Comparison
Deckbell vs Jira
Jira can model almost any process, which is why large organisations run on it. Deckbell is for software teams that want a fast tracker, sprints and the conversation in one place, without the configuration.
Updated October 2026, using each vendor's public list prices and documentation.
The short version
Jira is the most configurable tracker on the market: custom workflows and fields, JQL, advanced planning, automation rules and thousands of Marketplace apps, alongside Confluence and the rest of Atlassian. If your process needs that depth, or other teams depend on it, Jira is the right tool.
Deckbell trades that depth for speed and focus: issues, boards, sprints with story points, sub-tasks and relations, saved views and a ⌘K palette, with team chat and huddles next to every board and coding agents that open pull requests. As a tracker alone Jira costs less per user, but Jira has no team chat, so most Jira teams also pay for Slack or Microsoft Teams.
Who it's for
Switch to Deckbell if…
- Your team spends more time configuring Jira than using it.
- You want sprints and estimates without schemes, screens and field configurations.
- Your tickets get discussed in Slack and the context gets lost.
- You want agents that pick up a ticket and open a pull request.
- You're a small or mid-sized software team rather than an organisation with many teams and processes.
Stay with Jira if…
- You need custom workflows, custom fields, JQL or advanced planning across many teams.
- You depend on Marketplace apps, Confluence or Jira Service Management.
- Your team has 6 to 10 people and wants to stay free: Jira Free covers up to 10 users, Deckbell Free up to 5.
- You need native mobile apps or a public API.
Feature by feature
What each product does out of the box, as of October 2026. Where Jira does more, we say so.
| Feature | Deckbell | Jira |
|---|---|---|
| Tracking | ||
| People on the free plan | Up to 5 | Up to 10 |
| Issues with keys (WEB-142), priorities, estimates and labels | Yes. | Yes. |
| Kanban board and list views | Yes. | Yes. Scrum and Kanban boards |
| Sprints (cycles) with story points | Yes. Pro and up | Yes. |
| Sub-tasks and blocked-by / blocking relations | Yes. | Yes. |
| Saved views and filters, shared with the team | Yes. Pro and up | Yes. Saved filters with JQL |
| Command palette (⌘K) and keyboard shortcuts | Yes. | Yes. Keyboard shortcuts and search |
| Custom fields and workflow schemes | No. Per-project statuses and labels | Yes. |
| Roadmaps, timelines or Gantt charts | No. | Yes. Timeline on every plan; advanced planning on Premium |
| No-code workflow automation | No. | Yes. Automation rules, with monthly limits per plan |
| Communication | ||
| Channels and direct messages | Yes. | No. Comments; chat through Slack or Microsoft Teams |
| Group calls with video and screen sharing | Yes. Huddles; 1:1 voice on Free, groups from Pro | No. |
| Each board has a linked channel; issue comments and thread replies are the same thing | Yes. | No. |
| Turn a message into an issue | Yes. | Yes. Through the Slack or Teams app |
| One search across issues, messages and pull requests | Yes. | No. Issues, with JQL; Rovo Search on paid plans |
| AI | ||
| AI coding agents that take an issue and open a pull request | Yes. Coder, Reviewer and Security roles | Rovo AI agents on paid plans |
| AI usage included in the seat price | Yes. $5 (Pro), $15 (Business) or $25 (Enterprise) per seat a month, or your own key | Yes. Rovo credits on paid plans; no Rovo on Free |
| Platform and security | ||
| GitHub integration | Yes. | Yes. |
| Other integrations and an app marketplace | No. GitHub only today | Yes. 3,000+ Marketplace apps |
| Public API and webhooks | No. Not yet | Yes. |
| Native desktop and mobile apps | No. Web app that works on phones | Yes. iOS and Android |
| SAML single sign-on | Yes. Enterprise | Yes. Needs Atlassian Guard, except on Enterprise |
| Audit log | Yes. Business and up | Yes. Standard and up |
| EU data hosting | Yes. Every workspace, in Germany | Yes. Data residency on Standard and up |
Price per seat
All charge per user. Atlassian's per-user price falls as the user count goes up, so the Jira figures are its list prices for a 10-user team. Jira has no team chat, so the other columns add Slack.
