Jira Software Reviews

“reliable bug tracking”

Pros

Using this has been really easy. I've logged hundreds of bugs with it and haven't run into a single issue. It's been extremely dependable, team collaboration works well and the search function is powerful.

Cons

My only complaint is that I wish our company had migrated our other ticketing system over to this one too. This product feels much more aligned and current.

“works everywhere”

Pros

Very easy to use and packed with everything I need, plus it connects with lots of integrations. Having both a web version and a desktop app is a big plus.

Cons

I've been happy with the product overall and haven't run into any major downsides.

“easy to navigate”

Pros

Right from the start, the platform feels very simple and user-friendly. It's simple to navigate and helps me use my time more efficiently.

Cons

I really don't have any complaints about this platform. Overall, the interface keeps things simple and makes it efficient to use.

“simple team management”

Pros

Getting started with this tool is easy and it's simple to understand and use. It has also been very useful for managing work across the entire team.

Cons

One downside is that this tool either doesn't support or only offers very limited collaboration with, mainframe systems and programs.

“easy task tracking”

Pros

Managing tasks with this software is easy and it comes with plenty of features to work with.

Cons

A few of the functions are confusing and I keep having to switch back to the "See the old look" view which gets frustrating. I'm also not sure why that has to be done or whether it can be set up differently. On top of that, it recently stopped supporting Internet Explorer.

“great for Scrum and Kanban”

Pros

Week to week, this has been a really great project management tool for me. It supports tracking work through Scrum or Kanban boards and the interface feels simple and easy to navigate. I can also set up workflows and build roadmaps which helps add more structure to each project and clearly define the tasks needed during development.

Cons

Even though it is very useful for managing projects, I do wish it offered more features that improve collaboration between team members. One thing I especially miss is a timeline view to monitor both my own progress and everyone else's. On top of that, the Kanban board can get confusing once tasks and subtasks start piling up. A lot of the time, just looking at the board, it is hard to tell what is a main task versus a subtask and how much work is still left to finish each item.

“helps teams to stay organized”

Pros

It's an excellent tool for managing processes and keeping an agile team organized. It comes with a lot of important features especially the automations which are simple to set up.

Cons

While using it, I noticed that the newer project design doesn't include the same features available in a classic project. Because of that, I had trouble creating a new board within the same project.

“flexible workflows”

Pros

There are lots of customizable workflows, screens and schemes which makes the system very flexible to use. The way the schemes can be applied works well and having multiple templates available is also a big plus. It also supports different software life cycle management needs which adds to its usefulness.

Cons

Although the product keeps improving over time, its overall feature set still does not fully cover everything needed for ITIL implementation so we still have to rely on tools like IT Service Desk or ServiceNow. Reporting is another area where it feels limited and could be much better.

“too much for simple tasks”

Pros

Amount of detail and control available for team planning is something I really appreciate. You can define exactly when cycles start and end, set up stages and build hierarchies within the same project or task. For projects that need a very high level of precision, that depth is extremely valuable because it helps make sure nothing is left to chance.

Cons

Even though I appreciate how much detail can be added to a task or project, that same depth becomes frustrating when you are dealing with simpler tasks, daily operations or quick follow-ups. The tool does not offer much flexibility to skip unnecessary parameters which gets annoying fast. Another issue is that task ownership always seems to fall on a single person and that can create an imbalance when measuring team performance since one member may end up carrying far more activities than the rest. The day-to-day problem that bothers me most is the activity board, every time a card is moved to another column, such as from "To Do" to "Doing," the board does not refresh automatically. Instead, it shows an irritating "board not updated" message and until the page is refreshed it will not let you move that card or any other. For larger teams and short, precise follow-up meetings, this makes the tool feel less agile than it should.

“built for teams”

Pros

Built around agile teamwork, this software does an excellent job of making project work visible across the whole team and keeping everyone aligned. It supports widely used approaches like Scrum and Kanban which makes managing projects much more easy. One of its biggest strengths is how adaptable it is to different ways of working. The default fields are already very great but being able to create custom ones helps tailor processes in a much more precise way. Workflows are also highly configurable so teams get a lot of freedom in deciding how work should be organized. Because of that flexibility, it is useful far beyond software development. I've seen it work well in areas like recruiting, data analysis and other operational teams too. Another strong point is how well it integrates with other ecosystems especially Microsoft's which helps shorten the learning curve for many organizations. On the service side, it offers multiple deployment options, including Cloud and self-managed environments such as Server or Data Center so it can fit companies with even very strict security requirements. The marketplace is another major plus, with a large selection of apps that extend the platform's capabilities. On top of that, it has built a broader ecosystem around project work especially for software teams, with products like Confluence for documentation, Bitbucket for source control, Service Desk and more.

