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Getting Started
- What is scrumplanning.com?
- scrumplanning.com is an easy & fun estimation tool for development teams. It helps development teams discuss and vote on story points in real-time. Development teams can use scrumplanning.com to create tickets, vote on them in teams of up to 12 people, and reveal the score in real-time to help establish and discuss the complexity of each task.
- How do I get started with scrumplanning.com?
- Getting started is simple - no account required! Just visit scrumplanning.com and click "Create Room". Enter a room name and you'll be taken directly to your estimation room. Share the link or QR code with your team and start planning immediately.
- Is scrumplanning.com really free?
- Yes, completely free forever. No sign-up, no credit card, no hidden fees, no premium tiers. All features are available to everyone at no cost. We believe great estimation tools should be accessible to all agile teams.
- Do I need to create an account?
- No! scrumplanning.com is fully anonymous and requires no registration. Just create a room, pick a display name, and start estimating. Your rooms are ephemeral and designed for quick, hassle-free planning sessions.
- What browsers are supported?
- scrumplanning.com works on all modern browsers including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. It also works great on mobile browsers, so your team can join from any device - desktop, tablet, or smartphone.
Using Rooms
- How do I invite team members to a room?
- Once you're inside a room, click "Invite" to see a QR code and copy the room link. Share the link via Slack, email, or any messenger. QR codes are ideal for in-office teams - display it on a monitor and let people scan with their phones to join instantly.
- How many people can join a room?
- Scrum & agile coaches recommend up to 3-9 people per room for an effective scrum estimation meeting. We allow up to 12 members per room, but we'd recommend following scrum guidance from sites like Scrum.org as a recommended resource.
- Can I protect my room with a password?
- Yes! As a room host, you can set a password in Room Settings. Anyone trying to join will need to enter the password first. This is useful for keeping your estimation sessions private from unwanted visitors.
- What happens when I leave a room?
- When you leave a room, you are removed from the participant list. If you were the host, the next person in the room becomes the new host. Rooms are automatically cleaned up when everyone leaves.
- Can I rejoin a room after leaving?
- Yes! As long as someone is still in the room, you can rejoin using the same link. You'll need to enter your name again, but you'll be back in the session. If everyone has left, the room will have been cleaned up and you'll need to create a new one.
- How do I add stories/tickets to estimate?
- As the room host, you can add stories by typing in the ticket name or description. You can add multiple stories and work through them one at a time. The current story being estimated is shown to all participants.
- Can I import stories from Jira or other tools?
- Currently, stories need to be added manually. Many teams find it works well to have their Jira or project management tool open alongside scrumplanning.com, copying story titles as needed. We're exploring integrations for the future.
Planning Poker Basics
- What is Planning Poker?
- Planning poker, also known as story point estimation, allows teams to come together to discuss story points of tickets in their development backlog. The session allows people to vote using a numeric sequence to estimate the value of each story point. During this planning poker session, everyone votes and a score is revealed allowing you to see how each person has voted and how their score compares with others. Discussion around each story point commences after to help establish a clear score to allocate to the story point.
- Why use Planning Poker?
- Planning poker prevents anchoring bias (where one person's estimate influences others), encourages participation from all team members, surfaces different perspectives on complexity, and builds shared understanding of work items. It's more accurate than single-person estimates and helps teams have important technical discussions.
- Who is Scrum Planning for?
- Scrum Planning is most suitable for small to large development and product teams looking to prioritize their tickets and align on the value of each story point. Each room can be controlled and managed by a scrum master. Each scrum master can manage upcoming tickets and better align the team once everyone's scores are revealed.
- Is this helpful for Scrum Masters?
- Scrum masters can benefit from scrumplanning.com as they can use the tool to help plan tickets and bring up issues for the team to discuss in an easy and friendly space. The host controls make it easy to manage the flow of estimation sessions.
- How to Use Planning Poker Rooms?
- Estimation rooms on scrumplanning.com are easy to use and help development teams get aligned. Rooms can be created from the home page and shared with your team. Once everyone is inside the room, the host can add tickets and begin voting. Everyone votes and shares a score they believe the story point (ticket) is worth, and scores are revealed by the host. From here, discussion commences on the value of the ticket and everyone's vote.
Voting & Estimation
- What voting systems are available?
- We support multiple voting systems: Fibonacci sequence (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21), T-shirt sizing (XS, S, M, L, XL), Modified Fibonacci (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 20, 40, 100), Sequential (1-10), and Powers of 2. You can change the voting system at any time during your session.
- What does the coffee cup mean in Planning Poker?
- The coffee cup in scrum poker can be used to typically represent a break. This allows those who are not involved in the estimation to skip, or for them to step out of the meeting and not attend the voting.
- What does the banana/question mark mean in Planning Poker?
- The banana or question mark token in estimation meetings allows for people to share a vague message to say that they are unclear on the information and are unable to provide an estimation. It signals that more discussion or clarification is needed.
- When should I reveal the votes?
- Reveal votes after everyone has selected their estimate. Revealing simultaneously is important to prevent anchoring bias. If some team members are still deciding, give them a moment to complete their selection before revealing.
- What if votes are very different?
- When votes differ significantly (e.g., someone votes 2 and another votes 13), this is valuable! It indicates the team has different understandings of the work. Have the highest and lowest voters explain their reasoning, then vote again after discussion.
- How do we decide on the final estimate?
- After voting and discussion, the team should aim for consensus. This doesn't mean everyone agrees exactly, but that everyone can "live with" the chosen estimate. Often, teams will revote after discussion and naturally converge on a value.
Story Points
- What are story points?
- Story points are a unit of measure for expressing the overall effort required to fully implement a piece of work. They combine complexity, uncertainty, and effort into a single relative number. Story points are not tied to hours - they're about relative sizing compared to other work items.
- Why use Fibonacci numbers for estimation?
- The Fibonacci sequence (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21...) reflects the inherent uncertainty in estimating larger items. The gaps between numbers get bigger as estimates increase, acknowledging that we're less precise about big, complex work. It prevents false precision on large items.
- What's the difference between story points and hours?
- Hours represent absolute time and vary by individual skill level. Story points represent relative effort and are consistent across the team. A 5-point story might take a senior developer 4 hours and a junior developer 8 hours, but it's still 5 points of effort for the team.
- What should a 1-point story look like?
- A 1-point story is typically something very small and well-understood - maybe changing a label, fixing a typo, or updating a configuration value. Teams often use a reference story as a baseline, saying "this is our 1-point story" to anchor other estimates.
- When should a story be split into smaller pieces?
- Generally, stories estimated at 13 points or higher should be considered for splitting. Large stories carry more risk and uncertainty. Breaking them into smaller pieces improves accuracy and reduces risk. If the team is struggling to estimate, the story might need more refinement.
T-Shirt Sizing
- What is T-shirt sizing?
- T-shirt sizing uses clothing sizes (XS, S, M, L, XL) instead of numbers for estimation. It's less precise than Fibonacci but can be easier for new teams or when rough estimates are sufficient. It's particularly useful for initial roadmap planning or when teams find numbers too rigid.
- When should I use T-shirt sizing vs Fibonacci?
- Use T-shirt sizing for high-level roadmap planning, initial backlog sizing, or with teams new to estimation. Use Fibonacci for sprint planning and when you need more granular estimates. Some teams use T-shirts for epic-level estimates and Fibonacci for stories.
- How do T-shirt sizes map to story points?
- Common mappings are: XS=1, S=2-3, M=5, L=8-13, XL=21+. However, each team should define their own mapping based on their context. The exact mapping matters less than consistency within your team.
Best Practices
- How long should a planning poker session be?
- Keep sessions under 2 hours - estimation fatigue is real! For sprint planning, aim for 1-2 hours depending on sprint length. If you have many items to estimate, consider splitting across multiple sessions or doing rough estimates for lower-priority items.
- Should everyone vote on every story?
- Ideally, yes. Diverse perspectives improve estimate accuracy. Even if someone isn't directly working on a story, they may have valuable insights. That said, if someone truly has no context (like a newly joined team member), they can use the "pass" option.
- How do we handle estimation for new team members?
- New team members should participate and learn! Encourage them to vote, even if uncertain. Their "outsider" perspective can surface assumptions the team takes for granted. After a few sprints, they'll calibrate to the team's baseline.
- What if we're always wrong about estimates?
- Track your velocity over time. Individual estimates will vary, but team velocity should stabilize. If consistently off, your baseline might need recalibration. Review past sprints: were stories well-defined? Did scope change? Use retrospectives to improve.
- Should we re-estimate old stories?
- Generally, no. Once a story is estimated, stick with it even if you learn more later. The estimate represents what you knew at that point. Re-estimating creates confusion and undermines velocity tracking. Instead, let these insights inform future estimates.
Remote Teams
- How does scrumplanning.com work for remote teams?
- Perfectly! scrumplanning.com is designed for remote teams. Share the room link via your video call chat, and everyone joins on their own device. The real-time synchronization means everyone sees votes reveal simultaneously, just like being in the same room.
- Can we use scrumplanning.com during a video call?
- Absolutely! Most teams use scrumplanning.com alongside Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams. The host can share their screen to show the current story, while everyone votes on their own devices. This combination works great for distributed teams.
- How do we handle different time zones?
- Find a time that works for most team members. For async estimation, some teams use multiple sessions or have representatives from each time zone. The real-time nature of planning poker generally requires synchronous participation for best results.
Technical Questions
- Is my data secure?
- Yes. Room data is ephemeral and not stored permanently. We don't collect personal information, and rooms are automatically cleaned up when inactive. All communication uses secure connections (HTTPS/WSS).
- What happens if I lose connection?
- If you lose connection, you'll be automatically reconnected when your connection restores. You may need to re-enter your name, but the room state will be preserved as long as other participants are still present.
- Does scrumplanning.com work offline?
- No, scrumplanning.com requires an internet connection for real-time collaboration. The core value is synchronizing votes across team members, which requires connectivity. Make sure all participants have stable internet before starting.
- Are there API integrations available?
- Currently, we don't offer API integrations. The tool is designed for quick, hassle-free estimation sessions. Many teams successfully use scrumplanning.com alongside their existing tools like Jira, Linear, or Notion by manually syncing estimates.
Troubleshooting
- Why can't I see other participants?
- Make sure everyone is in the same room (check the URL matches). If you're on a corporate network, ensure WebSocket connections aren't blocked. Try refreshing the page, and if issues persist, try a different browser or network.
- Why won't votes reveal?
- Only the room host can reveal votes. Make sure the host clicks the "Reveal" button. If you're the host and the button isn't working, try refreshing the page. Also ensure all participants have selected a vote before revealing.
- The timer isn't working properly
- The timer is controlled by the host and syncs across all participants. If you see discrepancies, it may be due to slight network delays. The authoritative timer state is maintained on the server to ensure consistency.
- How do I report a bug or issue?
- You can reach out via the Contact link in the footer. Please include details about what happened, what browser you're using, and any error messages you saw. We appreciate all feedback to help improve the tool!
Still have questions?
The best way to learn is by doing. Create a free room and start estimating with your team today.