Jira Software vs. Microsoft 365

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Jira Software
Score 8.0 out of 10
N/A
Jira Software is a project management tool from Atlassian, featuring an interactive timeline for mapping work items, dependencies, and releases, Scrum boards for agile teams, and out-of-the-box reports and dashboards.
$81.85
per month 10 users
Microsoft 365
Score 8.7 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365) is a Microsoft Cloud subscription service that includes Microsoft Office products (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, and Access). The software can be installed across multiple devices and ensures that users always have the most up-to-date version of the included Office applications.
$5
Per User Per Month
Pricing
Jira SoftwareMicrosoft 365
Editions & Modules
Standard
$8.15
per month per user (minimum 10)
Premium
$16
per month per user (minimum 10)
Data Center
$44,000
per year 500 users
Enterprise
Contact Sales
per year
Business Basic
$5.00
Per User Per Month
Individual
$5.84
*Per Month
Business - Apps
$8.25
Per User Per Month
Enterprise - F3
$10.00
Per User Per Month
Business Standard
$12.50
Per User Per Month
Business Premium
$20.00
Per User Per Month
Enterprise - E3
$32.00
Per User Per Month
Enterprise - E5
$57.00
Per User Per Month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Jira SoftwareMicrosoft 365
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
YesNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details*When billed annually.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Jira SoftwareMicrosoft 365
Considered Both Products
Jira Software
Chose Jira Software
Jira is so flexible and configuration from the Jira administration perspective also its effective and smooth.
Chose Jira Software
Redmine is much more intuitive and user friendly. Jira certainly has more advanced features and a plethora of plugins for any sort of need.
Especially for programming teams, Jira is more suitable to track the project.
Chose Jira Software
JIRA was already in place when I joined the company, but it is better and easier to work with than anything I have worked with in the past. My last shop used RALLY and it was a total pain to grasp. JIRA offers more flexibility and setup options with your configuration.
Chose Jira Software
Depending on use and knowledge, both Jira and Microsoft SharePoint allow for task management, file sharing, communication, reporting, etc. However, out of the box, Jira is ready to go, whereas SharePoint requires more customization to get to the same point. Although Jira could …
Microsoft 365
Chose Microsoft 365
Google Sheets is better for sharing and collaborative editing. Versioning of the same file is also one of Google Sheets strong points.
Microsoft 365 is better for working with local files. It is much easier to store the file in multiple places and backup multiple versions in …
Chose Microsoft 365
Personally I would prefer Google Workspace because it integrates better with the Android based tools that I already use. I also like how Google's Docs, Sheets, and Slides online functionality is their focus rather than an addon to get to the cloud. Google Workspace's sharing …
Chose Microsoft 365
We actually use all those other tools that I selected simultaneously with Microsoft 365 because of different customers we work with who utilize different sharing/collaborative tools. I think all are equally comparable but Microsoft 365, especially Word, provides the …
Chose Microsoft 365
We have not evaluated any other products against Office 365. In my past organization, we were using Gsuites. However, I found Office 365 a better and comprehensive solution.
Chose Microsoft 365
Compared to its competitors, Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365) has more functionalities, is more integrated between applications and enables a better data document management. Its predefined templates and database connection set-ups offer better user experience. There is more …
Chose Microsoft 365
G Suite is too difficult to manage in a growing org.
Chose Microsoft 365
Confluence is much easier to use and is less clunky than MS. Specifically comparing Confluence to SharePoint, the main advantage SP has is the ability to check in docs, you can't do this as well in Confluence. The SP sites are tough to admin and figure out where all the backend …
Chose Microsoft 365
Was a company wide decision, but both of the products are well designed for thier purpose. I quite like the integrated calendar of Office 365 however I used Gmail at most of my previous workplaces.
Top Pros
Top Cons
TrustRadius Insights
Jira SoftwareMicrosoft 365
Highlights

TrustRadius
Research Team Insight
Published

Jira and Microsoft 365, formerly Microsoft Office 365, are very distinct products with some overlapping capabilities. Jira and Microsoft 365 both offer some project management and collaboration capabilities, and each is used across company sizes. Microsoft 365’s Sharepoint, and intranet product, is the closest comparison with Jira itself. 

Beyond these areas, Jira and Microsoft 365 are entirely different products. Jira is a software development tool for agile developments. It’s designed to help manage product development cycles, as well as other agile projects. Microsoft 365 is a suite of office programs. In addition to the core Office programs like Word and PowerPoint, 365 offers email, online storage, and collaboration tools. 

Features

Jira and Microsoft 365 have distinct feature sets that buyers should keep in mind. 

