Easy Tech TutsHow to Add Swimlanes in Jira Easily 2026
By Impran M N
A crowded board without any structure makes it hard to see who's working on what. This guide covers adding swimlanes to a Jira board, choosing a grouping strategy, and configuring the settings so your Scrum or Kanban board stays organized.
01Open board settings
Navigate to your board's settings to access the swimlane configuration options.
02Configure swimlanes
Choose the Swimlanes tab within board settings to start setting up how you want to group your issues.
03Group issues by epics or JQL
Select a grouping strategy — such as by epic, assignee, or a custom JQL query — depending on how you want the board organized.
04Test and save changes
Apply your changes and check the board to confirm the swimlanes are grouping issues the way you expect.
Frequently asked questions
How do I add swimlanes to a Jira board?
Open board settings, go to the Swimlanes tab, and choose a grouping strategy like epics, assignees, or JQL.
Can I group swimlanes using a custom JQL query?
Yes, Jira supports custom JQL-based swimlanes for more precise grouping beyond the default options.
Does adding swimlanes work on both Scrum and Kanban boards?
Yes, swimlanes can be configured on both Scrum and Kanban boards through the board settings.
Why would I use swimlanes instead of just filtering the board?
Swimlanes let you see multiple groupings at once within the same view, while filters only narrow down what's shown.
Watch the full walkthrough
The same steps, demonstrated on screen from start to finish.
