Hubstaff Tasks vs. Jira
For years, Jira has been the dominant project management tool for people who love Agile methodology. But it’s not the most user-friendly software. Hubstaff Tasks, on the other hand, provides a simpler and more intuitive way to adopt the core principles of Agile — without getting bogged down by complex features or clunky workflows.
Which one is better?
Both Jira and Hubstaff Tasks have Agile principles in their DNA. Sprint planning, Kanban boards, Epics, and other tools give users everything they need to tackle big projects by breaking them into manageable stages. But the biggest difference between these two platforms is usability.
Jira is ideal for teams that are comfortable with a high level of complexity. The user interface isn’t intuitive, and setup can be challenging. It also lacks some views found in other project management software.
Hubstaff Tasks is a simpler, more straightforward tool. It’s designed around flexible Agile features that less tech-minded users will be comfortable with. Tasks also comes with built-in time tracking to give managers a better idea of how the team is working.
| Feature | Hubstaff Tasks | Jira |
|---|---|---|
Kanban boards | Yes | Yes |
Sprint planning | Yes | Yes |
Epics | Yes | Yes |
Roadmap | Yes | Yes |
Personal to-do lists | Yes | No |
Time tracking | Yes | No |
Built-in Stand-ups | Yes | No |
Reporting | Yes (with the Hubstaff workforce management platform) | Yes |
User experience
Hubstaff Tasks
Hubstaff Tasks is designed to make Agile easy. The user interface is simple and intuitive while still giving managers the ability to customize features so that they work best for their team. The Agile jargon is also minimal, which makes Tasks easier for non-dev team members to use.
But for the ultimate experience, combine Hubstaff Tasks with the Hubstaff workforce management platform. This gives you an all-one-one solution with detailed time tracking, reporting, payments, invoicing, and other productivity-boosting tools.
Having tried many project manager tools, Hubstaff Tasks is the most drop-dead simple to get started with.
Jira
Jira is laid out well with plenty of options and features at your fingertips. However, it’s designed exclusively for large teams of developers and software engineers who are comfortable working with complex software. Anyone who isn’t familiar with Agile will likely be overwhelmed by all the available options, which makes Jira difficult for them to use. This software is also quite large and contains a lot of javascript, so it can run slow at times.
Non-technical users will likely struggle with Jira. It doesn’t have the friendliest user interface, and the setup can be a bit challenging. Developers and software engineers won’t have any problems here, but the average person will find Jira confusing.
Kanban boards
Hubstaff Tasks
Tasks gives you the visual and straightforward Kanban boards you would expect from a true piece of Agile software. But it also weaves in automation features that make project management easier.
Labels, due dates, and progress bars help managers keep tabs on how the work is coming along. Add checklists to each task or assign those tasks to specific Sprints (we’ll get to those later). Hubstaff Tasks also offers custom workflows that allow you to automatically move boards forward with a click, rather than having to assign the same Task to the same people over and over again.
If you have a monthly or weekly task, you can create recurring tasks within Hubstaff Tasks that are auto-created based on your chosen timing.
Overall, Tasks’ Kanban boards are simple to use and offer just enough automation features to help your team work better without introducing too much complexity.
It's easy to make a quick board either with a blank template or one of their preset workflows. Very low-friction.
Jira
Jira’s Kanban boards are flexible and easy for the user to see what is complete and what is being worked on. But they also include a lot of advanced features that take time to learn.
While the most tech-savvy devs may have no problem getting started with Jira’s Kanban boards, other users say that they take too much effort to set up. Jira’s own website is proof of that: it guides users through a very detailed eight-step process (with three additional ‘optional’ steps) for optimizing an Agile Kanban workflow. Jira also offers automation rules designed to increase efficiency, but these require time, effort, and a keen technical mind to set up properly.
That said, dev teams that use Jira seem to appreciate its Kanban functionality.
Managers and Scrum Masters should not have a single meeting without JIRA’s Kanban Board.
| Feature | Hubstaff Tasks | Jira |
|---|---|---|
Automated workflows | Yes | Yes |
Progress bars | Yes | No |
Labels | Yes | Yes |
Checklists | Yes | Yes |
Followers/assignees | Yes | Yes |
Integrated time tracking | Yes | No |
Comments | Yes | Yes |
Hubstaff Tasks
Hubstaff Tasks gives you a simple way to create Sprints that help your team stay focused. You can plan two Sprints in advance along with seeing the Current Sprint and Sprint Backlog all in one view. Add deadlines, labels, assignees, checklists, followers, and more to each Sprint you build. See every Task across your team or filter down to view only what specific team members are working on.
