List the Jira features your process depends on before you move, because Linear leaves out issue types, components, required fields, and constraints by design. Pilot two or three teams with Jira Sync against go or no-go criteria agreed in advance, then cut over on one date.
When you need this
- Engineering wants to leave Jira and the rest of the company still uses it.
- You are planning the pilot and need go or no-go criteria.
- You need to tell the people outside engineering what they will lose.
Evaluation criteria
List what will not carry over
Which Jira features does your process depend on?
Look forLinear has chosen not to pursue Jira issue types, constraints, components, and required fields. Components arrive as labels, and form templates can require fields when an issue is filed. List the saved filters, time tracking, and per-state permissions your teams use, and decide what replaces each. One commenter argues Jira adapts to large organizations where each team runs a different process. Linear does not try to.
Decide what to import
Do you bring history or start clean?
Look forLinear's import assistants for Jira, GitHub Issues, Asana, and Shortcut keep more data than the CLI importer and can delete an import in bulk. Only admins can run them. Some teams make a clean break and keep a CSV of old issues. There is no Notion importer, so a Notion backlog needs a script or the CSV route.
Pilot with Jira Sync
Can two teams work in Linear while Jira stays the record?
Look forJira Sync links Jira spaces to Linear teams, creating Linear issues and projects as Jira issues and epics are created. Older Jira issues sync only once they change, and a workflow with required fields stops the synced issue from being created.
Set go or no-go criteria first
What decides whether everyone moves?
Look forA pass condition agreed before the pilot, such as teams working in Linear without blockers and not asking to return. Two weeks with more than one team covers more than one way of working.
Cut over on one date
When does Jira stop taking new issues?
Look forFor a week, put new work in Linear while existing work finishes in the old tool. Move open issues in one batch and set a date when the old tool stops accepting new ones. Check for remaining open issues a few days later.
Support people after the move
Where do questions go?
Look forProvide a short walkthrough video, a Q&A session, a support channel, and a weekly survey for the first month. Expect questions to peak in the first days after the walkthrough.
Price the seats
What will the tracker cost per month?
Look forLinear bills every unsuspended user: Basic US$10 and Business US$16 per user per month billed yearly. Count contractors and occasional users before you compare the bill with Jira's.
Questions to ask vendors
- Which Jira workflows, fields, and filters do teams use weekly, and what replaces each?
- Which teams run the pilot, and what result moves everyone?
- Do we import history or start clean with a CSV archive?
- Which integrations (incident, support, CI) need rebuilding?
- When does the old tool stop accepting new issues?
Red flags
- Mapping every Jira workflow one to one and skipping simplification.
- A pilot with no criteria agreed in advance.
- Running both tools for months with no cutover date.
- Regulated teams that need per-state permissions moving before the gap is covered.
- No owner for integrations Jira provided natively.
Products in this piece
Sources
- Official documentation
- 8
- Public source
- 3
- Linear docs: Jira
- Linear docs: Import guide
- Linear docs: Billing and plans
- Linear pricing
- Linear docs: Exporting data
- Jira pricing
- Jira features
- Hacker News: moving several teams to Linear (Feb 7, 2025)
- Hacker News: colleagues won over within two weeks of switching from Jira (Apr 26, 2026)
- Hacker News: Jira adapts to large organizations with different processes per team (Jun 7, 2026)
- Linear docs: Issue templates