Track Agile sprint progress and project completion velocity. Compare actual vs. ideal burndown to identify schedule risks early.
Last updated: March 2026
A burndown chart is a visual representation of work remaining versus time remaining in an Agile sprint or project. It shows the rate at which work is being completed and helps teams determine if they're on track to finish on time.
The chart plots two lines: an ideal burndown line showing the planned rate of progress (assuming work is completed at a steady pace), and an actual burndown line showing real progress. When the actual line is below the ideal line, the team is ahead of schedule. When it's above, the team is behind.
Burndown charts are fundamental to Scrum and other Agile methodologies. They provide transparency, enable early detection of problems, facilitate daily standup discussions, and help teams improve velocity estimation over time. The chart uses story points rather than hours, focusing on work completed rather than time spent.
10-day sprint with 50 story points:
Variance = 30 − 30 = 0. Team is maintaining perfect velocity of 5 pts/day. At this rate, all 50 points will be completed by day 10.
An upward spike indicates scope creep—work was added mid-sprint. This is a red flag. Either remove the added work, extend the sprint (not recommended), or accept that some committed work won't complete.
Story points measure complexity and effort, not time. They're consistent across team members (a 5-point story is 5 points whether it takes you 3 hours or 8). Points also avoid micro-management and focus on delivery.
There's no universal 'good' velocity—it varies by team size, experience, and point scale. Track your team's velocity over 3-5 sprints to establish a baseline. Consistency matters more than raw speed.
Most teams exclude weekends. A 2-week sprint is typically 10 working days. Some teams work weekends or have different schedules—adjust accordingly. Be consistent in your calculations.
Great problem to have! Pull in the next highest-priority items from the backlog. This is why it's valuable to have a well-groomed backlog ready. Don't add random work—stay aligned with priorities.
Blockers create flat lines (no progress). Document the blocker, escalate immediately, and show the flat period on your burndown. This visualizes the impact and urgency of removing impediments.
Avoid it. Changing estimates distorts velocity data and makes burndown charts unreliable. If a story is way off, it indicates estimation needs improvement—address it in sprint retrospective.
Burndown shows work remaining (starts high, goes to zero). Burnup shows work completed (starts at zero, goes to target). Burnup better visualizes scope changes. Both are useful; burndown is more common.
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