Cons

Huge number of fields and customization options can be a little intimidating for new users at first and it definitely takes some time to become comfortable with everything. The interface could also use a refresh so it feels cleaner, clearer and more polished especially for occasional or less technical users. Things like time tracking, task transitions and even clearer color schemes for new tasks could be presented better. The workflow engine is powerful but it could be made more user-friendly and give administrators more control when it comes to creating, applying, deleting and versioning workflows. The security administration area also feels overdue for improvement, particularly when managing users, groups and roles across projects. For example, if you create a new group, you still can't bulk add it to all existing projects without resorting to CLI scripting which feels unnecessarily tough.

“covers all the basics”

Pros

It covers everything you'd expect from a project management tool and there's a wide range of plugins available for anything that isn't included in the core product.

Cons

We're using the cloud version and it can be quite slow fairly often.

“keeps work organized”

Pros

Using this has been a really positive experience because it helps me keep my team's work organized and managed effectively and I can also go back and review completed projects whenever I need to.

Cons

One thing that would make it even better is an built-in funding or budget management feature. Right now I have to rely on a separate tool for that and it would be much more convenient to handle everything in one place.

“helpful add-ons and charts”

Pros

Getting around the software has been a real plus for me. I also appreciate the wide selection of add-ons available, along with the charts it can generate.

Cons

Menu options do feel a bit clunky. It can also be frustrating to adjust the search filters and get exactly the results I need.

“flexible issue tracking”

Pros

A really flexible and comprehensive system for managing tasks and tracking bugs, with plenty of features that cover a lot of needs.

Cons

There are a lot of options built in so it can feel a bit overwhelming when you're just getting started.

“steep learning curve”

Pros

This feels like a very capable product and in the right hands it could do amazing things for bigger teams.

Cons

Learning curve was really steep and I never managed to get comfortable with the software so I ended up avoiding it.

“easy for developers”

Pros

Jumping into the tool as a programmer feels very easy because it lays out the list of cards or issues clearly, lets you open each one for the details on what needs to be done and makes it simple to move cards through the different workflow stages.

Cons

Updates roll out pretty often and they sometimes bring UI changes that feel disruptive, with no real way to opt out or keep using the previous version when that would be better. There's also a strange bug where the issue preview pane occasionally doesn't refresh after clicking a different card which can lead to editing or opening the wrong one.

“strong reporting and tracking”

Pros

Keeping tabs on each stage of the project development cycle works really well with this tool. Assigning tickets across different groups or teams is easy and the integrations with tools like Slack and Zendesk help pull all stories into one place. That makes it much simpler to stay on top of notifications and respond quickly. The reporting features are also very useful especially things like burn down charts and velocity charts. It also does a good job of helping prioritize stories and being able to attach photos and videos to an issue is a nice bonus.

Cons

One thing that gets frustrating is the number of email notifications that come through for every minor update. The editing modes also feel inconsistent since different sections within a ticket use different formats. On top of that, deleting a task requires super user access which can be limiting.

“Clear team visibility”

Pros

Getting a quick view of who is doing what, where things stand and how everything is progressing is really helpful. At a glance, standups get wrapped up faster because blocking issues are easy to spot right away.

Cons

It does take some time to figure out and test all the possible ways to support everyone with the right dashboard views so each person can have a quick and useful overview.

“More versatile than expected”

Pros

The core feature set is broad enough that it works for far more tasks than you'd expect at first glance.

Cons

Only thing that bothers me is the project comment section. You have to tag every person individually if you want them to see a comment instead of them getting notified automatically.

“Easy Bitbucket connection”

Pros

Connecting it with Bitbucket was pleasantly easy and the way it keeps track of issues is genuinely impressive.

Cons

Setting it up with other Git services can be a little tricky and takes more time than expected.