Jira’s focus on support agile development has led to more specific features for that particular use case. For instance, it offers better tools for tracking software development, such as labelling, ticket tracking,  and specialized reporting. These features are designed to allow individual developers and project managers alike to organize and manage their projects from within the single platform. 

Microsoft 365 serves a broader range of use cases. For developers and project managers, it offers robust file management via Sharepoint, and more collaboration capabilities with Teams. It also includes more products to meet other teams’ needs, such as word processing, email hosting, and online storage capabilities. This full suite makes Microsoft 365 more broadly applicable than Jira. 

Limitations 

There are also limitations to what Jira and Microsoft 365 offer worth considering. 

For developer use cases specifically, Jira is more focused on documentation management than actual file management, which limits how much flexibility users have showing some demos or other content. It also lacks many of the extended features of Microsoft 365, notably the collaboration capabilities of Teams. Jira has also received some criticism for its reporting capabilities. 

In contrast, Microsoft 365 is not ideal for agile development teams. It lacks the agile project management capabilities around scrum or kanban boards, among other features. Its existing capabilities are also more general use and not tailored for software development. 

Pricing 

Jira Software offers a free version that can be used by up to ten users and has a storage capacity of 250 GB. The Standard pricing tier starts at $7.00 per user per month and can be used by up to 5,000 users. This tier includes 250 GB of storage and 9-5 support. The Premium pricing tier starts at $14.00 per user per month and includes unlimited storage and 24/7 support.

Microsoft 365 is available in 4 pricing tiers. The Business Basic package, at $5/user/month, includes the online versions Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, and cloud storage. Business Standard, at $12.50/user/month, includes desktop versions of the core Office apps, Publisher and Access, and the cloud services found in the Basic plan. Business Premium, at $20/user/month, adds on more security and device management capabilities. Business Apps are also available for $8.25/user/month for just the premium apps. 

