Jira Cheat Sheet

Updated 2026-04-29

Jira is Atlassian's industry-leading work management platform used for planning, tracking, and releasing software and business projects. In Jira Cloud, issues are now called "work items" and projects are now called "spaces" — a terminology shift rolled out across all plans through 2025 — while JQL and APIs retain legacy issue/project keywords for backward compatibility. Jira supports software teams with Scrum and Kanban boards, and extends to IT service management (Jira Service Management), business teams, and cross-team planning (Jira Plans). The 2026 Spring Release introduces AI Agents (Rovo), guest access, custom space templates, and a seasonal release cadence — making it important to keep up with the platform's rapid evolution.

What This Cheat Sheet Covers

This topic spans 26 focused tables and 236 indexed concepts. Below is a complete table-by-table outline of this topic, spanning foundational concepts through advanced details.

Table 1: Issue / Work Item TypesTable 2: Issue FieldsTable 3: Workflow ManagementTable 4: BoardsTable 5: JQL (Jira Query Language)Table 6: Filters and SearchTable 7: AutomationTable 8: SprintsTable 9: Reports and DashboardsTable 10: Permissions and SecurityTable 11: Versions and ReleasesTable 12: ComponentsTable 13: Issue LinkingTable 14: Time TrackingTable 15: Agile EstimationTable 16: Roadmaps and PlanningTable 17: NotificationsTable 18: Custom FieldsTable 19: Attachments and CommentsTable 20: Bulk OperationsTable 21: Keyboard ShortcutsTable 22: Screen and Field ConfigurationTable 23: Advanced FeaturesTable 24: Project / Space ConfigurationTable 25: Project Types — Team-managed vs Company-managedTable 26: Jira Service Management (JSM)

Table 1: Issue / Work Item Types

Every piece of work in Jira is one of these types, and the type you pick decides where the item sits in the hierarchy and which workflow it follows. The first six form the software-planning ladder — from broad Initiatives and Epics down through Stories, Tasks, Bugs, and Sub-tasks — while Incident, Problem, and Change Request are the ITIL work types you'll only meet in Jira Service Management.

Type	Example	Description
Epic	Epic: "User Authentication" spanning 3 sprints	• Large body of work broken into stories • sits above story in the default hierarchy. In Jira Cloud, epics are now regular work items with a parent–child relationship.
Story	Story: "As a user, I can reset my password"	• User-facing feature or requirement written from the end-user perspective • core unit of Scrum planning.
Task	Task: "Set up CI/CD pipeline"	Generic work item for technical or administrative work not described as a user story.
Bug	Bug: "Login button unresponsive on iOS 17"	• Defect or unintended behavior requiring a fix • typically includes steps to reproduce, severity, and affected versions.
Sub-task	Sub-task under Story: "Write unit tests"	• Child work item under a parent story or task • used to break down work into smaller, assignable pieces.

Table 1: Issue / Work Item Types

Type	Example	Description
Epic	Epic: "User Authentication" spanning 3 sprints	• Large body of work broken into stories • sits above story in the default hierarchy. In Jira Cloud, epics are now regular work items with a parent–child relationship.
Story	Story: "As a user, I can reset my password"	• User-facing feature or requirement written from the end-user perspective • core unit of Scrum planning.
Task	Task: "Set up CI/CD pipeline"	Generic work item for technical or administrative work not described as a user story.
Bug	Bug: "Login button unresponsive on iOS 17"	• Defect or unintended behavior requiring a fix • typically includes steps to reproduce, severity, and affected versions.
Sub-task	Sub-task under Story: "Write unit tests"	• Child work item under a parent story or task • used to break down work into smaller, assignable pieces.