Confluence vs. Jira: Comparison & Expert Reviews For 2025
Confluence offers a collaborative workspace for your team, fostering seamless knowledge sharing and project tracking. Jira, on the other hand, is designed to help you manage and track issues and tasks with precision.
While both tools are integral to project management, Confluence excels in documentation and collaboration, whereas Jira is a powerhouse for issue tracking and agile project management. In this article, you'll find a detailed comparison of these tools, exploring their features, pros and cons, and pricing, to help you choose the right project management software for your needs.
Confluence Vs. Jira: An Overview
Confluence
Jira
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Confluence Vs. Jira Pricing Comparison
| Confluence | Jira | |
|---|---|---|
| Free Trial | Free trial + free plan available | 7-day free trial + free plan available |
| Pricing | From $5/user/month (billed annually) | From $7.16/user/month (billed annually, min 5 seats) |
Get free help from our project management software advisors to find your match.
Get Expert AdviceOpens new windowConfluence vs Jira Pricing & Hidden Costs
Confluence pricing is based on a tiered subscription model, with costs increasing as your team grows, and potential extra charges for additional features or storage.
Jira pricing follows a similar tiered structure, with costs tied to the number of users and potential add-ons for premium features.
To choose the right tool for your budget, consider the specific features your team needs and evaluate the total cost of ownership, including any hidden costs, by testing different subscription levels and add-ons to see which best fits your workflow and growth plans.
Confluence Vs. Jira Feature Comparison
Confluence’s collaborative editing allows teams to create and share project documentation in real time, making it especially useful for brainstorming sessions. Jira’s agile boards help manage complex projects by tracking tasks and sprints efficiently, which is particularly helpful for development teams. Each tool has its strengths: Confluence is built for collaboration, while Jira is designed for task management.
| Confluence | Jira | |
|---|---|---|
| API | ||
| Budgeting | ||
| Calendar Management | ||
| Contact Management | ||
| Email Integration | ||
| Expense Tracking | ||
| External Integrations | ||
| Gantt Charts | ||
| Google Apps Integration | ||
| Project Management | ||
| Resource Management | ||
| Task Scheduling/Tracking |
Get free help from our project management software advisors to find your match.
Get Expert AdviceOpens new windowConfluence vs Jira Integrations
| Integration | Confluence | Jira |
| Slack | ✅ | ✅ |
| Microsoft Teams | ✅ | ✅ |
| Google Drive | ✅ | ✅ |
| Trello | ✅ | ✅ |
| GitHub | ❌ | ✅ |
| Bitbucket | ✅ | ✅ |
| Dropbox | ✅ | ✅ |
| Salesforce | ❌ | ✅ |
| API | ✅ | ✅ |
| Zapier | ✅ | ✅ |
Confluence integrates with Slack to keep your team informed of document updates in real time, which is helpful during project status meetings. While both Confluence and Jira support a wide range of integrations, it's important to note that some, like GitHub or Salesforce for Confluence, require third-party tools such as Zapier or Atlassian Marketplace apps, rather than being native integrations.
Jira integrates with GitHub, allowing development teams to track code changes directly within project tasks. Confluence improves team communication, while Jira supports development workflows.
Confluence vs Jira Security, Compliance & Reliability
| Factor | Confluence | Jira |
| Data Privacy | Confluence offers data residency options, letting you choose where your data is stored. | Jira provides data encryption in transit and at rest to protect sensitive information. |
| Regulatory Compliance | Confluence complies with GDPR and other international standards. | Jira adheres to SOC2 and ISO/IEC 27001 for robust compliance. |
| Access Control | Confluence offers granular permission settings to manage content visibility and user access. | Jira provides granular, role-based access controls to manage project-level permissions and user roles. |
Confluence and Jira both offer strong security features, including granular permission controls to manage access at the page or project level. While Jira includes a wider range of compliance certifications, both tools support enterprise-grade security standards. When evaluating them, consider data residency, encryption, and permission granularity to ensure the platform aligns with your team’s security and governance needs.
