Balatro presents players with a unique blend of poker and strategic deck-building. While there’s no single “correct” way to play, understanding the nuances of each deck is crucial for consistent wins. This guide provides winning strategies for all 15 decks, covering their effects, synergies, and potential downsides. Whether you’re a mobile newbie or a seasoned veteran, these tips will help you conquer every ante.
The Red Deck
The Red Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Default starting deck.
Effect: Standard 52-card deck with +1 discard per round.
Strategy: Prioritize building your economy to $25 for the $5 interest. Then, spend wisely, focusing on Jokers that scale Chips and Mult, like Fortune Teller or Supernova. The extra discard aids in finding high-scoring hands like Straights and Full Houses.
Downsides: The extra discard is negated by The Water Boss Blind.
The Blue Deck
The Blue Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Discover 20 items (Tags, Vouchers, or Jokers).
Effect: +1 hand per round.
Strategy: The extra hand provides consistent economic growth and synergizes with Mult-scaling Jokers like the Green Joker. It also offers an extra chance in challenging late-game scenarios.
Downsides: Can struggle by Ante 4 without strong hand-reliant Jokers (Square Joker, Castle, Spare Trousers). The Needle Boss Blind, forcing single-hand play, is a significant threat.
Synergies: Merry Andy, Stuntman (mitigates their hand reduction), Card Sharp, Sixth Sense, and DNA.
The Yellow Deck
The Yellow Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Discover 50 items.
Effect: Starts with an extra $10.
Strategy: Aggressive saving is key. Reach $25 quickly and maintain it as your new economic baseline. Prioritize Jokers, Vouchers, and Rerolls over early financial rewards.
Downsides: Few notable drawbacks.
Synergies: To the Moon, Golden Joker, Seed Money Voucher, Bootstraps, and Bull Joker.
The Green Deck
The Green Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Discover 75 items.
Effect: No interest, but $2 per remaining hand and $1 per remaining discard at round end.
Strategy: Conserving hands and discards is paramount. Focus on high-scoring single-hand knockouts (Flushes, Straights, Full Houses). Utilize Tarot cards for late-game survival.
Downsides: Weakens several Jokers, including Mystic Summit, Burnt Joker, Dusk, Acrobat, and Castle.
Synergies: Burglar, Merry Andy, Drunkard, Grabber Voucher, Wasteful Voucher, and Vagabond.
The Black Deck
The Black Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Discover 100 items.
Effect: +1 Joker slot, -1 hand per round.
Strategy: Prioritize the Grabber Voucher. Focus on Joker synergies and consider Jokers like Oops All 6s. Rerolls and Joker-boosting Jokers are crucial. Skip Negative tags for extra Joker slots.
Downsides: Hand reduction hinders economic growth.
Synergies: Joker Stencil, Burglar, and Mr. Bones.
The Magic Deck
The Magic Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Win with the Red Deck (any difficulty).
Effect: Starts with Crystal Ball Voucher and two The Fool cards.
Strategy: Use The Fool cards on strong Tarot or Planet cards for early-game advantage and long-term value.
Downsides: Relies on strong Tarot cards in early shops.
Synergies: Jokers benefiting from extra consumable slots (Cartomancer, 8 Ball, Vagabond, Superposition, Hallucination, Séance, Sixth Sense), Certificate (with Purple or Blue Seals).
The Nebula Deck
The Nebula Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Win with the Blue Deck (any difficulty).
Effect: Starts with Telescope Voucher, -1 consumable slot.
Strategy: Focus on building around a single hand, utilizing the Telescope Voucher to level up corresponding Planet cards. Straights are generally a strong choice.
Downsides: Long-term scaling can be challenging. The reduced consumable slot limits Joker synergy.
Synergies: Constellation, Satellite, Astronomer, and Crystal Ball Voucher.
The Ghost Deck
The Ghost Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Win with the Yellow Deck (any difficulty).
Effect: Starts with Hex Spectral Card; increased Spectral Card appearance in shop.
Strategy: Use Hex on a strong Joker early. Remain adaptable to powerful Spectral cards like Deja Vu, Cryptid, or Aura.
Downsides: Reliant on finding a good Joker early.
Synergies: Deja Vu with Baron Joker (for King-focused builds).
The Abandoned Deck
The Abandoned Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Win with the Green Deck (any difficulty).
Effect: 40-card deck with no face cards.
Strategy: The pre-thinned deck allows for consistent strategies focused on Straights, Three/Four-of-a-Kinds, and Full Houses. Immune to Mark and Plant Boss Blinds.
Downsides: Lack of face cards can hinder early-game chip accumulation.
Synergies: Ride the Bus, Wee Joker, Fibonacci, and Scholar.
The Checkered Deck
The Checkered Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Win with the Black Deck (any difficulty).
Effect: Only Spades and Hearts.
Strategy: Focus on Flushes and Straight Flushes. Invest in backup hands like Straights or Four-of-a-Kind for late-game viability.
Downsides: Vulnerable to Goad and Head Boss Blinds. Can become overly reliant on Flushes.
Synergies: Card Sharp, The Tribe, Bloodstone, Arrowhead, Séance, Four Fingers, and Shortcut.
The Zodiac Deck
The Zodiac Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Win with any deck on Red Stake or higher.
Effect: Starts with Tarot Merchant, Planet Merchant, and Overstock Vouchers.
Strategy: Manage consumable slots to control shop appearances and prioritize Tarot/Planet card synergies.
Downsides: Fewer Jokers in the early shop.
Synergies: Jokers that benefit from Tarot/Planet cards (Fortune Teller, Driver’s License, Vampire, Constellation, Satellite, Astronomer), Temperance (increases Egg Joker sell price, boosts Gift Card Joker), Campfire.
The Painted Deck
The Painted Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Win with any deck on Green Stake or higher.
Effect: +2 default hand size, -1 Joker slot.
Strategy: Leverage larger hand size for early-game Flushes, transitioning to Straights and Full Houses. Mitigate the Joker slot reduction by using Spectral Packs or Ectoplasm.
Downsides: High Card and Two Pair builds are less effective. Joker slot reduction impacts late-game performance.
Synergies: Jokers that benefit from specific cards (Mime, Shoot the Moon, Baron, Reserved Parking), Stuntman.
The Anaglyph Deck
The Anaglyph Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Win with any deck on Black Stake or higher.
Effect: Defeating a Boss Blind grants a Double Tag (copies the next selected tag).
Strategy: Strategically skip blinds to maximize Double Tag benefits. Prioritize Negative (extra Joker slots), Investment, and Ethereal tags.
Downsides: Reliant on favorable tag offerings. Weakens scaling Jokers that rely on beating blinds.
Synergies: Throwback Joker and Diet Cola.
The Plasma Deck
The Plasma Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Win with any deck on Blue Stake or higher.
Effect: Averages Chips and Mult before multiplying, doubling blind sizes.
Strategy: Exploit early-game Chip generators. Transition to Mult-focused Jokers after Ante 4. Prioritize card modifiers like Bonus Cards, Foil Cards, and Red Seal.
Downsides: Chip generators don’t scale well late-game.
Synergies: High Chip-generating Jokers (Sly, Wily, Clever, Devious, Crafty), Stuntman.
The Erratic Deck
The Erratic Deck in Balatro
Unlock Condition: Win with any deck on Orange Stake or higher.
Effect: Randomized suits and ranks.
Strategy: Adapt strategy based on each run’s card distribution. Prioritize Flushes if suits are concentrated, or Three/Four/Five-of-a-Kind if ranks are concentrated.
Downsides: Inconsistent, generally weak for Straights.
Synergies: Highly variable due to randomized nature.
