NYT Pips Hints, Solutions and Walkthrough for Thursday, June 18, 2026

Thursday brings a contemporary set of NYT Pips puzzles. In the present day’s grid packs a punch with dense colour zones and a number of exact-number situations that demand cautious domino mapping. We have hints, step-by-step walkthroughs, and full options for Simple, Medium, and Exhausting problem ranges.

Methods to Play Pips

Pips is a domino placement puzzle the place you fill a grid of color-coded zones. Every zone has a situation you need to fulfill utilizing the pip values in your dominoes. The twist: you need to use each domino and meet each situation to win.

Zone Situations:

• = All pips on this zone should equal the identical quantity
• Not Equal All pips should be totally different numbers
• > Pips should be higher than the listed quantity
• < Pips should be lower than the listed quantity
• Precise Quantity Pips should whole that precise worth
• No Coloration Free area, any domino worth works

Click on or faucet dominoes to rotate them. Every puzzle has a number of legitimate options.

In the present day’s Simple Pips

In the present day’s Medium Pips

In the present day’s Exhausting Pips

Fast Hints (No Spoilers)

Beginning Level: The navy (=) zone and purple (=) zone are your most restrictive equal-value constraints. Clear up these first to slender down your domino pool.

Key Perception: The inexperienced zone has each an exact-number situation (inexperienced 10) and a less-than situation (inexperienced <4) in numerous cells. These two inexperienced sub-zones should be dealt with individually — they don’t share the identical pip pool.

Watch Out For: Do not overload the teal (>10) zone too early. You want precisely sufficient high-value pips to exceed 10, however losing a 6/5 right here when it might serve an exact-number zone elsewhere will break your clear up.

Step-by-Step Walkthrough

1. 1.Analyze the board. You have got 15 dominoes to position throughout 13 zones with a number of overlapping situations. The important thing: each domino that crosses a zone boundary should fulfill each situations concurrently.
2. 2.Begin with the orange (<3) zones. Solely dominoes with each values 0, 1, or 2 match. Place the two/0 vertically in a single orange zone. This locks down your most restrictive situation instantly.
3. 3.Deal with the purple (=) zone. You want dominoes the place a number of pips share the identical worth. Place the three/4 horizontally so the three lands in purple (=) and the 4 lands in pink (10). The three is the primary of a number of matching 3s in purple.
4. 4.Place the three/6 horizontally with the three in purple (=) and the 6 in teal (>10). Purple now has two 3s — matching situation glad. Teal will get 6 towards its >10 whole.
5. 5.Place the 0/5 vertically so the 0 goes into navy (=) and the 5 into purple (6). Navy begins constructing its equal-value set. Purple (6) will get 5 — wants 1 extra.
6. 6.Place the 0/0 horizontally solely inside navy (=). Two zeros match completely. Navy situation glad.
7. 7.Place the 0/3 horizontally spanning navy (=) and inexperienced (<4). The 0 stays in navy’s equal set; the three satisfies inexperienced’s less-than-4 situation.
8. 8.Now handle the exact-number zones. Place the 1/4 vertically throughout purple (6) and inexperienced (10). Purple (6) now has 5+1=6 — situation met. Inexperienced (10) will get 4.
9. 9.Place the 6/5 vertically throughout pink (10) and teal (>10). Pink will get 4+6=10 — situation met. Teal will get 6+5=11 — situation met.
10. 10.Place the two/2 horizontally in pink (=). Matched pair. Pink’s equal situation is glad.
11. 11.Place the two/1 horizontally throughout pink (=) and teal (=). Each zones get matching values. Teal’s equal situation begins constructing.
12. 12.Place the 1/0 horizontally throughout teal (=) and the remaining orange (<3). Each values below 3, matching in teal.
13. 13.Place the two/6 vertically throughout pink (=) and inexperienced (10). Pink matches its 2. Inexperienced now has 4+6=10 — situation met.
14. 14.Place the two/5 horizontally throughout pink (=) and navy (>4). Pink matches. Navy will get 5 which exceeds 4.
15. 15.Place the 1/5 vertically throughout teal (=) and purple (>4). Teal will get its matching set. Purple will get 5 which exceeds 4.
16. 16.Place the 1/3 vertically in teal (=) and the uncolored (no situation) zone. All dominoes positioned, all situations glad.

Exhausting Pips Answer

Final likelihood to resolve independently

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1. 1.Place the three/4 horizontally in purple (=) zone and pink (10) zone
2. 2.Place the three/6 horizontally in purple (=) zone and teal (>10) zone
3. 3.Place the two/0 vertically in orange (<3) zone
4. 4.Place the 6/5 vertically in pink (10) zone and teal (>10) zone
5. 5.Place the 0/5 vertically in navy (=) zone and purple (6) zone
6. 6.Place the 1/4 vertically in purple (6) zone and inexperienced (10) zone
7. 7.Place the 0/0 horizontally in navy (=) zone
8. 8.Place the 0/3 horizontally in navy (=) zone and inexperienced (<4) zone
9. 9.Place the two/2 horizontally in pink (=) zone
10. 10.Place the two/1 horizontally in pink (=) zone and teal (=) zone
11. 11.Place the 1/0 horizontally in teal (=) zone and orange (<3) zone
12. 12.Place the two/6 vertically in pink (=) zone and inexperienced (10) zone
13. 13.Place the two/5 horizontally in pink (=) zone and navy (>4) zone
14. 14.Place the 1/5 vertically in teal (=) zone and purple (>4) zone
15. 15.Place the 1/3 vertically in teal (=) zone and uncolored (no situation) zone

Puzzle Debrief

Total Problem: Reasonable problem — the overlapping exact-number and equal-value zones create an online of constraints that rewards methodical planning over guesswork.

Trickiest Puzzle: Exhausting — the inexperienced zone cut up between an exact-10 whole and a less-than-4 situation is simple to misinterpret. Many solvers will by accident route too many pips into inexperienced (10) early, leaving the inexperienced (<4) zone with out viable low-value dominoes.

Our Take: Thursday’s set is a strong mid-week exercise. The zone structure forces you to consider domino orientation and boundary crossings greater than normal. If you happen to solved the Exhausting puzzle, you have earned the Friday break. If you happen to’re nonetheless caught, the walkthrough above will get you there.

Tomorrow’s Pips drops at midnight. See you then.