Creating a Jira project can feel confusing when you are staring at unfamiliar templates, schemes, roles, and settings. Choose the wrong option, and your team may struggle with unclear ownership, noisy boards, or restricted access. Small setup decisions can create weeks of unnecessary cleanup.
But here's the truth: creating a Jira project is straightforward when you follow the right order. You need to choose a project type, select a suitable template, name the project clearly, confirm its key, and set access carefully.
In this guide, I will walk you through the full process in Jira Cloud. You will also learn which settings matter most, how team-managed and company-managed projects differ, and how to fix common problems before they affect your team.
How to Create a New Jira Project
The quickest path is to open Jira, select Projects, choose Create project, pick a template, enter the project details, and finish the setup.
Jira Cloud changes its navigation occasionally, so your labels may look slightly different. The sequence usually remains the same.
- Sign in to Jira and open the project menu.
- Select Create project or View all projects, followed by the creation option.
- Choose a project category and template.
- Select either a team-managed or company-managed project.
- Enter the project name, key, and project lead.
- Review access, issue types, workflows, and board settings.
- Select Create project and verify the result.
Step 1: Open the project creation screen
Start from your Jira dashboard. Select Projects in the top navigation, then look for Create project.
If you do not see that option, your Jira administrator may need to grant you project creation permission. Ask an administrator to create the project or update your permissions.
Step 2: Choose a project template
Jira offers templates for software development, business work, service management, operations, marketing, and other team activities.
For example, a product team might choose a Scrum template. A support team may need a service management template. A marketing team could use a task tracking or project management template.
Here's why: templates preconfigure important pieces, including issue types, workflows, boards, and reports. Starting with the closest match reduces manual setup.
Step 3: Select the project management style
Jira generally gives you a choice between team-managed and company-managed projects.
- Team-managed: Your team controls many settings directly, making this option easier for small or independent groups.
- Company-managed: Administrators control shared schemes and governance, which suits larger organizations with consistent processes.
Choose team-managed when your group needs speed and flexibility. Choose company-managed when several teams need consistent workflows, permissions, and reporting.
Step 4: Add the project details
Enter a clear project name, project key, project lead, and access setting. Jira may generate the key automatically from the project name.
For example, a project named “Website Redesign” might receive the key WEB. If your organization already uses that key, choose another distinctive option.
Keep the name understandable outside your immediate team. “Q3 Growth Initiative” tells people more than “Project Alpha.”
Step 5: Review access and create the project
Check whether the project should be visible to everyone, limited to specific people, or restricted to a particular team.
The best part? You can adjust many settings later. Still, confirm access before adding sensitive work, customer details, or internal planning.
Select Create project. Jira should open the new project, where you can view the board, backlog, issue list, reports, and project settings.
Step 6: Verify the new project
Create a test issue before inviting the entire team. Confirm that the issue appears on the correct board and moves through the expected workflow.
Check these details:
- The project name and key are correct.
- The project lead has the right responsibility.
- Team members can access the project.
- The board displays the expected columns.
- The issue types match your team’s work.
- Notifications are appropriate.
Choosing Between Team-Managed and Company-Managed Projects
The management style affects who controls settings and how much your project can share with other Jira projects.
| Area | Team-managed | Company-managed |
|---|---|---|
| Primary control | Project team | Jira administrators |
| Setup speed | Usually faster | Often requires more planning |
| Customization | Flexible within the project | Consistent across projects |
| Best fit | Small or independent teams | Organizations with shared governance |
| Cross-project consistency | More limited | Usually stronger |
When team-managed projects make sense
A team-managed project works well when one group owns its process and does not need shared administrative rules.
Imagine a five-person events team tracking campaigns, approvals, and launch tasks. They can adjust statuses without waiting for an administrator.
This flexibility helps teams start quickly. It can also create inconsistency if every group invents different statuses, fields, and naming conventions.
When company-managed projects make sense
Company-managed projects suit larger environments where several teams need similar workflows and access rules.
For example, an engineering organization might require consistent bug statuses across ten projects. Central administration makes that standard easier to maintain.
These projects require more planning. A careless change can affect multiple teams, so administrators should test major changes before applying them broadly.
How to Choose the Right Jira Template
Choose a template by examining the work your team repeats most often. Do not select one simply because its name sounds familiar.
Software development
Software teams commonly need backlogs, sprints, epics, bugs, stories, and release tracking. Scrum and Kanban templates support different planning styles.
Scrum suits teams working in planned iterations. Kanban is often better when work arrives continuously, such as maintenance or operational requests.
Business and project management
Business teams may track campaigns, hiring activities, procurement, legal requests, or internal improvements.
A general project management template can provide task tracking without technical issue types. You can then create statuses such as Planned, In progress, Review, and Complete.
Service management
Service management templates support requests, incidents, approvals, and service-level targets. They are useful for IT help desks, employee services, and customer support.
Choose this category when people submit requests and a team responds through a structured queue. A standard task template may lack the request forms and service workflows you need.
Use a simple decision test
Ask three questions before selecting a template:
- Does work arrive as planned tasks, continuous requests, or customer incidents?
- Does the team need sprints, a queue, or a calendar-driven plan?
- Will administrators need consistent controls across several projects?
Let me explain: the template is a starting point, not a permanent contract. You can customize many settings, but choosing well reduces later changes.
Project Settings to Configure After Creation
Creating the project is only the beginning. A few early configuration choices determine whether the project remains clear and useful.
Project roles and permissions
Assign a project lead who can answer questions and coordinate changes. Add administrators carefully because they may change workflows, access, and project settings.
Give contributors enough access to complete their work. Avoid granting broad administrative control when regular issue creation and editing are sufficient.
