Set up Jira Software Cloud
Learn how to set up Jira Software Cloud and integrate it with other products and applications.
Enable estimation
The following information only applies to team-managed projects
If you're unsure what type project you need help with, check the bottom of your project sidebar. If you see the Give feedback and Learn more menu items, you're in a team-managed project. If you don't, you're in a company-managed project.
Calculate your team's velocity by estimating each issue in your backlog. You can currently estimate work using story points and time.
Time estimation has landed in team-managed projects
We’ve just rolled out time estimation to team-managed projects. When you head over to Project settings > Features, you’ll find both story points and time available as an estimation statistic.
Once enabled, time estimates will show up for each issue on the board and backlog. Your backlog will also show the total time estimated for a sprint, too.
Our APIs opened up, allowing marketplace vendors to upgrade their tools, and create a rockin' experience for you. You can also create a JQL search based on duration. For example:
project=”NAME” and originalEstimate > 1m order by created DESC
Original estimation in the sprint burndown, burn up, and velocity reports has arrived, too.
Enable estimation for your team-managed project
If you’re not already there, navigate to your team-managed software project.
Go to Project Settings > Features.
Enable the Estimation feature.
Once Estimation is enabled, you can select whether to use Story points or Time.
When first enabled, the Story point or Original estimate fields are automatically added to your issues.
Disabling the estimation feature, or removing the field from an issue type won’t affect any pre-existing estimation data on your issues.
The data stays hidden and can be surfaced again if the relevant estimation feature is enabled, or the field is added to the issue type again.
You’ll need to manually configure the Original estimate field however if you remove it from your issues, then re-enable it at the feature-level.
Add estimates to epic issue types
When you enable the Estimation feature, the Story point estimate will be available to all standard-level issue types. The Original estimate field is always available.
You can also add these fields to epic issue types. Learn how to customize an issue's fields.
To manually add the Original estimate field:
If you’re not already there, navigate to your team-managed project.
From your project sidebar, select Project settings.
In Project settings, select Issue types.
From the Fields panel on the rightmost side of your screen, select Original estimate.
Drag, then drop the field where you’d like it to appear.
The Original estimate field goes hand-in-hand with the Time tracking field. To add Original estimates, you'll also need to add the Time tracking field.
From your project menu, select Create > Configure fields.
Select Custom, and then Time tracking.
How to estimate issues
To estimate an issue on your board or backlog:
Select and expand an issue to view its details.
In the Story point estimate field, enter a valid estimate. Story point estimates must be numerical but can include decimal points.
In the Original estimate field, enter a numerical figure based on a unit of time. Available units are weeks, days, hours, or minutes. For example, 1w 2d 3h 4m.
The estimation field is available wherever you can open an issue, such as the backlog, board, and roadmap (if you've added the Story point estimate or Original estimate field to epic issue types).
View estimates in reports
The estimates entered on your project's issues will affect your project's reports. Learn more about reports in team-managed projects.
Learn more
Estimation takes place in the backlog. Read more about maintaining a healthy, well-organized backlog.
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