Balatro Antes and Blinds, explained

This poker rouge-lite can turn the card game you know into something completely new. Balatro features card enhancements, Jokers with unique effects, and a couple of keywords, including Antes and Blinds, that are a core part of the gameplay.

Here’s everything you need to know about Antes and Blinds in Balatro.

Antes in Balatro, explained

Ante overview in Balatro — Time to up the stakes. Screenshot by Dot Esports

An Ante in Balatro is a floor. Every run consists of eight Antes with three Blinds: Small Blind, Big Blind, and Boss Blind. After you defeat the Boss Blind, you advance to the next Ante, refreshing and raising all the Blinds.

Clearing all eight Antes completes the run, unlocking new Decks you can try out. However, you can also keep playing after completing the run by entering the Endless Mode. The rules and the flow of the game remain the same, so keep playing for as long as you want.

Blinds in Balatro, explained

The Club boss blind game in Balatro — Boss Blinds are the most challenging ones. Screenshot by Dot Esports

A Blind in Balatro is an individual round you play during an Ante. This is where you play your cards and score as many Chips as possible to hit the target. Every Ante has a Small Blind, Big Blind, and Boss Blind. The first two are regular rounds that you can play to earn cash and get access to the shop, or skip if you want to get a Tag.

The Boss Blind is the final round in each Ante. Apart from not being able to skip the Boss Blind, it also has a random modifier you must play around.

All Blinds in Balatro

Blind menu in Balatro — Prepare your deck for the final round. Screenshot by Dot Esports

While Small and Big Blinds aren’t anything special, the Boss Blinds can do some serious damage if you come unprepared. Always make sure to check its effect at the start of the Ante and try to account for it when choosing new Jokers, using Tarot Cards, and more.

Here are all the Boss Blinds in Balatro:

Blind	Effect
Forces one card to always be selected.	No effect.
Big Blind	No effect.
The Hook	Discards two random cards per hand played.
The Ox	Playing your most played hand this run sets your money to zero.
The House	First hand is drawn face down.
The Wall	Extra large blind.
The Wheel	One in seven cards get drawn face down.
The Arm	Decreases level of played poker hand.
The Club	All Club cards are debuffed.
The Fish	Cards are drawn face down after each hand played.
The Psychic	Cards are drawn face down after each hand played.
The Goad	All Spade cards are debuffed.
The Water	Start with zero discards.
The Window	All Diamond cards are debuffed.
The Manacle.	-1 Hand Size.
The Eye	No repeat hand types can be played this round.
The Mouth	Only one hand type can be played this round.
The Plant	All face cards are debuffed.
The Serpent	After Play or Discard, always draw three cards.
The Pillar	Cards played previously this Ante are debuffed.
The Needle	Play only one hand.
The Head	All Heart cards are debuffed.
The Tooth	Lose $1 per card played.
The Flint	Base Chips and Mult are halved.
The Mark	All face cards are drawn face down.
Amber Acorn	Flips and shuffles all Joker cards
Verdant Leaf	All cards debuffed until one Joker is sold.
Violet Vessel	Very large blind.
Crimson Heart	One random Joker is disabled every hand.
Cerulean Bell	Forces to one card to always be selected.