TodayHint

Pips July 26, 2026: Hints & Answers

Constructed by Ian Livengood, Rodolfo Kurchan, Rodolfo Kurchan, edited by Ian Livengood.

Recap

The three Pips boards for 2024-07-26 offer increasing difficulty and complexity, from a straightforward 5-domino easy board to a challenging 15-domino hard board with multiple constraints and regions.

The three boards that day

The tray and each region's rule — board data, no solutions.

Easy board · 5 dominoes · 6 regions

2–30–43–56–61–3

  • two cells: exactly 8.
  • two cells: exactly 11.
  • two cells: exactly 4.
  • two cells: all matching.
  • one cell: left uncovered.
  • one cell: under 2.

This board is relatively straightforward due to its small size and simple constraints.

Medium board · 7 dominoes · 7 regions

4–42–24–55–52–15–30–5

  • 3 ×three cells: all matching.
  • two cells: all matching.
  • 2 ×one cell: left uncovered.
  • one cell: more than 2.

This board requires more strategic thinking due to its larger size and interconnected constraints.

Hard board · 15 dominoes · 17 regions

5–02–26–05–20–01–60–34–53–10–23–52–13–45–12–3

  • 2 ×one cell: exactly 2.
  • two cells: exactly 2.
  • 2 ×two cells: exactly 5.
  • two cells: exactly 9.
  • 2 ×one cell: exactly 5.
  • four cells: all matching.
  • four cells: all different.
  • two cells: exactly 10.
  • two cells: exactly 3.
  • one cell: exactly 3.
  • 2 ×one cell: exactly 6.
  • two cells: exactly 7.
  • one cell: exactly 0.

This board is the most challenging due to its large size, complex constraints, and numerous interconnected regions.

Pips hints, one rung at a time

Six rungs, easy board first. The recap above already named the walkthroughs, so this ladder is here for anyone replaying the boards fresh rather than as a spoiler shield.

  1. How the three boards compared

    Sizes and constraint mixes, counted off the boards.

    Easy board
    5 dominoes, 6 regions (3 sum, 1 empty, 1 equals, 1 less)
    Medium board
    7 dominoes, 7 regions (4 equals, 2 empty, 1 greater)
    Hard board
    15 dominoes, 17 regions (15 sum, 1 equals, 1 unequal)
    Back to the board inventories
  2. Easy board: how to approach it

    Method only.

    Start by identifying regions with limited possibilities, such as those with a single constraint or few dominoes.

  3. Easy board: where to start

    One region named by its constraint.

    Begin with the region that must be empty.

  4. Medium board: approach and first region

    The same two steps, one difficulty up.

    Focus on regions with multiple equals constraints, as these will have limited domino placement options.

    Start with one of the regions that requires an equals constraint over 3 cells.

  5. Hard board: how to approach it

    Where the hard board differed in kind, not just size.

    Begin by identifying regions with the most restrictive constraints, such as those with specific sum requirements or limited domino options.

  6. Hard board: where to start

    The last rung before the full walkthroughs.

    Start with the region that has a sum constraint over a single cell.

    Open the full walkthroughs

Every Pips walkthrough from that day

All three walkthroughs, folded: each one places every domino on its board, one after another.

  • Easy board · 5 dominoes

    Easy board walkthrough

    Place the 1/3 domino to satisfy the less 2 constraint. Then, use the 6/6 domino to fulfill the sum 8 requirement. Next, place the 2/3 and 0/4 dominoes to meet the sum 11 and equals constraints. Finally, position the 3/5 domino to complete the puzzle.

  • Medium board · 7 dominoes

    Medium board walkthrough

    Begin by placing the 4/4 and 2/2 dominoes to satisfy the equals constraints. Then, use the 5/5 domino to fulfill another equals requirement. Next, position the 4/5 and 5/3 dominoes to meet the remaining equals and greater constraints. Finally, place the 2/1 and 0/5 dominoes to complete the puzzle.

  • Hard board · 15 dominoes

    Hard board walkthrough

    Begin by placing the 5/0 and 0/0 dominoes to satisfy the sum 2 and 0 constraints. Then, use the 6/0 domino to fulfill the sum 6 requirement. Next, position the 5/2 and 2/2 dominoes to meet the sum 5 and equals constraints. Continue by placing the 1/6 and 0/3 dominoes to satisfy the sum and unequal constraints. As the puzzle progresses, focus on fulfilling the sum 9, 10, and 7 requirements. Finally, position the remaining dominoes to complete the puzzle, ensuring all constraints are met.

Those boards by the numbers

Date
Sunday, July 26, 2026
Boards
3 — easy, medium, hard
Dominoes in play
27 across the three boards
Easy board
5 dominoes · 6 regions
Medium board
7 dominoes · 7 regions
Hard board
15 dominoes · 17 regions

More Pips

See the live Pips hints and answers page for the current boards, or browse every archived Pips date by month.

Try the other two puzzles