Stale Work for Jira
See which Jira work has gone quiet. Flags open items with no status change or comment, so stalled work is caught early.
| Issue | Summary | Status | Quiet for |
|---|---|---|---|
| WEB-41 | Migrate image CDN to the new provider | In progress | 34 days |
| WEB-17 | Accessibility audit: checkout flow | To do | 23 days |
| WEB-29 | Rename analytics events to the new scheme | In progress | 16 days |
| WEB-08 | Update cookie banner copy | To do | 11 days |
| WEB-33 | Fix flaky login test on Safari | In progress | 9 days |
Stale Work on a Jira dashboard, shown with sample data.
Find the work nobody is touching
See every open item with no status change or comment for 7, 14, 30 or 60 days, longest quiet first. Colour shows how overdue each one is, so the worst stands out at a glance.
Measures real activity, not edits
Jira's Updated date changes when anyone edits a label or field. Stale Work ignores that noise and counts only status changes and comments, and it never flags work before its start date.
One gadget, many teams
Watch up to five projects or any saved filter. Group by project, assignee or status, see what is starting soon, and page through every item without leaving the dashboard.
Set up in two minutes
Add the gadget to any Jira dashboard. How it decides what is quiet follows below.
- Open a Jira dashboard and click Edit.
- Click Add gadget, search for Stale Work, and click Add.
- On the new card, click the three dots, then Configure.
- Choose what to watch, a threshold and a grouping, then Save.
Activity, settings and limits
What counts as activity
An item's quiet time runs from the latest of: when it was created, its last status change, its last comment, or its start date. Edits to other fields, such as labels or priority, do not count. Jira's Updated date changes on any edit, which can make untouched work look recent; Stale Work looks past that.
Settings
| Setting | Options |
|---|---|
| Watch | Up to five projects, or one saved filter |
| Flag work with no real activity for | 3, 5, 7, 14, 30, 60 or 90 days |
| Group by | None, project, assignee or status |
| Rows per page | 10, 25, 50 or 100 |
The 7d+ 14d+ 30d+ 60d+ buttons on the card change the threshold for you until you refresh. The saved setting stays as it is.
Reading the list
- Quiet for turns amber at twice the threshold and red at three times.
- Hover over the figure to see the last activity and the assignee.
- Starting soon lists items whose start date falls in the next 14 days.
- Items with a future start date are never flagged as quiet.
- Open all in issue search opens the flagged items in Jira's search.
Limits
Each gadget checks up to 500 open items, oldest first. The app is read-only and never changes your work items.
Common questions
An item was edited yesterday. Why is it flagged as quiet?
Stale Work counts only status changes and comments, plus the created and start dates. Edits to labels, priority, descriptions and other fields don't count, because they rarely mean the work moved forward.
Why is an item I expected missing from the list?
The list shows only open items (not in a Done status) that have been quiet for at least the threshold. Items with a future start date are left out until they start. Each person also sees only the items their Jira permissions allow.
Can different people see different results on the same dashboard?
Yes. The gadget runs as the person viewing it, so each viewer sees only the work items they already have permission to see in Jira.
Can I add more than one Stale Work gadget?
Yes. Each gadget has its own settings, so you can add one per team or project, on the same dashboard or on different ones.
Which start date does it use?
Jira's standard Start date field. If an item has no start date, its quiet time runs from its creation date or its last activity.
Does Stale Work change or store my work items?
No. The app is read-only and stores nothing except each gadget's settings, which Jira keeps on your site. It runs on Atlassian's platform and sends no data anywhere else. See the privacy policy.
Does it work with Jira Data Center?
No. Stale Work is built for Jira Cloud only.
What happens if a larger site's subscription ends?
The gadget shows a message saying the subscription has ended, and the list is hidden until it's renewed. Sites with up to 10 users are always free.
The gadget shows an error. What should I do?
Refresh the dashboard. If the error stays, email support@poincianaworks.com with your Jira site address and a screenshot of the gadget.
Need help with Stale Work?
Email us with your Jira site address and a screenshot of the gadget. We reply within 12 hours. See our support policy.