Easy Tech TutsHow to Create Epics and User Stories in Jira
By Impran M N
Turning a big idea into trackable work usually means starting with an epic and breaking it down into user stories your team can actually pick up. This guide covers creating both and connecting them together.
01Create the epic first
Open the create issue screen, select Epic, and give it a name that captures the overall initiative.
02Add a description of the goal
Write a short description explaining what the epic is meant to achieve so stories created under it stay aligned.
03Break the epic into user stories
Create individual stories, each describing a specific piece of user-facing functionality, and link them to the epic.
04Write stories from the user's perspective
Frame each story around what a user needs and why, rather than just a technical task description.
05Prioritize and estimate the stories
Order the stories by priority and add estimates so they're ready to move into sprint planning.
Frequently asked questions
How many user stories should one epic have?
There's no fixed number; it depends on the scope of the epic, though very large epics are usually broken into more manageable groups of stories.
What's a good format for writing a user story?
A common format is 'As a [user], I want [goal], so that [reason]', which keeps the focus on user value.
Can a story belong to more than one epic?
No, a story is typically linked to a single parent epic to keep the hierarchy clear.
Should acceptance criteria be added to stories or epics?
Acceptance criteria are usually added at the story level since epics are broader and stories represent the testable unit of work.
Watch the full walkthrough
The same steps, demonstrated on screen from start to finish.
