Jira Query Language (JQL) is a powerful SQL-like syntax for searching Jira issues. It enables precise filtering through structured queries instead of simple keyword searches.
A JQL query follows this pattern:
field operator value [AND|OR field operator value...] [ORDER BY field [ASC|DESC]]
Standard fields include:
project
: Project identifierassignee
: Person assigned to issuereporter
: Person who created the issuestatus
: Current status (e.g., "Open", "In Progress", "Done")priority
: Issue priority leveltext
: Searches across all text fields
=
,!=
: Equals, not equals>
,>=
,<
,<=
: Greater/less than comparisons (for dates, numbers)IN
: Value in a specified list~
(CONTAINS): Text search (supports wildcards)IS NULL
,IS NOT NULL
: Empty/not empty field check
AND
: Both conditions must be trueOR
: Either condition can be trueNOT
: Negates a condition
- Text values require quotes:
summary ~ "login bug"
- Multiple values use parentheses:
status IN ("Open", "In Progress")
- Date formats:
created > "2023-01-01"
- Special functions:
assignee = currentUser()
# All issues in the TEST project
project = "TEST"
# High priority bugs assigned to me
project = "TEST" AND type = Bug AND priority = High AND assignee = currentUser()
# Issues created in the last week with "login" in description
created >= -1w AND description ~ "login"
# All unresolved issues in dev team projects
project IN (Backend, Frontend) AND resolution = Unresolved
# Tasks ordered by priority then creation date
type = Task ORDER BY priority DESC, created ASC
- Exact phrase:
summary ~ "\"exact phrase\""
- Wildcard:
summary ~ "log*"
(matches "login", "logout", etc.) - Simple text:
text ~ "database error"
- Excluded term:
text ~ "database" AND NOT text ~ "timeout"
- Grouping with parentheses:
status = Resolved AND (priority = High OR assignee = currentUser())
- Functions:
duedate < endOfWeek()
,updatedDate > startOfMonth(-1)
- Labels and custom fields:
labels = "frontend" AND cf[12345] = "value"
Remember to escape special characters with backslashes and quote reserved words when using them as values.