| Tier | Deckbell | Jira | Jira + Slack | Linear + Slack |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Free$0Up to 5 members, 2 projects, 250 issues | Free$0Up to 10 users | Free + Free$0 | Free + Free$0 |
| Entry paid plan | Pro$10 / month$8 / month billed annually | Standard$9.70 / month$7.92 / month billed annuallyFor 10 users; less per user for larger teams | Standard + Pro$18.45 / month$15.17 / month billed annually | Basic + Pro$20.75 / month$17.25 / month billed annually |
| Business plan | Business$18 / month$15 / month billed annually | Premium$19.60 / month$16.25 / month billed annuallyFor 10 users; less per user for larger teams | Premium + Business+$37.60 / month$31.25 / month billed annually | Business + Business+$36 / month$31 / month billed annually |
| Enterprise | Enterprise$30 / month$24 / month billed annuallyFrom 10 seats | EnterpriseCustomAnnual billing only | Enterprise + Enterprise+Custom | Enterprise + Enterprise+Custom |
What a 10-person team pays in a year
On annual billing where it's sold, before tax.
Entry paid plan
- Deckbell Pro
- $960
- Jira Standard
- $950
- Jira + Slack (Standard + Pro)
- $1,820
- Linear + Slack (Basic + Pro)
- $2,070
Business plan
- Deckbell Business
- $1,800
- Jira Premium
- $1,950
- Jira + Slack (Premium + Business+)
- $3,750
- Linear + Slack (Business + Business+)
- $3,720
Atlassian's prices went up on 13 October 2026; these are the new ones. Jira's annual billing is sold in user tiers ($950 a year for up to 10 users on Standard). SAML single sign-on on Jira Free, Standard and Premium needs an Atlassian Guard subscription, sold separately.
Public list prices in US dollars per user per month, from each vendor's pricing page in October 2026. Combined columns add up the two products' matching plans. Prices exclude tax, change often, and can differ by region, team size or promotion, so check the vendor's page before you decide. Sources: Jira pricing, Slack pricing, Linear pricing, Deckbell pricing.
How to switch from Jira
- Step 1
Create a workspace and connect GitHub
Sign up free, invite the team and connect GitHub, so agents can work in your repositories and open pull requests.
- Step 2
Import from Jira
Connect Jira Cloud with your Atlassian email and an API token, and pick the projects to bring over. Issues come across with descriptions, statuses, priorities, parents, links and comments. A Jira CSV export (Export → Export CSV, all fields) works too.
- Step 3
Simplify while you move
Map each Jira status to a board column, or leave it out. Priorities like Highest, Critical or P1 are understood. Many teams use the move to drop statuses and fields nobody uses.
- Step 4
Keep Jira read-only for a sprint
Start the next sprint in Deckbell, keep Jira read-only until it ends, then cancel. Confluence can stay where it is.
Moving from more than one tool? See every importer and a migration plan.
FAQ
Deckbell vs Jira: questions
Something we didn't cover? Write to support@deckbell.com and a human replies.
Is Deckbell a good Jira alternative for small teams?
That's who it's built for: software teams that want sprints, estimates and a board without administering a platform, and want their chat in the same place.
Does Deckbell support Scrum?
Yes: sprints with story points, a backlog view and boards. It doesn't have Jira's advanced planning across teams, custom workflow schemes or the Marketplace, so check what you rely on.
What happens to our custom fields?
Deckbell has a fixed set of issue fields: status, priority, assignee, labels, estimate, sprint, sub-tasks and relations. Values you still need can come across as labels; the rest stays in your Jira export.
How does pricing compare with Jira?
Jira Free covers up to 10 users. For a 10-user team, Standard is $9.70 per user per month on monthly billing (about $7.92 on annual) and Premium $19.60 (about $16.25), with lower per-user prices for bigger teams. Deckbell Pro is $10 monthly or $8 on annual billing and includes team chat, huddles and AI credits; with Jira, chat is a separate subscription. Prices as of October 2026.
Can we import from Jira?
Yes. Connect Jira Cloud with an API token, or upload a Jira CSV export. Deckbell matches statuses, priorities and people, keeps descriptions, parents, links and comments, and reports anything it skipped.
Other comparisons
- Deckbell vs Slack (and Linear + Slack)Replace your chat app and your tracker with one workspace, for less than the pair costs.
- Deckbell vs LinearA Linear-style tracker with team chat, huddles and coding agents built in.
- Deckbell vs ClickUpFewer features, on purpose: a focused tracker, chat and agents for software teams.
- Deckbell vs AsanaBuilt for software teams rather than cross-functional project management.
- Deckbell vs NotionA dedicated tracker and team chat. Keep Notion for your docs and wiki.
Try Deckbell with your team.
Free for up to 5 members, no credit card. Import from Jira when you're ready.