The built-in time tracking makes Tasks’ Sprint feature truly unique. Set time estimates along with hours worked for each Task within your Sprint so you get a better idea of how your team is spending their time. You can also see how projects are moving along by glancing at the progress bar. It’s much easier to keep tabs on your Sprints this way than going to a separate reporting page.
Jira
Jira’s Sprint feature works similar to Hubstaff Tasks in many ways: you build Sprints by bringing in stories from your backlog and then monitoring your team’s progress. But while Tasks takes a streamlined approach to Sprint planning, Jira provides users with a variety of options that could be helpful or overwhelming — it all depends on how you prefer to manage projects.
For example, Jira has a ‘Parallel Sprints’ feature that lets teams enable multiple active Sprints that run parallel to each other. This allows two teams to work on their own Sprints simultaneously. Jira also has a long list of automation rules for Sprints, such as sending weekly Slack messages about issues that are still open and auto-assigning outstanding issues to the next Sprint.
For tech-minded users who don’t mind complexity, these features will be handy. Large organizations or company-wide initiatives might require this level of organization. For others, they could be a source of frustration.
| Feature | Hubstaff Tasks | Jira |
|---|---|---|
Labels/filters | Yes | Yes |
Parallel Sprints | No | Yes |
Automation rules | Yes | No |
Time tracking | Yes | No |
Epics
Hubstaff Tasks
Simplicity is the name of the game when creating Epics in Hubstaff Tasks. A minimalist user interface makes it easy to create Epics and then break them down into tasks with details like owners, followers, attachments, comments, and more.
Again, the built-in time tracking is what makes Tasks’ Epic feature stand out. See how many hours have gone into each Epic and whether those hours match your estimate for the work. If you also use Hubstaff’s work management software, you can set a pay rate for each team member to see the labor costs associated with different tasks and Epics.
Jira
Jira makes it relatively simple to create Epics: just include a summary, description, due dates, and other relevant details. You can track the completion of the Epic based on the delivery of user stories and can also link tasks and bugs to the Epics. This helps you keep track of all the work completed and how that work ties back to larger initiatives.
| Feature | Hubstaff Tasks | Jira |
|---|---|---|
Time tracking | Yes | No |
Burndown charts | No | Yes |
Automation features | Yes | Yes |
Pricing
Hubstaff Tasks
Much like the software itself, Hubstaff Tasks keeps the pricing options simple and easy to understand. The free plan gives you five users with limited storage and Epics. However, you’ll miss out on some of the more advanced Agile features: automated Stand-ups, Timelines, Teams, and the Roadmap. The free plan is a great way to test-drive Hubstaff Tasks quickly, but you’ll want to upgrade to Premium (for just $5/user per month) for all the extra Agile features.
What made me really fall in love with Hubstaff Tasks is the fact you get more for less, and that’s something you rarely see these days for a project management app.
Jira
Jira offers three different plans (four, if you include enterprise). Pricing is based on the types of features you need, how many users you have, and whether you pay monthly or annually. So yes, there’s a lot to consider.
It offers a free plan for up to 10 users, but you won’t get access to all the Agile features. Most users will likely want to consider Jira’s Standard ($7/user per month) or Premium ($14/user per month) plans depending on the size of their team and what types of projects they plan to manage.
Much like the software itself, Hubstaff Tasks keeps the pricing options simple and easy to understand. The free plan gives you five users with limited storage and Epics. However, you’ll miss out on some of the more advanced Agile features: Stand-ups, Timelines, Teams, and the Roadmap. The free plan is a great way to test-drive Hubstaff Tasks quickly, but you’ll want to upgrade to Premium (for just $5/user per month) for all the extra Agile features.
Overall, Jira has cheap and transparent pricing, though things can get a little weird for larger organizations. That’s due to the way the cost scales for organizations with more than a hundred people.
Tasks vs. Jira: The verdict
Jira is a solid project management tool with deep roots in Agile methodology. Software engineers love how flexible it is and how it helps them manage large and complex projects. But Jira isn’t a great fit for less tech-minded users or people looking for a more streamlined solution.
Hubstaff Tasks, however, helps teams harness the power of Agile even if they’re not comfortable using complex software. Its built-in time tracking feature also makes it stand out from other project management tools.
Which one is right for you? If you need to manage large or complicated projects and don’t mind learning complex software, try Jira.
But if you need a simpler project management tool that everyone on your team can use, Hubstaff Tasks is probably right for you.
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