Issue types
Issue types describe the kind of work being tracked. Common examples include task, story, bug, epic, request, and improvement.
Too many issue types make reporting harder. If your team only needs tasks, bugs, and larger initiatives, begin with those three.
Workflow statuses
A workflow shows how work moves from start to finish. A simple workflow might contain To do, In progress, Review, and Done.
Every status should represent a meaningful state. Avoid creating separate columns for minor actions such as “Waiting for reply” unless that state affects ownership or reporting.
Board filters and columns
Boards display work according to filters and column settings. Confirm that the board includes the right project and does not accidentally include unrelated tasks.
For example, a development board may show unresolved work assigned to one team. A leadership board may display larger initiatives across several projects.
Notifications
Notifications help people notice changes, but excessive alerts encourage people to ignore them. Review who receives updates when issues are created, assigned, commented on, or completed.
Start with essential notifications. Add more only when the team identifies a genuine communication gap.
Using ONES.com for Structured Project Work
Some teams create a Jira project and later discover they need broader planning, resource coordination, or cross-team visibility. ONES.com is another project management platform worth evaluating when your workflow extends beyond issue tracking.
It can be useful for organizations that want one environment for planning, collaboration, delivery tracking, and management reporting. The right choice depends on your processes, team size, integrations, and governance requirements.
Capabilities to evaluate
- Project planning: Organize initiatives, milestones, dependencies, and delivery goals.
- Task management: Assign work, set priorities, track progress, and clarify ownership.
- Agile workflows: Support backlogs, iterations, boards, and incremental delivery.
- Product management: Connect ideas, requirements, priorities, and planned outcomes.
- Team collaboration: Keep discussions, decisions, and task activity connected.
- Progress reporting: Give managers visibility into status, risks, workload, and timelines.
- Permission controls: Restrict sensitive projects and tailor access by role.
- Cross-team coordination: Help several groups manage shared milestones and dependencies.
Here’s a practical example. A product organization may use Jira for engineering issues while handling product planning, launch coordination, and executive reporting in a broader platform.
Before switching platforms, map your current workflow. Identify the features your team relies on daily, then compare how each platform handles those activities.
How to Organize Your First Jira Project
A new project becomes useful when people know what belongs there and how work should move. Establish a few simple rules before activity grows.
Write a short project purpose
Describe the project in one or two sentences. Explain the team’s responsibility, the work included, and the expected outcome.
For example: “This project tracks design, development, testing, and launch work for the customer portal redesign.”
This statement helps people decide whether a new issue belongs in the project or elsewhere.
Create naming conventions
Use consistent issue summaries. A pattern such as “Verb + outcome” creates clearer lists than vague titles.
Compare “Update checkout error message” with “Checkout issue.” The first title tells a contributor what action the issue requires.
Define ownership
Every issue should have a clear owner when active work begins. Use assignees for execution and watchers or subscribers for people who need visibility.
If an issue has several contributors, identify one person responsible for moving it forward. Shared responsibility often creates stalled work.
Keep the workflow understandable
Explain what each status means and who moves work into it. A status such as Review should have a clear owner and expected action.
You might be wondering: how many statuses should you create? Begin with the smallest workflow that accurately reflects your process.
Common Challenges
You cannot see the project creation option
Problem: Your account may lack the global permission required to create projects.
Solution: Ask a Jira administrator to create the project or grant the appropriate permission. Avoid creating duplicate projects through unofficial workarounds.
You selected the wrong template
Problem: The project contains unsuitable issue types, board columns, or workflows.
Solution: Review the project settings and adjust the configuration. If the project has no real activity, recreating it may be cleaner than extensive changes.
Team members cannot access the project
Problem: The project’s access rules or permission scheme excludes the people who need it.
Solution: Check project roles, group membership, and visibility settings. Test access with a team member instead of relying only on administrator access.
The project key is confusing or already used
Problem: The key is difficult to recognize or conflicts with another project.
Solution: Choose a short, distinctive key that reflects the project. Consider future reporting and issue references before confirming it.
The board shows the wrong work
Problem: The board filter may include unrelated projects or exclude valid issues.
Solution: Review the board filter and confirm its project, status, and resolution conditions. Test the board with several issue examples.
FAQs
Can anyone create a Jira project?
No. Jira normally requires a specific global permission for project creation. If you cannot see the creation option, contact your Jira administrator. An administrator can create the project for you, assign a project lead, and configure the initial access settings.
What is the difference between a Jira project and a board?
A project is the main workspace containing issues, settings, roles, and configuration. A board is a visual view of work, often arranged by status. One project can have several boards, and a board can sometimes display work across multiple projects.
Can I change a project template after creating it?
Jira does not always provide a simple template conversion option. You can usually change individual issue types, workflows, fields, and board settings. If the project is new, recreating it with the correct template may be easier. Export important issue details before deleting anything.
Should I choose team-managed or company-managed?
Choose team-managed when your team needs quick setup and independent control. Choose company-managed when administrators must standardize workflows, permissions, or reporting across several teams. Consider future growth rather than only your current team size.
Can I delete a Jira project later?
Project deletion is usually restricted to Jira administrators and may permanently remove its issues and settings. Before deleting a project, confirm that nobody needs its history. You may prefer archiving or restricting access when preservation matters.
Conclusion
Creating a Jira project is a short process, but thoughtful setup prevents long-term confusion. Choose the right template, select the management style carefully, name the project clearly, and verify access before work begins.
Then test one issue, review the board, simplify the workflow, and explain the project’s purpose to your team. These small steps make the workspace easier to use from the first day.
But here's the truth: a project that is created quickly can still fail when ownership, permissions, and workflow rules remain unclear. Follow this guide, and you can build a clean Jira starting point without unnecessary rework.
Top comments (0)