The Jira time tracking report shows, for the issues in one version of a project, the original estimate, the estimated time remaining, the time spent and the accuracy of the estimate. It tells you whether a release is ahead of or behind its original estimate. It does not show who worked when, and it is only as accurate as the worklogs behind it.
Key takeaways
- The report is about a version: estimate against actual, issue by issue.
- Two bars at the top, Progress and Accuracy, show ahead or behind at a glance.
- It is not a timesheet. There is no view by person and day.
- Its numbers come from worklogs, so manual logging habits decide its quality.
What does the report show?
Columns in the Time Tracking Report
- Original Estimate
- The original estimate of the total time the issue would take
- Estimated Time Remaining
- The current estimate of the time still needed
- Time Spent
- The total time logged against the issue
- Accuracy
- The difference between time spent plus time remaining, and the original estimate
The last line of the table adds the figures up for the whole version. If sub-tasks are enabled, a sum column shows each parent issue's values together with those of its sub-tasks. Atlassian documents the report in its guide to generating reports.
How do you read the two bars?
Above the table are two bars. Progress shows the share of completed and incomplete issues. Accuracy shows how the original estimates are holding up. Compare their lengths.
| What you see | What it means |
|---|---|
| The Accuracy bar is the same length as the Progress bar | The issues are on schedule with the original estimate |
| The Progress bar is longer than the Accuracy bar | The issues are behind. They will take longer than estimated |
| The Accuracy bar is longer than the Progress bar | The issues are ahead. They will take less time than estimated |
Which options can you set?
Version
The report covers issues whose fix version is the one you choose.
Sorting
Least completed issues first, or most completed first.
Issues
All issues in the version, or incomplete issues only.
Sub-tasks
Only those in the same version, also those with no version, or all sub-tasks.
"Incomplete issues only" leaves out issues with no time remaining and issues that were never estimated. If a version looks suspiciously healthy, check that setting.
Which other built-in reports use time tracking?
| Report | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Time Tracking Report | Estimate against actual for the issues in a version |
| User Workload Report | A person's unresolved issues and remaining workload, project by project |
| Version Workload Report | Outstanding work before a version is complete, per person and per issue |
| Workload Pie Chart | The relative workload of assignees for a project or filter |
All four depend on time tracking data being present on the issues.
What does the report not show?
Questions the built-in report cannot answer
- How many hours did each person work each day?
- How many hours went to this client last month, across versions?
- Which hours were worked and never logged?
- How much time went to meetings and work outside Jira?
- Did the worklogs change after they were first entered?
For those you need a timesheet view. Teams get one from a Marketplace app, from exported worklogs in a spreadsheet, or from a time tracker that feeds Jira.
Why are the numbers so often off?
Because the Time Spent column is a sum of manual worklogs.
The report is reliable when
- Every issue has an original estimate
- Time is logged the day the work is done
- Each log goes on the issue actually worked
- Remaining estimates are updated when scope changes
It misleads when
- Logs are entered on Friday from memory
- Time lands on a catch-all issue
- Finished issues have no time logged
- Remaining estimates are left untouched
How the three figures move is explained in original estimate, time spent and remaining estimate. Why worklogs go missing is covered in Jira worklogs explained.
How do you get a report you can trust?
Estimate every issue in the version
An issue with no original estimate cannot be compared.
Make logging part of the day
Or remove the manual step with automatic tracking.
Re-estimate what changed
Update remaining estimates in refinement, not at the end.
Review the report weekly
A gap found in week one can be managed. In the last week it cannot.
Look at accuracy afterwards
Use finished versions to improve the next round of estimates.
How does BirdsEye improve Jira time data?
BirdsEye changes where Time Spent comes from. It records working time against the Jira issue each person has selected and writes the worklogs itself.
- Worklogs match tracked time. They are created, updated when a time entry changes and removed when it is deleted.
- Nothing is logged twice. Repeated syncs do not post a second worklog.
- Failures are visible. A failed sync retries on a widening backoff, and administrators can see worklog health and retry by hand.
Jira's own reports then read from accurate numbers. For the questions Jira's report cannot answer, BirdsEye has its own.
BirdsEye reports alongside Jira
- Project report
- Totals against budget, by day, hour, person, application and task
- Employee view
- Daily breakdown and time by hour for one person
- Time away from the keyboard
- Meetings and calls added as manual entries
- Export
- Time entries as CSV
Jira and project reports are on the Team plan and above. See Jira time tracking and reports.
Frequently asked questions
Does Jira have a time tracking report?
Yes. The Time Tracking Report shows original estimate, estimated time remaining, time spent and accuracy for the issues in a version.
Can Jira show a timesheet by user?
Not in the built-in Time Tracking Report. The User Workload Report shows remaining work per person, not hours logged per day. A timesheet view needs a Marketplace app, an export or a connected time tracker.
What does accuracy mean in the Jira time tracking report?
It is the difference between the sum of time spent and estimated time remaining, and the original estimate. It shows whether work is running over or under the plan.
Why does my Jira time report show less time than people worked?
Because it only counts time that was logged. Hours that nobody entered, or that went on the wrong issue, do not appear.