| name | jql-syntax |
| description | Complete JQL (Jira Query Language) syntax reference for searching issues in Jira Cloud. |
JQL Syntax Skill
Complete JQL (Jira Query Language) syntax reference for searching issues in Jira Cloud.
Basic Syntax
field operator value [AND|OR field operator value] [ORDER BY field [ASC|DESC]]
Operators
Comparison Operators
| Operator | Description | Example |
|---|
= | Equals | status = "In Progress" |
!= | Not equals | status != Done |
> | Greater than | priority > Medium |
>= | Greater than or equal | created >= "2026-01-01" |
< | Less than | due < now() |
<= | Less than or equal | updated <= -7d |
~ | Contains (text search) | summary ~ "login error" |
!~ | Does not contain | summary !~ "test" |
Membership Operators
| Operator | Description | Example |
|---|
IN | In list | project IN ("PROJ", "DEV", "OPS") |
NOT IN | Not in list | status NOT IN ("Done", "Closed") |
Null Operators
| Operator | Description | Example |
|---|
IS EMPTY | Field has no value | assignee IS EMPTY |
IS NOT EMPTY | Field has a value | due IS NOT EMPTY |
IS NULL | Alias for IS EMPTY | fixVersion IS NULL |
IS NOT NULL | Alias for IS NOT EMPTY | resolution IS NOT NULL |
Logical Operators
| Operator | Description |
|---|
AND | Both conditions must match |
OR | Either condition must match |
NOT | Negates a condition |
Precedence: NOT > AND > OR. Use parentheses to control grouping.
Fields
Standard Fields
| Field | Type | Notes |
|---|
project | Project | Key or name |
issuetype | Issue Type | Name (e.g., "Bug", "Story") |
status | Status | Name (e.g., "In Progress") |
statusCategory | Status Category | "To Do", "In Progress", "Done" |
resolution | Resolution | Name or Unresolved |
priority | Priority | Name (e.g., "High", "Medium") |
assignee | User | accountId, currentUser(), or EMPTY |
reporter | User | accountId or currentUser() |
creator | User | accountId or currentUser() |
summary | Text | Supports ~ operator |
description | Text | Supports ~ operator |
comment | Text | Searches comment bodies |
text | Text | Searches summary, description, comments |
labels | Label | Exact match |
component | Component | Name or ID |
fixVersion | Version | Name (e.g., "v1.0.0") |
affectedVersion | Version | Name |
sprint | Sprint | Name, ID, or function |
epic | Epic | Key (e.g., "PROJ-50") |
parent | Issue | Key (for subtasks and child issues) |
created | Date | ISO date or relative |
updated | Date | ISO date or relative |
due | Date | ISO date or relative |
resolved | Date | ISO date or relative |
lastViewed | Date | ISO date or relative |
originalEstimate | Duration | Minutes or time string |
remainingEstimate | Duration | Minutes or time string |
timeSpent | Duration | Minutes or time string |
workRatio | Number | Percentage (0-100+) |
voter | User | currentUser() |
watcher | User | currentUser() |
level | Security Level | Name |
key | Issue Key | e.g., "PROJ-123" |
id | Issue ID | Numeric ID |
type | Issue Type | Alias for issuetype |
Custom Fields
Reference by name or ID:
"Team Name" = "Backend"
cf[10001] = "Backend"
Functions
Date Functions
| Function | Description | Example |
|---|
now() | Current date/time | created > now() |
currentLogin() | When user last logged in | updated > currentLogin() |
startOfDay() | Start of today | created >= startOfDay() |
endOfDay() | End of today | due <= endOfDay() |
startOfWeek() | Start of current week | created >= startOfWeek() |
endOfWeek() | End of current week | due <= endOfWeek() |
startOfMonth() | Start of current month | created >= startOfMonth() |
endOfMonth() | End of current month | due <= endOfMonth() |
startOfYear() | Start of current year | created >= startOfYear() |
endOfYear() | End of current year | due <= endOfYear() |
Date functions accept offset parameters:
startOfDay(-1) -- Start of yesterday
endOfWeek(1) -- End of next week
startOfMonth(-2) -- Start of two months ago
Relative Dates
| Format | Meaning |
|---|
-30m | 30 minutes ago |
-4h | 4 hours ago |
-7d | 7 days ago |
-2w | 2 weeks ago |
-3M | 3 months ago (uppercase M) |
-1y | 1 year ago |
User Functions
| Function | Description |
|---|
currentUser() | The logged-in user |
membersOf("group") | All members of a group |
Sprint Functions
| Function | Description |
|---|
openSprints() | Currently active sprints |
closedSprints() | Completed sprints |
futureSprints() | Planned sprints |
Issue Link Functions
| Function | Description |
|---|
linkedIssues(key) | All issues linked to the given issue |
linkedIssues(key, "link type") | Issues linked with specific type |
List Functions
| Function | Description |
|---|
issueHistory() | Issues you have recently viewed |
votedIssues() | Issues you have voted for |
watchedIssues() | Issues you are watching |
updatedBy(user, dateRange) | Issues updated by user in range |
ORDER BY
ORDER BY created DESC
ORDER BY priority DESC, created ASC
ORDER BY rank ASC -- Board rank order
ORDER BY lastViewed DESC -- Recently viewed
ORDER BY key ASC -- Stable ordering
Sortable fields: key, summary, assignee, reporter, priority, status, resolution, created, updated, due, resolved, rank, lastViewed, plus most custom fields.
Escaping and Quoting
- Wrap multi-word values in double quotes:
status = "In Progress"
- Escape special characters in values:
summary ~ "can\'t login"
- Reserved words must be quoted when used as values
- Custom field names with spaces must be quoted:
"Story Points" > 5
Reserved characters: + - & | ! ( ) { } [ ] ^ ~ * ? \ :
Common Query Patterns
By Assignment
-- My open issues
assignee = currentUser() AND resolution = Unresolved
-- Unassigned issues
assignee IS EMPTY AND resolution = Unresolved
-- Issues assigned to my team
assignee IN membersOf("dev-team") AND resolution = Unresolved
By Date
-- Created this week
created >= startOfWeek()
-- Updated in the last 24 hours
updated >= -24h
-- Overdue issues
due < now() AND resolution = Unresolved
-- Due this week
due >= startOfWeek() AND due <= endOfWeek()
By Status
-- All in-progress work
statusCategory = "In Progress"
-- Blocked issues (using label convention)
labels = blocked AND resolution = Unresolved
-- Recently resolved
resolved >= -7d
By Version
-- Issues fixed in a release
fixVersion = "v1.0.0"
-- Issues affecting a version
affectedVersion = "v0.9.0" AND resolution = Unresolved
Sprint Planning
-- Current sprint
sprint in openSprints()
-- Backlog items ready for sprint
sprint IS EMPTY AND status = "Ready" AND type IN (Story, Task, Bug)
-- Sprint carryover
sprint in closedSprints() AND resolution = Unresolved
Cross-Project
-- All bugs across projects
issuetype = Bug AND resolution = Unresolved ORDER BY priority DESC
-- Issues from multiple projects
project IN ("PROJ", "DEV") AND updated >= -7d