Best Alternatives
Jira SoftwareMicrosoft 365
Small Businesses
FunctionFox
FunctionFox
Score 8.3 out of 10
Google Workspace
Google Workspace
Score 9.1 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
SAP Ruum
SAP Ruum
Score 9.0 out of 10
Google Workspace
Google Workspace
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
Quickbase
Quickbase
Score 9.2 out of 10
Microsoft 365 Business Premium
Microsoft 365 Business Premium
Score 8.9 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Jira SoftwareMicrosoft 365
Likelihood to Recommend
8.7
(187 ratings)
8.7
(238 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.0
(35 ratings)
9.5
(6 ratings)
Usability
7.1
(28 ratings)
8.4
(6 ratings)
Availability
5.3
(3 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
8.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
8.8
(23 ratings)
8.9
(54 ratings)
Online Training
8.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
9.0
(1 ratings)
9.0
(2 ratings)
Ease of integration
7.7
(8 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Jira SoftwareMicrosoft 365
Likelihood to Recommend
Atlassian
The Jira software works well for managing scrum boards and allocating resources to a task. When your Epics and Issues are set up properly, it can give you a good idea of where your team stands and the trajectory of your project. It is not the ideal solution if you need to provide documentation and support to people outside of your product teams or organization. It would benefit from having a public documentation or repository feature.
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Microsoft
Microsoft 365 is well-suited for:Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMBs): Microsoft 365 offers a cost-effective solution for SMBs to access a suite of essential productivity tools without the need for extensive IT infrastructure. It provides a wide range of applications, allowing teams to collaborate, communicate, and manage documents efficiently.Remote Work and Collaboration: Microsoft 365's cloud-based nature makes it ideal for remote work scenarios. With tools like Microsoft Teams, employees can easily communicate, hold video conferences, and collaborate on projects in real-time, regardless of their location.Microsoft 365 may be less appropriate for:Organizations with Specific Software Requirements: Some organizations may have specialized software needs that are not met by Microsoft 365. In such cases, they may require industry-specific software or custom solutions.Limited Internet Connectivity: Microsoft 365 is a cloud-based platform, which means a stable internet connection is essential for optimal functionality. Organizations with poor internet connectivity might face challenges using the cloud-based applications effectively.
Read full review
Pros
Atlassian
  • Running sprints and tracking progress of roadmap, epics, story, task and subtask
  • The user interface is great. It allows tables inside details, have common shortcuts and clean design.
  • Can create custom dashboards and can view data in multiple ways
  • Advanced access rights based on role
Read full review
Microsoft
  • keeps me extremely organized. It is so easy to link calendars, emails, and documents.
  • keeps me well connected. It is so easy to send a quick message on teams or send an email to a group (for example, my particular team within the company).
  • easy to use. Everything is straightforward, making it easy to find an answer to a question. There is even a search option to figure out how to do something within Microsoft.
Read full review
Cons
Atlassian
  • Management of the software is very difficult at times, although has improved.
  • Ability to manage resources is really non-existent, there are some plugins but they are ALL buggy (I've tested them all).
  • Better integration with Trello, would love to see this happen. Right now it's very clumsy.
Read full review
Microsoft
  • Microsoft 365 really needs to work on protection part. In complex environment it is not reliable as compared to its competitors like Proofpoint. There are many instances where it fails to perform effectively.
  • In SharePoint Online the versioning feature of the document needs to be improved by Microsoft. Sometimes when we have to roll back to the previous version it does not work as expected.
  • In Teams messaging and app permission policies can be improved. There are some settings where we have to add a lot of things manually.
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Likelihood to Renew
Atlassian
This is because Jira Software generates a huge profit for an affordable price. Having a tool that makes team management transparent and effective is very valuable.
In addition, the renewal of Jira Software and all Atlassian tools is predictable and clear, as the prices are published on the Atlassian website and there is no pyramid of intermediaries.
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Microsoft
There are many features of Office that we cannot replicate in any other tool. Plus people know it already. It's not going away anytime soon.
Read full review
Usability
Atlassian
JIRA Software is a pretty complex tool. We have a project manager for JIRA who onboarded us, created our board, and taught us the basics. I think it would have been pretty overwhelming to learn without her. JIRA offers so much functionality that I'm not aware of -- I constantly need to Google or ask others about existing features. Also, although they are all under the Atlassian umbrella, I find it difficult to switch between JIRA Software and Confluence.
Read full review
Microsoft
The interface of the different tools (this suite has MANY different tools) is usually simple to use and intuitive, and you can always re-arrange and add or remove the task you use most frequently from the menus and task bars.
Each tool / product includes a lot of features that may require a more intensive learning, but usually Office 365 tools are simple to learn from scratch, adding more knowledge as you required more advanced features
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Support Rating
Atlassian
Our JIRA support is handled internally by members of our Product Support team. It is not supported by a 3rd party. Our internal support will always sent out notifications for downtime which is usually done on the weekend unless it is required to fix a bug/issue that is affecting the entire company. Downtime is typically 3-4 hours and then once the maintenance is complete, another broadcast email is sent out informing the user community that the system is now available for use.
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Microsoft
Over the past 8 years of using Microsoft 365, I have noticed that they change vendors often. This always leads to a poor experience in the beginning, then levels out after some time for the company to get things worked out. As a customer, it is really frustrating because I don't have time when something isn't working to have them "look into my issue" and get back with me. They have even closed a ticket I specifically told them to keep open. Your applications are only as good as the support.
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Online Training
Atlassian
One of their strong points i stheir documentation. Almost all of the basic set up needed within JIRA is available online through atlassian and its easy to find and very precise. The more critical issues need to be addressed as well and hence the rating of 8 instead of a 9.
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Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Implementation Rating
Atlassian
Take your time implementing Jira. Make sure you understand how you want to handle your projects and workflows. Investing more time in the implementation can pay off in a long run. It basically took us 5 days to define and implement correctly, but that meant smooth sailing later on.
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Microsoft
Everything works and I use it all the time.
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Alternatives Considered
Atlassian
Jira Software has more integrations and has more features than many of its competitors. While some of its competitors do have better UI/UX than Jira Software, they have improved this greatly over time. Atlassian also acquired Trello years ago, so that adds better user interfaces to the system. They do also offer a pretty in-depth library of how to customize the platform that others don't.
Read full review
Microsoft
Google Sheets is better for sharing and collaborative editing. Versioning of the same file is also one of Google Sheets strong points.
Microsoft 365 is better for working with local files. It is much easier to store the file in multiple places and backup multiple versions in multiple places.
LibreOffice is free but the usage is much counter intuitive than Microsoft Office. OpenOffice is worse when it comes to UI.
Microsoft Excel's performance with larger files is much better. When opening huge files, excel loads it asynchronously and I can start working right away.
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Return on Investment
Atlassian
  • Jira has positively made our company's daily activities much better organized
  • With Jira we can track progress and follow up on tasks
  • Jira has great reporting tools which aggregate various data and give us a good overview of our teams capacity
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Microsoft
  • Positively, it has increased productivity and efficiency in creating templates and being able to systemize some of the protocols we are working on putting into place.
  • It has been a positive as well as most individuals and companies that we associate with also use MicroSoft 365 and therefore there is no need to have formats change in our documents when they open them up using another type of program.
  • Getting work done quickly.... One and Done!!!
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ScreenShots