We’ve reached the halfway point in January, though I suppose that’s only true halfway through the day, given this month has 31 days. Still, close enough. I’m not ever that sad about time going by quickly during the winter. I’m ready for nice, warm weather . . . though I wouldn’t argue with a little more snow. In any case, we have an Easy, Medium and Hard Pips to solve, so let’s lay some dominos!
Looking for Wednesday’s Pips? Read our guide right here.
How To Play Pips
In Pips, you have a grid of multicolored boxes. Each colored area represents a different “condition” that you have to achieve. You have a select number of dominoes that you have to spend filling in the grid. You must use every domino and achieve every condition properly to win. There are Easy, Medium and Difficult tiers.
Here’s an example of a difficult tier Pips:
Pips example
Screenshot: Erik Kain
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As you can see, the grid has a bunch of symbols and numbers with each color. On the far left, the three purple squares must not equal one another (hence the equal sign crossed out). The two pink squares next to that must equal a total of 0. The zig-zagging blue squares all must equal one another. You click on dominoes to rotate them, and will need to since they have to be rotated to fit where they belong.
Not shown on this grid are other conditions, such as “less than” or “greater than.” If there are multiple tiles with > or < signs, the total of those tiles must be greater or less than the listed number. It varies by grid. Blank spaces can have anything. The various possible conditions are:
- = All pips must equal one another in this group.
- ≠ All pips must not equal one another in this group.
- > The pip in this tile (or tiles) must be greater than the listed number.
- < The pip in this tile must be less than the listed number.
- An exact number (like 6) The pip must equal this exact number.
- Tiles with no conditions can be anything.
In order to win, you have to use up all your dominoes by filling in all the squares, making sure to fit each condition. Sometimes there’s only one way to solve the puzzle. Other times, there can be two or more different solutions. Play today’s Pips puzzle here.
Today’s Pips Solutions And Walkthrough
Below are the solutions for the Easy and Medium tier Pips. After that, I’ll walk you through the Hard puzzle. Spoilers ahead.
Today’s Easy Pips
Easy Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Today’s Medium Pips
Medium Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Hard Pips Walkthrough And Solution
Here’s today’s Hard Pips:
Hard Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Today’s Hard Pips is very clearly a dumbbell. If you lift weights (and you should) you’ll recognize it instantly. It’s just not a very heavy dumbbell, at least in terms of difficulty. I made one small error as I played through this, but a quick domino swap did the trick.
Step 1
Begin with the 6/6 domino in the Purple = tiles. We know this has to be a double, since the Pink 5 is directly to the right of the top Purple = tile. There are two doubles, but only one of these can be used in Blue = above, so 6/6 has to go here. Next, place the 5/3 domino from Pink 5 into Green ≠ and the 5/2 domino from Dark Blue > 3 into Orange =. The 2/1 domino goes from Orange = into Blue > 0.
Hard Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Step 2
Next, place the 1/3 domino from Green ≠ into Dark Blue ≠ and the 2/0 domino from Dark Blue ≠ into the top Orange = group. The 0/3 domino goes from Orange = into Pink > 1.
Hard Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Solution
Finally, place the 1/1 domino in the two right tiles of Blue = and the 1/4 domino from Blue = into Purple > 3 and you’re done!
Hard Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
Here’s an alternative version with just a few dominos switched around. It works either way.
Hard Pips
Screenshot: Erik Kain
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Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2026/01/14/nyt-pips-thursday/
