What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
These NYT Pips hints and solutions are for Saturday, October 25, 2025. The Hard board’s domino placements are listed below, with a spoiler warning. The original Forbes article also shows Easy and Medium answer images, but its text does not spell out their placements.
How to play NYT Pips
Pips asks you to place every available domino so it fills the grid and each colored region meets its condition. Dominoes can be rotated to fit. As Kaycee Hill, Tom’s Guide How-To Editor, puts it, “The objective is straightforward: place all available dominoes on the board while ensuring each colored region meets its specified condition.”
- = means the pips in that region must match.
- ≠ means the pips in that region must all differ.
- > and < indicate that the designated pip or group total must be above or below the value shown on the board.
- A printed number requires that exact value.
- Unmarked cells have no special condition.
Read each symbol in the context of its particular board: a rule applies to the cells or total indicated there. Rotating a domino changes which pip lands in which cell, so orientation can matter to a region’s condition.
Hard solution for Saturday, October 25, 2025
Spoilers: The Hard board’s solution spells “yes.” Follow the placements in order; references such as “Orange 4” and “Purple =” identify the board regions by their displayed condition.
The Tool Desk
Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →#1 Best Overall
- Start in the Orange 4 group in the “S.” Place the 1/2 domino from Orange 4 into Purple =. The published walkthrough reasons that Purple = will need a double, while 5/5 is needed elsewhere. Put 1/1 in the next two Orange 4 cells, then place 1/4 from Orange 4 into Green 6.
- Place 2/0 from Green 6 into Blue 0, then 0/6 from Blue 0 into Pink 26. Place 5/2 from Pink 26 into Purple = and fill the last two Purple = cells with 2/2.
- Place 0/5 from Dark Blue 0 into Pink >4. Put 4/0 from Green 4 into Orange ≠, then 2/4 from Purple 2 into Orange ≠.
- Finish with 0/3 from a free tile into Orange ≠ and 5/1 from Pink 26 into the other free tile. Place 1/6 from Dark Blue 1 into Blue 12, followed by 6/4 from Blue 12 into the final free tile.
In the original walkthrough, Erik Kain’s solving approach was to tackle constrained larger groups early, reserve 5/5 for Pink 26, use two 6s in Blue 12, and leave flexible unmarked cells until the end. That is the author’s stated reasoning, not a claim that these choices are the only possible way to solve the board.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Easy and Medium answers
The Forbes article includes answer images for the Easy and Medium boards, but its reviewed text does not list their cell coordinates or domino placements. This guide therefore does not invent placement sequences for those tiers.
Quick Recap
Best Value
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
