Sprint Planning Template - Free Download & Example

Sprint planning is the cornerstone of every scrum process and determines what the team will deliver in the upcoming sprint. A well-executed sprint planning session prevents overcommitment, scope creep and confusion about priorities. This template provides a structured approach to defining sprint goals, estimating team capacity per individual team member, selecting user stories from the product backlog and establishing acceptance criteria. With clear sections for velocity tracking based on historical sprint data, impediment logging for recording blockers, a burndown chart template and the definition of done, you ensure every team member knows what is expected. The template additionally includes a risk section for identifying dependencies with other teams or systems that could affect the sprint. By applying this structure consistently at every sprint planning session you create a rhythm of predictability and transparency that benefits the entire team. The template also includes an evaluation section allowing you to measure planning accuracy after each sprint by comparing planned versus actually delivered story points, so your estimates become more precise with every sprint and the team learns from previous estimation errors.

Variations

How to use

Step 1: Download the sprint planning template and open it in your project management tool, spreadsheet or digital whiteboard. Create a copy per sprint so you can review historical plans for trend analysis. Step 2: Set the sprint length and fill in the start date, end date and sprint goal. The sprint goal should describe a clear, measurable outcome the team pursues, not merely a list of stories. Step 3: Calculate team capacity by recording available days per team member, accounting for holidays, public holidays, meetings, training and other commitments. Multiply available days by the focus percentage (typically 60 to 80 percent of gross hours goes to actual sprint work). Step 4: Review the prioritised product backlog and select user stories that fit within the available capacity. Use the velocity from the preceding three to five sprints as a reference. Start with the highest priority stories and work downward. Step 5: Discuss each selected story with the team. Clarify acceptance criteria, identify technical risks and break large stories into concrete tasks. Ensure every team member understands what the story entails and can estimate the effort. Step 6: Assign story points to each story using planning poker or a similar estimation method. If there are large differences in estimates, discuss the assumptions until the team reaches consensus. Step 7: Verify that total story points do not exceed the average velocity. It is better to plan conservatively and potentially pull additional stories from the backlog if the team is ahead of schedule. Step 8: Document the team commitment, the definition of done for this sprint, any dependencies with other teams and specific risks that could affect the sprint. Step 9: Schedule the daily standups and determine how the team will track progress, for example via a burndown chart or taskboard. Step 10: Store the completed planning document in your project repository so the team can reference it throughout the sprint when questions about scope and priorities arise. Step 11: Reserve fifteen minutes at the end of the sprint to evaluate planning accuracy. Compare planned story points against actually delivered points and note the causes of any deviations. Were stories larger than anticipated, did unforeseen blockers arise, or was the capacity estimate too optimistic? Use this analysis as input for the next sprint planning to improve systematically over time. Step 12: Document recurring patterns across multiple sprints in a planning logbook. If the team consistently underestimates certain types of work items or external dependencies repeatedly cause delays, you can consult this logbook to adjust the planning strategy and allocate buffer more effectively where it matters most. Step 13: Create a visual sprint board at the start of each sprint, either physical or digital, with columns for To Do, In Progress, In Review and Done. Link each task to its parent user story and assign an owner so progress is visible at a glance to the entire team. Step 14: Hold a brief five-minute alignment with the product owner directly after sprint planning to confirm the selected work aligns with the product vision and there are no misunderstandings about priorities.

How MG Software can help

At MG Software we guide teams through setting up and improving their sprint planning process. Whether you are just starting with scrum or want to optimise your existing approach, our agile coaches help you define a suitable sprint cadence, build reliable velocity data and improve the quality of your backlog. We bring experience from dozens of agile projects at both startups and enterprise organisations and help teams work more predictably, efficiently and with greater satisfaction. Additionally, we train product owners in backlog prioritisation and writing effective user stories. Our coaches work hands-on during the first sprint planning sessions and provide real-time feedback on the process, the quality of sprint goals and the way the team estimates stories. After several sprints we analyse velocity trends and identify patterns indicating overcommitment, underestimation or inefficient task allocation. We also help set up the tooling around sprint planning, from Jira configuration and board design to automated velocity reports that enable the team to make data-driven planning decisions. For distributed teams we offer specific guidance on asynchronous preparation and effective use of digital planning poker tools so remote sprint planning runs just as productively as in-person sessions.