Jira excels as a dedicated issue tracking and agile project management tool with superior customization, while Azure DevOps is a more integrated end-to-end DevOps platform combining version control, CI/CD, testing, and project management in one ecosystem.
Jira vs Azure DevOps — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Atlassian's agile project management and issue tracking platform
Microsoft's integrated DevOps platform with project management, version control, and CI/CD
Primary Focus. Pricing Model. Git Repository Integration. CI/CD Pipeline Capability. Customization & Workflow Flexibility. Learning Curve. Market Share (Project Management Tools)
Choose Jira if you need maximum flexibility in agile workflows, have complex customization requirements, or work in non-Microsoft environments where you can use best-of-breed tools. Choose Azure DevOps if you're invested in the Microsoft ecosystem, need a unified platform combining version control, CI/CD, testing, and project management, or prefer lower total cost of ownership with built-in integrations.
Jira: Full Scrum with sprints, backlogs, velocity tracking | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 10+ users, enterprise scale | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Highly customizable workflows and fields | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Advanced dashboards, burndowns, velocity charts | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Advanced (SOC 2, HIPAA) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Good (Moderate) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Via Everhour API | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Native & advanced | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Enterprise-grade bug tracking | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Deep CI/CD & DevOps integration | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: $14.54/month (Premium) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Full agile reporting suite included | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Built-in cycle time metrics | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Full cross-project and portfolio reporting | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: External integration via webhooks and apps | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Available at Premium ($14.54/user/month) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 15-500+ with complex workflows | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Steeper learning curve, more heavyweight | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 1000+ apps in Marketplace | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Steep (Advanced features require training) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Via marketplace add-ons | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Native with Confluence, Bitbucket, and 400+ apps | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Small (1-10) to Enterprise (1000+) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 60-80% of teams require professional services | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Project Management & Issue Tracking | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Full sprint planning with burndown charts and velocity tracking | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Limited to issue descriptions and project documentation | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Issue and project-level search capabilities | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Standard mobile interface for viewing and managing issues | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 10+ users for optimal use | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Seamless integration with Confluence for context and documentation | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: iOS, Android, native apps | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Native GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket support | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Pages (limited collaboration) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Advanced with burndown charts | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Code-based scripting and automation | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Up to 10 (limited features) | Azure DevOps: Up to 5 (full features)
Jira: ~500 integrations | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Issue tracking, sprint planning, agile boards | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Requires third-party tools (Jenkins, GitHub Actions) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Data Center available (enterprise) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Full support (Scrum, Kanban, custom) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Deep two-way integration | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: $7-14 | Azure DevOps: $6 (or free tier)
Jira: No (requires Bamboo/Jenkins) | Azure DevOps: Yes (Azure Pipelines)
Jira: 2-4 weeks | Azure DevOps: 1-2 weeks
Jira: No (Bitbucket integration required) | Azure DevOps: Yes (Git and TFVC included)
Jira: Advanced (unlimited custom fields, swim lanes, automation) | Azure DevOps: Standard (basic custom fields, limited automation)
Jira: Unlimited (1000+) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Advanced Agile Features (Sprint Velocity Tracking)
Jira: Advanced with historical trending | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Limited offline access | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Native deep integration (GitHub, GitLab, Jenkins, etc.) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Limited automation rules, requires plugin marketplace | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Yes - up to 10 users | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Integration only | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 100+ templates | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 20 requests/second | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Scrum, Kanban, SAFe, Scrumban | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Azure DevOps | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 30+ (burndown, velocity, CFD, etc.) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Native sprint planning, capacity planning, scope management | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Free tier for up to 10 users | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 500+ apps via Marketplace | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 50+ to unlimited | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: ~3000 integrations | Azure DevOps: 800+
