Deduce #42: The bakery line — the solution

The Deduce puzzle from September 25, 2026, worked through clue by clue: 8 clues, 3 rounds of crossing off, and no guessing anywhere.

The puzzle

Four people — Pia, Rosa, Ana and Wes — and three things to work out about each: their order, coat and spot. The clues only ever rule things out.

1. The one in the red coat is the one 5th in line.
2. Pia is not the one in the cream coat.
3. Rosa is the one in the brown coat.
4. The one buying a bun is the one 5th in line.
5. The one buying a pie is the one in the green coat.
6. Wes is the one 3rd in line.
7. Pia is exactly 2 places after the one in the brown coat.
8. The one buying a loaf is not the one in the brown coat.

The walkthrough

A round is one pass over the clues. Each round applies what the last one settled; every step below is an elimination the clues force, in the order a solver would take them.

Round 1

Start with every possibility open, and take the clues in order.

Clue 2, “Pia is not the one in the cream coat”: cream comes off Pia.

Clue 3, “Rosa is the one in the brown coat”: brown comes off Pia, Ana and Wes. That settles it: Rosa’s coat is brown.

Clue 5, “The one buying a pie is the one in the green coat”: a pie comes off Rosa.

Clue 6, “Wes is the one 3rd in line”: 3rd comes off Pia, Rosa and Ana. That settles it: Wes is 3rd in line.

Clue 7, “Pia is exactly 2 places after the one in the brown coat”: 5th comes off Pia and Rosa; 2nd comes off Pia; 4th comes off Rosa. That settles it: Pia is 4th in line and Rosa is 2nd in line.

Clue 8, “The one buying a loaf is not the one in the brown coat”: a loaf comes off Rosa.

Round 2

Go back over the clues with the new facts in hand.

4th is Pia’s, so it comes off Ana.

2nd is Rosa’s, so it comes off Ana. That settles it: Ana is 5th in line.

Clue 1, “The one in the red coat is the one 5th in line”: red comes off Pia and Wes. That settles it: Pia’s coat is green and Ana’s coat is red.

Clue 4, “The one buying a bun is the one 5th in line”: a bun comes off Pia, Rosa and Wes. That settles it: Rosa’s order is a cake and Ana’s order is a bun.

Round 3

Go back over the clues with the new facts in hand.

A cake is Rosa’s, so it comes off Pia and Wes.

Green is Pia’s, so it comes off Wes. That settles it: Wes’s coat is cream.

Clue 5, “The one buying a pie is the one in the green coat”: a pie comes off Wes. That settles it: Pia’s order is a pie and Wes’s order is a loaf.

The answer

Previous: Deduce #41 (Thu, Sep 24)

About Deduce

Deduce is Noggin’s daily logic grid: four people, three things to work out about each, and clues that never hand you an answer. Every puzzle has exactly one solution and can be finished by crossing off alone. How to play Deduce, or play today’s.