Execution & Delivery

What is Sprint Velocity?

Sprint Velocity is the average number of story points a team completes per sprint. Use recent sprint data to help plan capacity and forecast releases. Velocity describes a team's delivery history; it does not measure productivity or code quality.

Formula

Velocity = Total Story Points Completed / Number of Sprints

Calculate the average over the last 3-5 sprints for planning purposes. Example: Sprint 1 = 34 pts, Sprint 2 = 38 pts, Sprint 3 = 32 pts, Sprint 4 = 36 pts. Average Velocity = (34+38+32+36) / 4 = 35 points per sprint. Use this to forecast: if the backlog has 140 points, the simple forecast is 4 sprints (8 weeks for 2-week sprints), assuming scope and capacity stay similar.

Benchmarks and interpretation

  • Velocity is team-specific and should not be used to compare productivity across teams
  • Use recent sprints with a similar team, estimation scale, and work mix when planning
  • Review changes in velocity alongside absences, item size, and blocked work; a trend alone does not establish the cause
  • Forecast with a range that reflects the variation in your own completed sprints

When to use Sprint Velocity

  • Committing to a sprint backlog with confidence based on historical capacity
  • Forecasting release dates for roadmap milestones based on remaining story points
  • Identifying capacity changes when team members join, leave, or take planned time off
  • Communicating delivery timeline uncertainty to stakeholders using velocity-based date ranges
Common mistakes
  • Using velocity as a performance benchmark to compare teams or pressure individuals to increase their numbers
  • Including partial or incomplete stories in velocity calculations, which overstates actual throughput
  • Setting velocity targets rather than letting it emerge naturally from consistent team composition and working practices
Practical tips
  • Track velocity trend alongside story point distribution - a team that consistently completes many small stories but struggles with large ones may need to improve story refinement
  • Use a velocity range (e.g. 30-40 points) rather than a single number when forecasting to communicate inherent uncertainty
  • Re-baseline velocity deliberately after significant team changes rather than averaging historical data that no longer reflects current team composition

Related terms

Cycle TimeLead TimeSprint

Free Sprint Velocity Calculator

Enter your inputs in the free Velocity Calculator and review the result alongside its guidance.

Velocity Calculator
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