The following guide provides solutions and strategic walkthroughs for today’s New York Times Pips puzzles across all difficulty levels, including Easy, Medium, and Hard tiers.
Today’s Hard Pips puzzle carries a “USA” theme, arriving just before the Fourth of July holiday. The puzzle presents a patriotic challenge that requires careful domino placement and logical deduction to satisfy all color-coded conditions.
How To Play Pips
Pips challenges players with a grid containing multicolored boxes, each representing distinct mathematical conditions. Players must strategically place dominoes to fill the grid while satisfying all requirements. Available conditions include equality (=), inequality (≠), greater than (>), less than (<), and exact numerical values. Each puzzle tier offers varying complexity, from straightforward arrangements to intricate logical challenges requiring multiple steps to solve.
Here’s an advanced Pips puzzle layout:
Pips example
Screenshot: Erik Kain
The grid features symbols and numbers within colored regions, with specific constraints: purple squares must contain different values (indicated by the crossed-out equals sign), pink squares sum to zero, and connected blue squares require identical values. Dominoes can be rotated to fit appropriate positions within the grid structure.
Today’s Pips Solutions And Walkthrough
The following solutions address Easy and Medium difficulty puzzles, followed by a detailed Hard puzzle walkthrough. Note that spoilers are included.
Today’s Easy Pips
Easy Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Today’s Medium Pips
Medium Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Hard Pips Walkthrough And Solution
Today’s Hard Pips puzzle presents a “USA” themed challenge:
Hard Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Step 1
Begin by placing the 1/3 domino from Orange 1 into Dark Blue 3, and position the 5/1 domino from Green 5 into Purple 2. Position the 1/0 domino from Purple 2 extending into Dark Blue =, leaving the adjacent tile open. Place the 6/5 domino from Green 12 into Orange 10, then situate the 5/3 domino from Orange 10 into Purple 3.
Hard Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Step 2
Focus on the “A” section by placing the 4/4 domino in the bottom two Purple = tiles. Position the 4/6 domino from Purple = into Blue 12, then place the 4/3 domino from Purple = into Blue 5. Move the 2/3 domino from Blue 5 into Pink 6, followed by the 3/6 domino from Pink 6 connecting into Blue 12. Finally, place the 5/5 domino in the two tiles of Orange 10.
Hard Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Solution
Complete the puzzle by placing the 6/0 domino from Green 12 into Blue =, then position the 0/4 domino from Blue = into the first available tile. Place the 0/2 domino from Dark Blue = into Pink 7, followed by the 5/4 domino from Pink 7 into the second open tile. The 2/2 domino occupies the remaining free spaces, completing the solution.
Hard Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain

