Advanced Filter Statistics

2 min read

Statistics answers the question every status meeting starts with: “break this down for me.” One breakdown down the rows, up to ten metric columns across, totals underneath, and a one-click switch to a bar chart.

Work items by component, with counts and story points and average age side by side.

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You’ll need edit rights on the dashboard and an advanced filter (see Create your first advanced filter). Nothing else has to be set up first.

Add it to a dashboard #

  1. Open the dashboard, select Edit, then Add gadget, and search for Advanced Filter Statistics.
  2. Pick the Advanced filter.
  3. Choose what the Rows are: a Jira field, a smart rule, a date period, or a time series.
  4. Choose your Columns: each value becomes a column, up to ten.
  5. Select Save.
The Statistics configuration form with its rows, columns and presentation chosen.
Choose what the rows are, what the columns measure, and how the gadget opens.

Worth knowing under Advanced settings #

Setting What it does
Order rows by The breakdown’s own order, the row name, or the first column (ascending or descending). Ordering by the first column descending is the usual “biggest first” table.
Rows shown Up to 100, 20 by default. Extra rows aren’t drawn; the totals still cover everything
Work items with no value Show them as a None row, hide the row, or leave those work items out altogether
Add a share column Each row’s share of the column total. Offered for counts and sums, where a share means something
Opens as Table or Bar chart. Viewers can switch either way
Working query Optional JQL narrowing this gadget only
“Hide the None row” and “Leave them out of this gadget” are not the same. Hiding the row keeps those work items in every total; leaving them out removes them from the population, so the totals change too.

Reading the table #

The first column stays put while the rest scrolls, so a long row never loses its label. Every cell with work items behind it is clickable, opening them in Jira’s own search. Each figure follows its value’s own Decimal places and suffix, or a custom ratio’s own display and precision (in the cell, on the bar and in the PDF alike).

Viewers can flip to a bar chart with one button. With several columns, a Charted column picker decides which the bars draw. Their choice isn’t saved.

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If the total looks lower than the column adds up to, it’s right. Totals are measured over the work items themselves, not by summing the column. So with an overlapping breakdown like a smart rule or a multi-value field, a work item counted in two rows is still only one work item. The gadget says so under the table when it happens.
The bar chart alternative to the table, with the totals note underneath.
The same data as a bar chart, one button away.

With the Controller #

An Advanced Filter Controller on the same filter changes what every row and column measures. The caption under the title names the filter read.

Exporting #

CSV, Excel or PDF: every column and the totals row, whichever presentation is on screen, and the whole breakdown up to the export limit, not only the Rows shown. CSV and Excel keep the full value, Excel’s number format showing it to the value’s own decimals.

If something looks off #

  • “Nothing to chart”: no work item contributed to this breakdown.
  • “These rows cannot be built”: the field, smart rule or time series is no longer available on the filter, so edit the gadget and pick another.
  • “This filter has nothing to break down by yet” in the form: add a smart rule or a time series to the filter first.
  • “1 value could not be read, so it matches no work items.”: a value from a link or a preset can’t be read, so the breakdown covers no work items, rather than the wrong ones, until you select Remove what cannot be applied on the Controller, or here when no Controller uses this filter.
What the gadget shows once its rows can no longer be built.
The gadget always says what’s wrong rather than going blank.