Agile Velocity Calculator
Velocity is a measure of the amount of work a team can complete during a single Sprint. This tool helps calculate your team's Velocity for a specific Sprint by summing the Story Points of all work items **completed** during that Sprint.
Calculate Sprint Velocity
Enter the Story Points for each work item (e.g., User Story, task) that was **fully completed** in your Sprint, one per line or separated by commas.
Understanding Agile Velocity
What is Velocity?
In Agile software development, Velocity is the sum of the Story Points (or other estimates) of features, bugs, and other work items successfully delivered by a team during a Sprint. It is a measure of the team's capacity or throughput, often used for forecasting how much work the team can complete in future Sprints.
How is Velocity Used?
Velocity is primarily used as a planning tool for the team itself. By looking at the average Velocity over the past few Sprints, the team can estimate how much work they can realistically commit to in the upcoming Sprint (Sprint Planning). It helps teams understand their own capacity and make predictable progress.
Key Principles of Velocity:
- Team-Specific: Velocity is unique to each team. Comparing Velocity between different teams is generally not useful or accurate because Story Point scales and definitions vary.
- Historical Measure: Velocity is calculated based on *completed* work from past Sprints.
- Forecasting Tool: The average Velocity is used to forecast future capacity and potential delivery timelines.
- Not a Performance Metric: Velocity should not be used to measure or compare individual performance. It is a team metric used for planning.
Agile Velocity Examples
Here are some examples of how Velocity is calculated based on completed Story Points:
Example 1: Basic Sum
Scenario: A team completed three user stories with estimates of 3, 5, and 8 Story Points in a Sprint.
Input Points: 3, 5, 8
Calculation: 3 + 5 + 8 = 16
Result: Velocity = 16
Example 2: Multiple Small Items
Scenario: The team completed several small bug fixes and tasks estimated at 1, 2, 1, 3, and 1 Story Points.
Input Points: 1, 2, 1, 3, 1
Calculation: 1 + 2 + 1 + 3 + 1 = 8
Result: Velocity = 8
Example 3: Including Zero Point Items (If Applicable)
Scenario: Some teams assign 0 points to trivial tasks. The team completed items with points: 0, 0, 1, 2, 3.
Input Points: 0, 0, 1, 2, 3
Calculation: 0 + 0 + 1 + 2 + 3 = 6
Result: Velocity = 6
Example 4: Decimals in Points (Less Common)
Scenario: A team uses decimal points in estimates (uncommon in standard Scrum, but possible). Completed items: 0.5, 1.5, 2.0, 3.0.
Input Points: 0.5, 1.5, 2, 3
Calculation: 0.5 + 1.5 + 2 + 3 = 7
Result: Velocity = 7
Example 5: Input with Extra Spaces/Lines
Scenario: Input data includes extra spaces or empty lines.
Input Points: 5, 8, , 13
20
3
Calculation: 5 + 8 + 13 + 20 + 3 = 49
Result: Velocity = 49 (Tool should ignore spaces and empty entries)
Example 6: Input with Invalid Entries
Scenario: Input includes non-numeric values or negative numbers.
Input Points: 5, 8, "blocked", 13, -5, 3
Calculation: 5 + 8 + 13 + 3 = 29 (Ignoring "blocked" and -5)
Result: Velocity = 29, with a warning about invalid entries.
Example 7: Single Item Sprint
Scenario: The team only managed to complete one large item in the Sprint.
Input Points: 20
Calculation: 20
Result: Velocity = 20
Example 8: All Items Partially Completed
Scenario: None of the items targeted for the Sprint were fully completed according to the Definition of Done.
Input Points: (Empty input, or list of points for items not completed)
Calculation: If input is empty or represents non-completed items, sum is 0.
Result: Velocity = 0, potentially with a message if input was empty.
Example 9: Common Planning Poker Sequence
Scenario: Summing up points from a typical Fibonacci-like sequence used in planning poker.
Input Points: 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13
Calculation: 1 + 2 + 3 + 5 + 8 + 13 = 32
Result: Velocity = 32
Example 10: Calculating Average Velocity
Scenario: To calculate average Velocity, you'd use this tool for several past Sprints and then average those results. Example Sprints: 16, 14, 18, 15.
Input Points (for one Sprint): 16 (This is the Velocity of a past sprint, not points to sum here. You'd run the tool for each sprint's completed items first).
Calculation: (16 + 14 + 18 + 15) / 4 = 15.75
Result: Average Velocity ≈ 15.75 (This tool calculates *per sprint*, you average separately).
Frequently Asked Questions about Agile Velocity
1. What is Agile Velocity?
Agile Velocity is a measure of the amount of work (typically in Story Points) a team successfully completes and delivers during a single Sprint. It reflects the team's capacity per Sprint.
2. How is Velocity calculated by this tool?
This tool calculates Velocity by summing the numerical values (Story Points) you enter for all the work items that were marked as "Done" (met the team's Definition of Done) within a single Sprint.
3. Why is calculating Velocity important?
Velocity is a key metric for Sprint Planning and forecasting. By understanding their average Velocity over several past Sprints, a team can make more informed decisions about how much work they can realistically pull into an upcoming Sprint and predict when a set amount of work might be completed.
4. Can I compare the Velocity of different teams?
Generally, no. Velocity is highly dependent on the team's specific estimation scale, their Definition of Done, team composition, and working environment. Comparing Velocity between teams is misleading and unproductive.
5. Should Velocity be used to measure individual performance?
Absolutely not. Velocity is a team-level metric used for planning and forecasting. Using it for individual performance reviews undermines team collaboration and the principles of Agile.
6. What if items are partially completed?
Velocity only counts points for items that are **100% completed** according to the team's Definition of Done by the end of the Sprint. Partially completed items contribute zero points to the Sprint's Velocity.
7. How can a team improve its Velocity?
Improving Velocity is often a byproduct of addressing impediments, refining the Definition of Done, improving team collaboration, reducing technical debt, and focusing on sustainable pace, rather than directly trying to "increase the number".
8. What is a "consistent team" in the context of Velocity?
A consistent team is one whose members and composition remain relatively stable over time. Significant changes in team size, roles, or members can impact Velocity, making historical data less reliable for forecasting until the new team establishes a new rhythm.
9. How many past Sprints should I use to calculate average Velocity?
Typically, teams look at the last 3-5 Sprints to get a stable average Velocity. This provides enough data to smooth out anomalies but is recent enough to reflect the team's current capacity.
10. Can Velocity decrease?
Yes, Velocity can decrease due to various factors like team changes, new technologies, introduction of significant technical debt, unresolved impediments, holidays, or team members being pulled to other work. This is normal and provides feedback to the team and organization.
