How to: Build Your First Dashboard

A step-by-step guide to building your first useful Jira dashboard in under 10 minutes using three gadgets.

Before You Start

Make sure:

• The app is installed (check Installation & Setup)
• You have access to a Jira dashboard (view or edit)
• You have permission to view the project you want to report on

What You Will Build

A three-gadget dashboard:

1. A pie chart showing issue status distribution
2. An issue table for reviewing the details
3. A filter controller so anyone can slice the data

Step 1: Open or Create a Dashboard

1. In Jira, click Dashboards in the top navigation
2. Select an existing dashboard, or click Create dashboard to make a new one
3. Click the Edit button (pencil icon) to enter edit mode

Step 2: Add a Status Pie Chart

1. Click Add gadget
2. Search for "Custom Charts" and click Add
3. In the left panel, select Projects and pick your project
4. In the right panel → Chart Type tab → select Pie Chart
5. Click the Chart By tab → select Status
6. Watch the live preview update
7. Click Save gadget

Result: A pie chart showing your project's issue distribution by status.

Step 3: Add an Issue Table

1. Click Add gadget again
2. Search for "Issue List" and click Add
3. Set the same project as the data source
4. Add columns: Key, Summary, Status, Assignee, Priority
5. Add a Quick Filter: label "My Issues", JQL assignee = currentUser()
6. Click Save gadget

Result: A table showing all issues with a one-click "My Issues" filter.

Step 4: Add a Filter Controller

1. Click Add gadget → search for "Dynamic Filter Controller" → Add
2. Set the same project as the base data source
3. Add filter fields: Status, Assignee, Priority
4. Click Save gadget - note the Reference ID shown on the saved gadget
5. Edit your pie chart → change Data Source to Dynamic Filter Controller → select the Reference ID
6. Edit your issue table → same step
7. Click Done to exit edit mode

Result: Selecting a filter updates both the chart and the table simultaneously.

What's Next?

• Add a Goal Line to track targets: Calculations & Reference Lines
• Try Templates for faster setup: Templates
• Learn to spot bottlenecks: Time in Status Gadget
• See all 10 chart types: Chart Types Guide