Velocity Dashboard for Jira
Compare sprint velocity across multiple Jira boards — story points or issue count with trend indicators.
Overview
Jira's built-in velocity chart shows one board at a time. If you manage multiple teams, you're clicking between boards, comparing numbers in your head. Velocity Dashboard puts all your teams side-by-side in a single dashboard gadget.
How It Works
- Add the gadget to any Jira dashboard
- Select boards — pick one or more Scrum boards to compare
- Choose your metric — story points or issue count
- See the chart — velocity bars for each sprint, grouped by board, with trend indicators
Features
- Multi-board comparison — Up to 6 boards side-by-side in one view
- Story points or issue count — Toggle between estimation-based and flow-based metrics
- Configurable sprint count — Show last 3, 6, 9, or 12 sprints
- Trend indicators — Upward, downward, or stable arrows per board
- Average velocity — Displayed alongside sprint-by-sprint bars
- Color-coded boards — Distinct colors for easy visual comparison
- Runs on Forge — 100% serverless on Atlassian's infrastructure
Use Cases
| Scenario | How It Helps |
|---|---|
| Multi-team standup | Velocity for all squads on a shared dashboard |
| Sprint retrospective | Compare last 6 sprints to see if improvements are working |
| Capacity planning | Use average velocity to plan upcoming work |
| Management reporting | Add to a leadership dashboard, auto-updated after each sprint |
Configuration
Board Selection
Select up to 6 Scrum boards to compare. Each board gets a distinct color for easy identification in the chart.
Metric Toggle
Switch between story points (estimation-based) and issue count (flow-based) with a single click. The chart updates immediately.
Sprint Count
Configure how many sprints to display: 3, 6, 9, or 12. More sprints give a longer trend view; fewer sprints highlight recent performance.
Trend Indicators
Each board shows a trend arrow:
- Up arrow — velocity is increasing over recent sprints
- Down arrow — velocity is decreasing
- Stable — velocity is consistent
Frequently Asked Questions
Does it work with Kanban boards?
No. Velocity Dashboard is designed for Scrum boards with sprints. Kanban boards don't have sprints, so there's no velocity to compare. If you're tracking flow metrics for Kanban, consider using Jira's built-in control chart.
How far back does the data go?
The gadget uses Jira's sprint data, which goes back as far as your board history. You can display the last 3, 6, 9, or 12 completed sprints. If a board has fewer completed sprints than the configured count, it will show whatever is available.
Can I compare boards from different projects?
Yes. You can select any Scrum board the current user has access to, regardless of which project it belongs to. This is useful for cross-team comparisons where teams work in separate projects.
What happens if a sprint has no story points?
If story points aren't estimated, switch the metric to "issue count" instead. The gadget will count completed issues per sprint rather than summing story points.
Does it update automatically?
Yes. The gadget refreshes when the dashboard loads and when sprints are completed. You don't need to manually trigger an update.
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|
| Board not showing in dropdown | User doesn't have access to the board | Ask a Jira admin to grant "Browse Projects" permission for the board's project |
| Velocity shows as 0 | Story points not set on issues, or no completed sprints | Switch metric to "issue count," or ensure issues have story point estimates before completing sprints |
| Only 1–2 sprints showing | Board is new with few completed sprints | The gadget shows completed sprints only. Complete more sprints to build up history |
| Gadget not appearing | App not installed for this site | Verify the app is installed at Settings > Apps > Manage apps |
Data Security & Privacy
| Data storage | No data stored outside Atlassian |
| Data processing | No data processed outside Atlassian |
| Data residency | Exclusively within Atlassian apps and services |
| GDPR | Data processor — sprint data (velocity, story points, issue counts) |
| Security contact | support@alpinate.com |