Jira CLI

Work with Jira issues efficiently using the jira CLI.

Quick Start

List your assigned issues:

jira issue list -a$(jira me) --plain

Core Workflows

List Issues

Find issues with various filters:

# Your open issues
jira issue list -a$(jira me) -s~Resolved --plain

# High priority bugs
jira issue list -tBug -yHigh

# Created this week
jira issue list --created week

# With specific labels
jira issue list -lbackend -lcritical

# Raw JQL query
jira issue list -q"project = PROJ AND sprint in openSprints()"

Create Issue

Create new issues with required and optional fields:

# Interactive mode (prompts for fields)
jira issue create

# Quick creation with flags
jira issue create -tBug -s"Login fails on mobile" -yHigh -b"Users report..."

# With labels and components
jira issue create -tStory -s"Add dark mode" -lux -lfrontend -CFrontend

# Attach task to an epic
jira issue create -tTask -PEPIC-123 -s"Implement feature X"

# Attach story to an epic
jira issue create -tStory -PEPIC-123 -s"User can do Y"

# Sub-task (requires parent)
jira issue create -t"Sub-task" -PISSUE-123 -s"Write tests"

View Issue

Display issue details:

# Interactive view
jira issue view ISSUE-1

# Plain text output
jira issue view ISSUE-1 --plain

# Show 5 comments
jira issue view ISSUE-1 --comments 5

# Raw JSON (useful for custom fields)
jira issue view ISSUE-1 --raw

Edit Issue

Update existing issues:

# Interactive edit
jira issue edit ISSUE-1

# Quick updates
jira issue edit ISSUE-1 -yHigh -s"Updated title"

# Add/remove labels (use minus to remove)
jira issue edit ISSUE-1 -lurgent -l-wontfix

# Reassign
jira issue edit ISSUE-1 -ajohn.doe@company.com

Custom Fields

Work with custom fields (see references/custom-fields.md for details):

# Set custom fields on create
jira issue create -tStory -s"Title" --custom story-points=5

# Update custom fields
jira issue edit ISSUE-1 --custom severity=Critical --custom "found in version"="2.1.0"

Other Operations

Transitions

# Move issue to different status
jira issue move ISSUE-1

# With specific transition
jira issue move ISSUE-1 "In Progress"

Comments

# Add comment
jira issue comment add ISSUE-1 "This is my comment"

# List comments
jira issue comment list ISSUE-1

Assignment

# Assign to user
jira issue assign ISSUE-1 jane.doe@company.com

# Assign to yourself
jira issue assign ISSUE-1 $(jira me)

# Unassign
jira issue assign ISSUE-1 x

Delete

jira issue delete ISSUE-1

Output Formats

Control output format based on use case:

# Interactive list (default)
jira issue list

# Plain table
jira issue list --plain

# Specific columns
jira issue list --plain --columns KEY,SUMMARY,STATUS,ASSIGNEE

# CSV export
jira issue list --csv > issues.csv

# Raw JSON
jira issue list --raw

Useful Patterns

Filter Combinations

# Your in-progress work
jira issue list -a$(jira me) -s"In Progress" --plain

# Unassigned high-priority bugs
jira issue list -tBug -yHigh -ax --plain

# Recently updated (last 2 days)
jira issue list --updated -2d

# Exclude resolved/closed
jira issue list -s~Resolved -s~Closed

Bulk Operations

# List issues as JSON and process
jira issue list -a$(jira me) --raw | jq -r '.issues[].key' | while read key; do
    echo "Processing $key"
    jira issue edit "$key" -lprocessed --no-input
done

Tips

• Use $(jira me) to reference current user
• Use ~ prefix to exclude values (e.g., -s~Done)
• Use x as assignee to indicate "unassigned"
• Use -P to attach issues to epics or create sub-tasks
• Add --plain for scriptable output
• Add --no-input to skip interactive prompts
• Check exit codes for automation ($? = 0 for success)