 · Edited by Ian Livengood · Easy by Ian Livengood · Medium by Rodolfo Kurchan · 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 25, 2026

3×5 board · 5 dominoes · 4 regions · by Ian Livengood

5 dominoes, 4 regions, a 3×5 grid — that's the easy puzzle for April 25, 2026. You're working with 2 "all equal", 1 "less than", 1 "greater than". The way in: the "=" region starting at row 1, column 2 has 4 cells that must all match — every 3 in the puzzle should come here.. After that, the "=" region starting at row 2, column 1 has 4 cells that must all match — every 1 in the puzzle should come here.. Rack check: 2 doubles, 1 six.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The "=" region starting at row 1, column 2 has 4 cells that must all match — every 3 in the puzzle should come here.

Hint 2 — first domino

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

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 1–6 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: >4 must add up to more than 4; = must all be the same number; <6 must add up to less than 6.

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

Medium Pips answer — April 25, 2026

4×4 board · 6 dominoes · 7 regions · by Rodolfo Kurchan

6 dominoes, 7 regions, a 4×4 grid — that's the medium puzzle for April 25, 2026. The mix is 4 sum regions, 1 "all equal", 1 "less than", 1 "greater than". Best foothold — the single cell at row 2, column 1 is marked 6, so it can only hold a 6. After that, the "=" pair at row 1, column 2 needs two identical pips — a double, or matching halves from two dominoes.. Rack check: 2 doubles, 1 blank half, 1 six.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The single cell at row 2, column 1 is marked 6, so it can only hold a 6. Find the domino with a 6 that fits there.

Hint 2 — first domino

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

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 1–1 goes at row 1, column 2 → row 1, 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: = must all be the same number; 6 must add up to 6; >0 must add up to more than 0; <4 must add up to less than 4.

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

Hard Pips answer — April 25, 2026

7×7 board · 12 dominoes · 10 regions · by Rodolfo Kurchan

Hard today is a 7×7 board with 12 dominoes and 10 regions. Rules on the board: 3 sum regions, 4 "all equal", 2 "greater than", 1 free region. Best foothold — the "=" region starting at row 2, column 3 has 3 cells that must all match — every 0 in the puzzle should come here.. After that, the "=" region starting at row 3, column 5 has 5 cells that must all match — every 5 in the puzzle should come here.. Rack check: 3 doubles, 5 blank halves, 1 six.

Hints

Hint 1 — where to start

The "=" region starting at row 2, column 3 has 3 cells that must all match — every 0 in the puzzle should come here.

Hint 2 — first domino

Place the 2–0 domino with its 2 at row 1, column 3 and its 0 at row 2, column 3.

Hint 3 — second domino

Next, the 2–5 goes at row 3, column 4 → row 3, column 5. 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; = must all be the same number; 10 must add up to 10; >1 must add up to more than 1; 7 must add up to 7.

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

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