Confluence vs Jira Ease of Use
| Factor | Confluence | Jira |
| User Interface | Confluence has a clean interface with intuitive navigation for documentation collaboration. | Jira’s interface is more complex, catering to detailed task management and workflows. |
| Onboarding Experience | Confluence offers interactive guides and templates to ease new users into the platform. | Jira provides onboarding tours but requires a steeper learning curve due to its detailed features. |
| Support | Confluence provides community forums and documentation for quick assistance. | Jira offers robust support and detailed documentation, and active community forums. |
Confluence is easy to learn, thanks to its simple interface and ready-to-use templates, which make document management straightforward. In contrast, Jira has a steeper learning curve due to its complexity, but is well-suited for teams that require advanced project and task tracking.
Confluence vs Jira: Pros & Cons
Confluence
- Your team can benefit from its extensive templates, saving time on setup.
- It offers powerful search capabilities to quickly find the information you need.
- You can easily collaborate with your team through intuitive document sharing.
- Your team may experience occasional performance issues with large data sets.
- It can be overwhelming for new users due to its extensive features.
- You might find its interface less visually appealing compared to other tools.
Jira
- Custom filters can be created and accessed quickly, improving your team's efficiency.
- Automation rules are easy to set up, helping your team speed up their work.
- Agile workflow management supports Scrum and Kanban, enhancing your team's adaptability.
- There's a lack of resource management capabilities, which could limit your team's planning.
- The interface can be too crowded in Scrum projects, making it hard for your team to navigate.
- Field names can be confusing, which might slow down your team's workflow.
Best Use Cases For Confluence And Jira
Confluence
- Software development teams Your team can benefit from Confluence's strong document management features, which keep project specs and updates centralized.
- Marketing departments You can streamline campaign planning and content creation with Confluence's templates and collaboration tools.
- Educational institutions Your institution can use Confluence to support faculty collaboration and manage course materials effectively.
- Remote teams You can maintain clear communication and document sharing across distances with Confluence's online capabilities.
- Product management Your product team can track development progress and share feedback efficiently with Confluence's collaborative features.
- Non-profit organizations You can organize and manage volunteer efforts and project documentation with Confluence's easy-to-use interface.
Jira
- Software Development Jira’s agile tools like Scrum and Kanban boards make it perfect for managing software projects.
- IT Departments Its issue tracking capabilities help your team efficiently handle technical support and bug fixes.
- Tech Startups Jira offers customization that allows your team to scale and adapt as your projects grow.
- Agile Teams Sprint planning and backlog management keep your agile processes organized and effective.
- Large Enterprises Jira’s automation rules can streamline your complex workflows and improve team productivity.
- Project Managers Its reporting and analytics provide insights that help you make informed decisions quickly.
Get free help from our project management software advisors to find your match.
Get Expert AdviceOpens new windowDifferences Between Confluence And Jira
Below you will find details on what makes these tools different from each other.
| Confluence | Jira | |
|---|---|---|
| Automation | Confluence has no built-in automation but connects with Jira rules. | Jira offers task rules, triggers, and updates to automate workflows. |
| Compliance | Confluence has basic permissions but limited compliance features. | Jira supports audit logs, controls, and setups for strict compliance |
| Pricing | Confluence uses a tiered subscription model based on user count and features | Jira also follows a tiered model, with additional costs for premium features and more users. |
| Scalability | Confluence scales with your team’s need for organized content. | Jira scales with complex projects and large teams handling tasks. |
| User Interface | Confluence offers a clean, intuitive interface for easy navigation and collaboration | Jira has a more complex interface tailored for detailed project management and workflows. |
| Visit ConfluenceOpens new window | Visit JiraOpens new window |
Similarities Between Confluence And Jira
Now that you know what makes them different, let's look at the similarities.
| Cloud-Based | Both Confluence and Jira are cloud-based, allowing your team to access them from anywhere, enhancing remote collaboration. |
|---|---|
| Customization | Both tools offer customization features, letting you tailor dashboards and workflows to fit your team’s specific needs. |
| Integrations | Confluence and Jira both integrate with a wide range of third-party apps, enhancing their functionality within your existing tech stack |
| Security | Both platforms prioritize security with features like data encryption and access controls to protect your team’s information |
| Support | Confluence and Jira both provide extensive support through documentation, forums, and active user communities to help you solve issues quickly. |
| Visit ConfluenceOpens new window Visit JiraOpens new window | |