As more teams become distributed, Agile teams are turning to asynchronous planning poker tools that integrate with Jira. Jira is already the source of truth for managing backlogs, tracking progress, and reporting on velocity so when estimation tools connect directly, there’s no need to copy-paste story points, switch contexts, or risk version mismatch. Everything stays in sync, and up to date.
At the same time, Agile teams thrive on collaboration but as distributed work becomes the norm, some rituals need to change. One of the most common challenges in sprint planning is coordinating estimation sessions across time zones. That’s where async planning poker tools come in. They allow team members to estimate on their own time, without losing alignment or clarity.
In this article, we break down the top async planning poker tools. We’ll compare the most popular ones, compare the top features and share what users are saying about their experiences. Whether you’re leading sprint planning for a fully remote team or simply looking to streamline estimation, this will help you choose the right tool with confidence.
Choosing an Async Planning Poker Tool: Jira Plugins vs Standalone SaaS
When it comes to estimating work asynchronously, Agile teams generally face two options:
- Use a Jira plugin that brings planning poker directly into your backlog view.
- Use a standalone tool that syncs with Jira but lives in its own space—usually in the browser or your team’s meeting app.
The best option depends on how your team works. If you want to stay inside Jira and keep things simple, a plugin may be the way to go. If you prefer more flexibility, better UX, or additional integrations (like Slack, GitHub, or retrospectives), standalone tools might be a better fit.
We’ve broken this section into two categories, with deep dives into how the most popular tools actually perform based on product documentation, user forums, and reviews from the Atlassian Marketplace, Reddit, and more.
Jira Planning Poker Plugins for Async Teams
These are built for teams that live inside Jira and want to keep estimation in context. You’ll typically get native issue imports, direct story point updates, and permissions that match your Jira setup.
1. Async Poker by DoAsync: Async Poker is built for distributed teams that want to estimate without real-time coordination. You create estimation “games,” import stories from Jira, and allow teammates to vote independently. Results can be discussed afterward only if needed.
The tool is mobile-friendly (via Jira mobile), offers solid filtering options, and lets moderators follow along in real time if needed.
Key strengths:
- Contextual voting: Participants preview and edit issues directly within sessions without switching windows, maintaining workflow continuity.
- Advanced filtering: Combines basic issue filters with JQL queries for precise backlog targeting, particularly useful for large projects
- Real-time moderation: Facilitators guide discussions using review mode, synchronizing team focus during async phases
Best for: Teams working across time zones who want easy estimation inside Jira.
2. Agile Poker by Appfire: Agile Poker is one of the most widely adopted tools in the Jira ecosystem. It supports a mix of real-time and async estimation, using methods like Planning Poker, T-shirt sizing, and Wideband Delphi. You can estimate multiple fields, reference past issues, and even track sprint velocity inside the tool.
The async mode is based on Wideband Delphi: team members vote independently, and the facilitator brings results together for discussion. This is especially helpful for teams that want everyone's input, but still plan to meet for final decisions.
Technical differentiators:
- Multi-field estimation: Teams assign story points, T-shirt sizes, and priority scores simultaneously, with optional weighted final scores
- Historical benchmarking: Compares current estimates against past similar tickets using Appfire AI, reducing anchoring bias.
- Capacity analytics: Projects sprint velocity based on estimated effort and team availability, integrated with Jira’s native reporting.
Enterprise adoption:
Large organizations favor its SOC2-compliant infrastructure and granular permission controls. A Reddit PM shared: "The audit trails saved us during compliance reviews". However, mobile users report "clunky navigation in async mode," recommending desktop for complex sessions
Best for: hybrid teams that need multiple estimation modes and enterprise features.
3. Magic Estimations by Magic Apps: Magic Estimations takes a different approach: you estimate by moving Jira issues into columns that represent different point values. It supports async voting through personal modes, and works well for teams who prefer a more visual way to size work.
It supports standard values (Fibonacci, T-shirt sizes) and custom ones—including emojis. The tool is responsive and web-based, but has limited integrations beyond Jira.
Why teams choose it:
- Visual, interactive interface
- Multiple estimation modes
- Easy to set up and start using
Best for: Teams who want lightweight, visual estimation inside Jira.
4. Rally: .Rally is more than a planning poker tool. It’s a full estimation and planning workspace that integrates into Jira. While it supports traditional story point voting using Fibonacci, its AI goes further by analyzing tasks, breaking down what’s involved, and even estimating based on the experience level of different team members. It also supports time-based estimation, so teams can plan based on time as well as complexity.
Where Rally stands out is how it supports context-rich, asynchronous decision-making. AI-generated questions help surface blind spots, and team members can vote and comment without needing a meeting. Since everything happens directly in Jira, it’s easy to keep track of discussions and stay aligned.
Why teams choose it:
- Auto-generated questions that analyzes Jira work items and provides questions that uncover blockers
- Supports both story points and time-based estimates
- Fully embedded in Jira
- Built-in planning components like agendas, diagrams, and capacity planning
Best for: Agile teams that want estimation to be collaborative and smarter, not just faster.
Standalone Tools Planning Poker Tools for Async Teams
These tools live outside Jira but integrate via API. They’re better suited for teams that want to bring in tools like Slack or GitHub, or need estimation to fit into a broader async planning workflow.
1. Parabol: Parabol combines sprint poker with meeting rituals like retrospectives, check-ins, and team reflections. Its async mode lets team members estimate on their own time, leave comments, and only meet if votes don’t align.
Estimates can be pulled from Jira and synced back to custom fields. The interface is clean, mobile-responsive, and easy to use once your team gets the hang of it. You also get GitHub/GitLab integrations for dev-focused workflows.
Why teams choose it:
- Anonymous voting: Conceals participant identities until all votes are cast, reducing authority bias
- GitHub integration: Links pull requests to estimated stories, enabling effort/outcome correlation
- Confluence exports: Generates sprint summary pages with estimation rationale documentation
Best for: Teams that want a single tool for sprint rituals and async estimation.
2. Scrumpy Planning Poker: Scrumpy is a lightweight planning poker tool that supports both sync and async voting. Its async mode allows team members to vote in advance, and the Scrum Master reveals results when everyone’s ready.
Scrumpy supports Jira integration (via API or Marketplace plugin) and even auto-generates summaries you can export into Confluence. It runs smoothly in browsers and can be installed as a PWA on mobile devices.
Why teams choose it:
- Free and open source
- Works on any device, no login required
- Jira + Confluence integration
3. Planning Poker live: PlanningPoker.live supports both async and real-time voting. It integrates with Jira and Linear, and can be embedded into Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or Google Meet for teams that want to estimate during live calls but it also works async when needed.
The votes stay hidden until everyone has voted, which helps avoid bias. While the interface isn’t flashy, it gets the job done and supports multiple estimation styles.
Why teams choose it:
- Works in browser or inside video meetings
- Supports async + anonymous voting
- Embeds directly in Zoom, Teams, Meet
Best for: Teams that alternate between async and live planning.
Conclusion
Estimation is a critical part of sprint planning but it often gets derailed by time zones and meetings that drag on.
That’s why async planning poker tools like Rally has become essential for modern Agile teams. Rally is built to meet the unique needs of distributed teams, offering seamless Jira integration, Fibonacci sequence estimation, task duration planning, and dedicated spaces for work item discussions. By capturing every team member’s input asynchronously, Rally helps you estimate with precision, plan smarter, and avoid unnecessary meetings.
If you’re ready to streamline your estimation process, align your team, and focus on what matters most, Rally is the async planning poker tool designed to help Agile teams thrive. Try it today and make your next sprint the easiest one yet!