NYT Pips is the New York Times’ domino-inspired daily puzzle, launched in August 2025. Each day brings three difficulty levels — Easy, Medium, and Hard — and every level tasks you with placing domino tiles on a grid while satisfying color-coded conditions. Unlike traditional dominoes, touching tiles don’t need to match; instead, each colored zone carries its own rule that the pips within it must follow.
If you’re stuck and don’t want to use the in-game option to reveal the whole board (which forces you to abandon that difficulty), you’ve come to the right place. Below are full hint-by-hint and answer-by-answer breakdowns for every zone in today’s puzzle.
How NYT Pips Works
Each tile is placed either vertically or horizontally on the grid, and it’s common for only one half of a domino to fall inside a colored zone. The rule applies only to the portion of the tile within that zone. Here’s a quick reference for the condition types you’ll encounter:
- Number (N): All pips in this zone must add up to N.
- Equal: Every domino half in this zone must show the same number of pips.
- Not Equal: Every domino half in this zone must show a different number of pips from every other half.
- Less Than (N): Every domino half in this zone must total less than N.
- Greater Than (N): Every domino half in this zone must total more than N.
Uncoded (white/blank) zones have no restrictions.
Easy Difficulty — April 10, 2026 Pips Hints and Answers
Today’s Easy puzzle uses five colored zones. Work through each condition before checking the full answer below.
Purple — Greater Than (5): You need a domino half showing more than 5 pips in this zone. Think of the only value higher than 5 on a standard domino. Answer: 6-0, placed vertically.
Red — Equal (0): Every half inside this red zone must show exactly 0 pips. Two tiles pass through this space. Answer: 6-0, placed vertically; 0-5, placed horizontally.
Light Blue — Number (5): The pips in this zone must add up to 5 in total. Two tiles contribute to this sum. Answer: 0-5, placed horizontally; 0-2, placed vertically.
Yellow — Number (6): Everything inside the yellow zone must sum to 6. Three tiles are involved here. Answer: 3-2, placed horizontally; 0-2, placed vertically; 2-6, placed vertically.
Dark Blue — Greater Than (5): The single domino half in this zone must exceed 5. Answer: 2-6, placed vertically (the 6-side sits in this zone).
Medium Difficulty — April 10, 2026 Pips Hints and Answers
The Medium puzzle introduces six zones and ramps up the constraint complexity.
Purple — Equal (3): Every half in this zone must show exactly 3 pips. Two tiles pass through. Answer: 3-4, placed horizontally; 3-6, placed vertically.
Red — Greater Than (4): Everything in this red zone must exceed 4. One tile handles this zone. Answer: 5-6, placed vertically.
Light Blue — Number (2): The pips in this zone must sum to 2. One tile fits here. Answer: 6-2, placed vertically (the 2-side sits in this zone).
Yellow/Unlabeled — Equal (6): Every half in this zone must show exactly 6 pips. Three tiles contribute. Answer: 5-6, placed vertically; 3-6, placed vertically; 6-4, placed vertically.
Dark Blue — Less Than (2): Every half here must be less than 2. One tile solves this. Answer: 0-2, placed vertically (the 0-side is in the zone).
Green — Equal (4): Every domino half in this green zone must show exactly 4 pips. Two tiles apply. Answer: 6-4, placed vertically; 4-4, placed vertically.
Hard Difficulty — April 10, 2026 Pips Hints and Answers
Hard mode layers on ten distinct zones, including a tricky Not Equal condition with multiple tiles. Take each zone carefully.
Purple — Equal (5): Every half must show 5. Three tiles are in play. Answer: 5-5, placed vertically; 5-1, placed horizontally; 5-3, placed vertically.
Red — Number (4): All pips in this zone must sum to 4. Two tiles contribute. Answer: 5-1, placed horizontally; 3-4, placed horizontally.
Light Blue — Equal (4): Every half must show exactly 4. Two tiles apply. Answer: 3-4, placed horizontally; 4-0, placed vertically.
Yellow — Number (4): The pips inside must total 4. One tile resolves this. Answer: 1-3, placed horizontally.
Dark Blue — Equal (0): Every half must show 0. Two tiles sit here. Answer: 4-0, placed vertically; 0-0, placed vertically.
Green — Greater Than (4): Everything must exceed 4. Two tiles apply. Answer: 5-3, placed vertically; 2-6, placed vertically.
Not Equal (unlabeled zone): Every domino half must show a completely unique pip count — no two halves can match. Five tiles make up this zone. Answer: 3-2, placed horizontally; 0-0, placed vertically; 1-1, placed vertically; 4-6, placed horizontally; 6-6, placed horizontally.
Second Red — Equal (6): Every half in this second red zone must show exactly 6. Two tiles apply. Answer: 2-6, placed vertically; 6-3, placed horizontally.
Second Light Blue — Number (4): The pips in this zone must sum to 4. Two tiles contribute. Answer: 6-3, placed horizontally; 1-1, placed vertically.
Second Yellow — Number (6): Everything inside must sum to 6. One tile covers it. Answer: 6-6, placed horizontally.
More Daily Puzzle Help
Looking for answers to today’s other NYT puzzles? Check out these recent guides on dotwordle.com:
- April 9, 2026 NYT Pips Hints and Answers — Easy, Medium, and Hard Solutions
- April 7, 2026 NYT Pips Hints and Answers — Easy, Medium, and Hard Solutions
- March 30, 2026 NYT Pips Hints and Answers — Easy, Medium, and Hard Solutions
- April 9, 2026 Wordle #1755 Hint and Answer
- In the Paint — April 9, 2026 NYT Strands Hints and Answers
- April 9, 2026 NYT Connections Puzzle #1033 Hints and Answers
- April 9, 2026 Hurdle Hints and Answers
Shahid Maqsood is a digital entrepreneur and SEO specialist focused on building engaging web experiences. He is the creator of DotWordle, combining creativity with smart, user-friendly design.
