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Jira pricing: minimize license costs with these tips


Jira pricing can be quite confusing. If you don't keep an eye on your user accounts on a regular basis, you can quickly find yourself switching to the next higher user level without planning - and having to pay higher Jira license costs accordingly.

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In this article, we’ll explain how the license costs for Jira software are made up and how you can reduce Jira prices immensely with a few clever tricks.

Want more information on Jira license costs? Discover here more about Jira Service Management and Jira Work Management prices.

Jira prices: how they are calculated

For Jira Software, license costs depend on the number of users for which the software is unlocked. In addition, the prices change depending on the hosting variant (Server, Data Center or Cloud). The license price increases as soon as the number of users exceeds a certain level. A company with 100 Jira users pays the same price for the Jira license as a company with 480, because the next higher (and more expensive) tier starts at 501 users.

You should know exactly how many Jira licenses you really need – and when it is time to move to the next user tier.

License costs for Jira Data Center

In this excerpt from a pricing summary table from Atlassian, you can see the jumps in licensing costs.

The lowest price point for Jira Data Center is $42,000 annually, rising to $72,000 if you have more than 501 users.

For the complete table, see Atlassian’s Jira license cost overview.

License costs for Jira Cloud

For Jira Cloud costs, on the other hand, consider the following price jumps:

For the complete table, see Atlassian’s Jira license cost overview.

Minimize Jira license costs: our tips

The graphs just shown illustrate the differences in licensing costs for varying hosting options. Therefore, the first tip:

Choose the right Jira hosting option

To ensure that your Jira pricing meets your needs, it is important to choose the right hosting variant.

Jira Software Server, for example, will only be supported by Atlassian until February 15, 2024. Accordingly, purchasing new Jira Server licenses in order to operate in the long term is not worthwhile. Also keep in mind that the average lifespan of a server is three to five years. Physical servers also take up quite a bit of space – which in turn shows up in your budget.

Do you already own a Jira Server license and want to continue to benefit from ongoing innovations and bug fixes beyond this date? Then migrate to Data Center or Cloud now! We will be happy to support you in your migration decision.

With Jira Software Data Center, you host the products either on your own infrastructure or through a Cloud provider. As a result, you must have the internal resources as well as the technical expertise to effectively run and maintain Jira.

Jira Software Cloud is ideally suited for many organizations. This is because you reduce operating costs and benefit from the latest features first. In addition, you enjoy real-time software maintenance and 24/7 support.

Jira Data Center or Jira Cloud?

If you want an initial answer to the question Jira Data Center vs. Cloud, it’s worth taking a look at our interactive migration tool. With just a few clicks, you can find out which hosting variant fits your requirements.

Use Jira discounts

Do you want to implement Jira in a non-profit organization, college or university? Or do you want to finally make your idea of open source projects come true with Jira? Then Atlassian has great deals on Jira licenses for you. You can save up to 75% off the Cloud subscription as a non-profit organization. Learn how to get started in the Atlassian pricing FAQ.

Save on licensing costs with Solution Partners

Atlassian Solution Partners also offer exclusive discounts. Therefore, it is beneficial to seek advice from a Solution Partner when purchasing Jira licenses and to acquire the license through them. For example, we can advise you in detail on your upcoming Jira license costs and also support you with the implementation, configuration, and maintenance of Jira.

Keeping an eye on Jira user tiers

As mentioned earlier, Jira prices increase immensely once the next user tier is reached. It often happens that you reach a new level even though you don’t have that many active users. How do you go about minimizing license costs here?

  • Find out how many active Jira users you really have at the moment

  • Keep an eye on the next user tier and ensure a healthy gap between active users and the next level

  • Delete user accounts that have never been used in the past

  • Deactivate accounts of former employees

    • Maybe these accounts were particularly active at that time, but there has been no activity in the last three months? Then deactivation is the right option here. This way, links and historical activity remain in Jira, but licenses are not affected.

Minimize Jira costs with the Cloud

Use the Atlassian Cloud Savings Calculator to find out how much you can save on license costs with the Jira Cloud version. We used an example indicating that we are running Jira software on the Server version ourselves and have 501 users. The graph illustrates that the Cloud option of Jira Software would provide a license cost savings of $122,802.

Save Jira license costs – our conclusion

To keep Jira prices low, it is first and foremost important to choose the right hosting variant. Our interactive tool and our experienced consultants will be happy to support you in this decision. Just contact us!

Discounts from Atlassian or through the support of Solution Partners should also not be missed.

Once you have chosen your Jira variant, you need to keep an eye on user accounts and delete ghost accounts that are shining through inactivity.

Innovations and cost savings await you with the Jira Cloud. We will be happy to advise you in detail on your migration decision and define requirements for data protection and individual configurations as well. In 360° support, we are at your side and ensure minimal migration risk with immense license cost savings at the same time.

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