Home News How to Use Cheats in Balatro (Debug Menu Guide)

How to Use Cheats in Balatro (Debug Menu Guide)

by Amelia Feb 11,2025

Balatro, the breakout hit of early 2024, boasts over 3.5 million sales and three Game Awards wins. Its enduring popularity stems from innovative gameplay and near-limitless replayability. However, seasoned players might seek ways to revitalize their experience.

While mods offer one solution, accessing Balatro's built-in developer debug menu provides an alternative, allowing cheat usage without impacting achievements.

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Enabling Balatro Cheats

To activate Balatro's debug menu and cheats, you'll need 7-Zip, a free, open-source archiving tool. Locate your Balatro installation directory (typically C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Balatro). If unsure, find Balatro in your Steam library, right-click, select "Manage," then "Browse Local Files."

Right-click Balatro.exe and choose to open the archive with 7-Zip (this might be under "Show More Options," depending on your OS and 7-Zip settings). Find conf.lua and open it with a text editor (like Notepad).

Modify _RELEASE_MODE = true to _RELEASE_MODE = false, then save. If saving fails, extract conf.lua to your desktop, make the change, and replace the original file. The debug menu will now activate by holding the Tab key in-game.

To disable the debug menu, revert _RELEASE_MODE to true in conf.lua.

Utilizing the Balatro Debug Menu

Balatro's cheat menu is user-friendly. Unlock collectibles by hovering and pressing '1'; spawn jokers by hovering and pressing '3'. While initially limited to five jokers, pressing 'Q' four times on a joker in your hand transforms it into a negative, effectively expanding your joker capacity.

All Balatro Cheats (Hold Tab to Open Menu)

Cheat / Key Effect 1Unlock a Collectible (while hovering) 2Discover a Collectible (while hovering) 3Spawn a Collectible (while hovering) QChange Joker Edition (while hovering in hand) HIsolate Background JPlay Splash Animation 8Toggle Cursor 9Toggle All Tooltips $10Adds $10 to Total +1 RoundIncreases Round by 1 +1 AnteIncreases Ante by 1 +1 HandAdds one Hand +1 DiscardAdds one Discard Boss RerollRerolls the Boss BackgroundRemoves Background +10 ChipsAdds 10 Chips +10 MultAdds 10 to Multiplier X2 ChipsDoubles Chips X10 MultIncreases Multiplier by 10 Win this RunCompletes Current Run Lose this RunEnds Current Run ResetResets Current Run JimboMakes Jimbo Appear Jimbo TalkDisplays Jimbo Text Box