NYT Pips answers — Thursday, October 22, 2026
The NYT Pips answers for Thursday, October 22, 2026: the solved easy, medium and hard boards are below, with the squares of every domino listed and three hints per level if you would rather solve it yourself.
Easy Pips answer
Pips row by row, top to bottom (· is a gap in the board)
· 3 · · · 3 5 · 0 0 0 6 · 4 0 6
Each domino and its squares
- 0–5 — 0 at row 3, column 3, 5 at row 2, column 3
- 6–6 — 6 at row 3, column 4, 6 at row 4, column 4
- 3–3 — 3 at row 1, column 2, 3 at row 2, column 2
- 4–0 — 4 at row 4, column 2, 0 at row 4, column 3
- 0–0 — 0 at row 3, column 1, 0 at row 3, column 2
Medium Pips answer
Pips row by row, top to bottom (· is a gap in the board)
· 4 2 · 4 1 3 · 6 6 5 2 · 4 3 0 · · 5 1
Each domino and its squares
- 4–3 — 4 at row 4, column 2, 3 at row 4, column 3
- 4–1 — 4 at row 2, column 1, 1 at row 2, column 2
- 6–6 — 6 at row 3, column 1, 6 at row 3, column 2
- 0–2 — 0 at row 4, column 4, 2 at row 3, column 4
- 2–4 — 2 at row 1, column 3, 4 at row 1, column 2
- 5–3 — 5 at row 3, column 3, 3 at row 2, column 3
- 5–1 — 5 at row 5, column 3, 1 at row 5, column 4
Hard Pips answer
Pips row by row, top to bottom (· is a gap in the board)
4 0 6 · 2 0 6 0 1 4 · 2 · · · 0 · · 5 2 4 · · · 6 · · 1 · 2 · · · 4 · · 1 · 2 · · · 1 · · · · · · · · 3 · ·
Each domino and its squares
- 4–6 — 4 at row 4, column 7, 6 at row 3, column 7
- 4–2 — 4 at row 3, column 3, 2 at row 3, column 2
- 0–2 — 0 at row 1, column 6, 2 at row 1, column 5
- 1–1 — 1 at row 4, column 1, 1 at row 5, column 1
- 6–2 — 6 at row 1, column 3, 2 at row 2, column 3
- 4–0 — 4 at row 1, column 1, 0 at row 1, column 2
- 1–3 — 1 at row 5, column 7, 3 at row 6, column 7
- 1–0 — 1 at row 1, column 9, 0 at row 1, column 8
- 4–5 — 4 at row 2, column 1, 5 at row 3, column 1
- 2–2 — 2 at row 4, column 3, 2 at row 5, column 3
- 0–6 — 0 at row 2, column 7, 6 at row 1, column 7
Rather solve it yourself?
Three hints per level, the last one placing the second domino.
Easy
Easy today is a 4×4 board with 5 dominoes and 6 regions. Rules on the board: 3 sum regions, 1 "all equal", 1 "greater than", 1 free region. Another early foothold: two cells at row 1, column 2 total 6. Keep in mind that two cells at row 3, column 3 total 6. The rack holds 3 doubles, 4 blank halves, 2 sixes.
Hint 1: where to start
At row 3, column 1 two cells must match. That is a double, or matching halves from two dominoes.
Hint 2: first domino
The 0–0 goes there: 0 on row 3, column 1, 0 on row 3, column 2.
Hint 3: second domino
Next, the 3–3 goes at row 1, column 2 → row 2, column 2. That leaves 3 dominoes, each with far fewer homes.
Medium
The medium board runs 5 rows by 4 columns: 7 dominoes to place across 8 regions. You're working with 4 sum regions, 1 "all equal", 1 "less than", 1 free region. Row 5, column 4 is a region of its own with target 1: that cell is a 1. The rack holds 1 double, 1 blank half, 2 sixes.
Hint 1: where to start
A one-cell region at row 4, column 4 asks for 0, which fixes that cell outright. Find the domino with a 0 that fits there.
Hint 2: first domino
First domino: 0–2, covering row 4, column 4 (0) and row 3, column 4 (2).
Hint 3: second domino
Second: 5–1 on row 5, column 3 and row 5, column 4. Check the other 5 against the regions they could still fill.
Hard
The hard Pips has 22 cells to cover with 11 dominoes, split into 14 regions. By rule type: 9 sum regions, 1 "all equal", 1 "less than", 1 free region. Row 2, column 3 is a region of its own with target 2: that cell is a 2. Rack check: 2 doubles, 4 blank halves, 3 sixes.
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
First domino: 0–2, covering row 1, column 6 (0) and row 1, column 5 (2).
Hint 3: second domino
Second: 6–2 on row 1, column 3 and row 2, column 3. Check the other 9 against the regions they could still fill.