Jira: Varies by plan | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Web app + Jira Mobile (limited) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: $7.16 (Standard) - $29 (Enterprise) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 40+ (burndown, velocity, CFD, sprint) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Unlimited with Jira Automation + Scripts | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 1000+ (higher tiers unlimited) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Unlimited in free tier | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: $775 (Standard tier at $7.75/user) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Requires external Git hosting integration | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 100+ custom field types with plugins | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 180+ million monthly active users | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Security scanning via Atlassian plugins ($8-15/month extra) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 8-16 hours to configure workflow rules and custom fields for development team | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 5,000+ users per instance; proven at 50,000+ enterprise deployments | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: $25 (Standard tier) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Yes (burndown, velocity, retrospectives) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Native (GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Azure Repos) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 500+ native fields | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Board, list, timeline, calendar, dashboard (5 types) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: 7 (challenging) | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Advanced sprints, velocity, burndown, capacity planning | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: Native bidirectional sync, commit linking | Azure DevOps: N/A
Jira: $7-14 | Azure DevOps: $0-6 (free first 5 users)
Jira: Bitbucket only (requires separate setup) | Azure DevOps: Azure Repos (fully integrated)
Jira: Yes (Jira Data Center, $20k+/year) | Azure DevOps: Azure DevOps Server (limited support)
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: Azure Boards (native)
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: Branch policies, approval gates, build validation
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: Unlimited (public), 1,800 (private)
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: $12.00 (Premium tier)
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: 1,800 minutes (Microsoft-hosted agents)
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: No, requires separate Azure Container Registry
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: 50,000+ (enterprise proven)
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: Deprecated; Server edition EOL in 2024
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: Native, deeply integrated
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: Dedicated Test Plans with full lifecycle management
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: 600+ via marketplace and native Azure services
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: $6 per user/month
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: Not public-facing
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: Branch policies with reviewer requirements
Jira: N/A | Azure DevOps: 2 (Git + TFVC)
How to choose between Jira and Azure DevOps
Jira vs Azure DevOps — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Jira vs Azure DevOps. Contains 173 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Jira vs Azure DevOps — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Jira vs Azure DevOps.
Can Jira handle end-to-end DevOps workflows?
Jira alone cannot handle CI/CD pipelines natively. It requires integration with separate tools like Bamboo (Atlassian's own solution), Jenkins, or GitHub Actions. This creates additional costs and complexity compared to Azure DevOps, which has built-in CI/CD via Azure Pipelines.
Is Azure DevOps suitable for non-Microsoft technology stacks?
Yes, Azure DevOps works well with non-Microsoft stacks (Node.js, Python, Java, etc.) and supports any Git repository. However, it's more optimized for .NET and Microsoft technologies, and teams not using Microsoft tools may find better integration elsewhere. Jira is more agnostic to the tech stack.
Azure DevOps is significantly cheaper for small teams with its free tier supporting 5 users and unlimited repositories. Jira charges $7-14 per user monthly from day one. For a 10-person team, Azure DevOps would cost ~$30/month while Jira would cost $70-140/month, making Azure DevOps 75-80% cheaper initially.
Can Azure DevOps replace Jira for agile project management?
Azure DevOps can handle agile methodologies (Scrum, Kanban) but with less flexibility than Jira. It has fewer pre-built agile templates and customization options. Teams heavily invested in Jira's sprint planning, advanced workflow rules, or specific agile frameworks may find Azure DevOps limiting for their agile processes.
Which tool has better reporting and analytics?
Jira has more mature and customizable reporting with burndown/burnup charts, velocity trends, and 50+ built-in reports via third-party apps. Azure DevOps offers solid reporting through Azure Boards but fewer advanced analytics options. For teams requiring deep project analytics, Jira is the stronger choice.
How to Choose Between Jira and Azure DevOps
Primary Focus: Jira has Agile project management & issue tracking, while Azure DevOps has End-to-end DevOps pipeline.
Pricing Model: Jira has $7-14/user/month + $2,000-5,000 annual server, while Azure DevOps has $0 for first 5 users, then $6/user/month.
Git Repository Integration: Jira has Third-party or Bitbucket (owned by Atlassian), while Azure DevOps has Native Azure Repos included.
CI/CD Pipeline Capability: Jira has Limited (requires Bamboo or Jenkins integration), while Azure DevOps has Native Azure Pipelines fully integrated.
Consider: Customization & Workflow Flexibility
Customization & Workflow Flexibility: Jira has Highly customizable with 3,000+ apps in marketplace, while Azure DevOps has Moderate customization with 500+ extensions.
Learning Curve: Jira has Steep due to complex configuration options, while Azure DevOps has Moderate, more intuitive UI for developers.
Consider: Market Share (Project Management Tools)
Market Share (Project Management Tools): Jira has 43% of agile teams use Jira, while Azure DevOps has 12% of agile teams use Azure DevOps.