Pips Answer for Thursday, January 22, 2026
Complete NYT Pips puzzle solution with interactive board and expert analysis.
Click a domino below or a cell on the board to reveal
Expert Puzzle Analysis
Deep insights from puzzle experts
Nyt Pips easy answer for 2026-01-22
Answer for 2026-01-22
I started with the Easy puzzle to get my brain in gear. I noticed that cell (2,2) had to be less than 3, which really narrowed down which dominoes could end up in that corner.
I focused on the equality regions first, specifically the three-cell chain at (1,0), (1,1), and (1,2). By matching the [1,6] and [1,1] dominoes there, the rest of the 3x3 grid fell into place quite naturally. Moving on to the
Nyt Pips medium answer for 2026-01-22
Answer for 2026-01-22
Medium puzzle, I looked for the biggest constraint. The region at (4,0), (5,0), and (6,0) requiring three equal values was the key.
I had to look through the dominoes like [6,6] and [0,6] to see what could possibly fit. Once I placed the [0,6] and [0,1] dominoes to satisfy that bottom-left corner, I could see how the [2,2] domino would help bridge the middle section. The
Nyt Pips hard answer for 2026-01-22
Answer for 2026-01-22
Hard puzzle was a much bigger challenge with its 10 dominoes. I immediately went for the sum regions. I saw that (1,0) and (2,0) needed to sum to 10, and (3,2) and (3,3) needed to sum to 9.
This forced me to use high-value dominoes like the [6,4] or [5,5] equivalents. The real clincher was the 'greater than 16' region in the bottom right; I knew I had to save the [6,6] and [5,6] dominoes for that spot because nothing else would add up high enough. After pinning those down, I worked backwards to fill in the smaller equality regions like the one at (2,3) and (2,4).
What I Learned
Today's puzzles really highlighted how important it is to manage your high-value pips. In the Hard puzzle, if you use your 6s and 5s too early on the smaller equality regions, you'll find it impossible to hit a high sum like 16 later on.
I also learned that the 'empty' cells are actually very helpful indicators of where a domino's 'unused' side can go. For example, in the Medium puzzle, placing a domino so one side is in an empty region allows you to satisfy a difficult equality rule with the other side without worrying about a second constraint. It's like a free pass for half of a domino.