TodayHint

Pips July 28, 2026: Hints & Answers

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

Recap

The easy board requires logical deductions to place a few dominoes. The medium board involves matching dominoes to sum targets. The hard board demands systematic placement to satisfy many constraints.

The three boards that day

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

Easy board · 5 dominoes · 7 regions

0–21–10–50–60–1

  • 2 ×one cell: left uncovered.
  • two cells: all matching.
  • three cells: all matching.
  • one cell: under 3.
  • one cell: under 1.
  • one cell: more than 5.

Small number of dominoes and simple constraints make this easy.

Medium board · 7 dominoes · 7 regions

3–14–26–60–05–60–26–1

  • 2 ×one cell: left uncovered.
  • 2 ×three cells: all matching.
  • 2 ×two cells: exactly 7.
  • two cells: exactly 8.

More dominoes and sum constraints increase the challenge.

Hard board · 16 dominoes · 32 regions

0–10–20–30–40–51–21–31–41–52–32–42–53–43–54–53–6

  • 5 ×one cell: exactly 5.
  • 5 ×one cell: exactly 2.
  • 5 ×one cell: exactly 1.
  • 5 ×one cell: exactly 3.
  • 2 ×one cell: more than 0.
  • 5 ×one cell: exactly 4.
  • 5 ×one cell: left uncovered.

Large number of dominoes and regions with varied constraints make this hard.

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, 7 regions (2 empty, 2 equals, 2 less, 1 greater)
    Medium board
    7 dominoes, 7 regions (3 sum, 2 empty, 2 equals)
    Hard board
    16 dominoes, 32 regions (25 sum, 5 empty, 2 greater)
    Back to the board inventories
  2. Easy board: how to approach it

    Method only.

    Start by identifying regions with the fewest possible placements, focusing on those with specific numerical constraints.

  3. Easy board: where to start

    One region named by its constraint.

    Begin with the region that must be empty over 1 cell.

  4. Medium board: approach and first region

    The same two steps, one difficulty up.

    Look for regions with sum constraints and try to match dominoes to these targets.

    Start with a region that requires a sum of 7 over 2 cells.

  5. Hard board: how to approach it

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

    Focus on regions with fixed sums or comparisons to narrow down domino placements.

  6. Hard board: where to start

    The last rung before the full walkthroughs.

    Begin with a region that has a sum constraint over 1 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 0/2 domino. The empty over 1 cell region is now solved. Place the 0/5 and 0/6 dominoes, satisfying the greater 5 and less 3 constraints. The 0/1 domino fits in one spot, and the 1/1 domino completes the puzzle.

  • Medium board · 7 dominoes

    Medium board walkthrough

    Begin with the sum 7 over 2 cells region. Place the 3/4 domino, but it's not available; use 6/1 and 5/6 instead. Continue with the equals over 3 cells regions, using 4/2 and 6/6 dominoes. The 0/0 domino fills a gap, and the remaining dominoes fit into the last regions.

  • Hard board · 16 dominoes

    Hard board walkthrough

    Start by placing dominoes that satisfy the sum 1 over 1 cell regions, such as 0/1. Continue with sum 2 and sum 3 regions, using dominoes like 0/2, 1/1, and 1/2. As regions get filled, use dominoes like 2/3 and 3/4 to satisfy greater than and sum constraints. The 3/6 domino helps with higher sum regions. By process of elimination and matching, all regions can be filled, ensuring that all constraints are met.

Those boards by the numbers

Date
Tuesday, July 28, 2026
Boards
3 — easy, medium, hard
Dominoes in play
28 across the three boards
Easy board
5 dominoes · 7 regions
Medium board
7 dominoes · 7 regions
Hard board
16 dominoes · 32 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