How to create a custom hierarchy in Jira: add levels above, below, or between epics

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How to create a custom hierarchy in Jira: add levels above, below, or between epics

Georges Petrequin

Published on 19 March 2026

14 min read

An illustrated jira board with a custom issue hierarchy overlaid on top

Georges Petrequin

Published on 19 March 2026

14 min read

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When Jira's default hierarchy isn't enough

Option #1: Jira Plans

1. Create your higher-level work item types

2. Link your existing work

3. See your new hierarchy in action

Option #2: Hierarchy for Jira

1. Link your work items together

2. Install and open Hierarchy for Jira

3. See your custom Jira hierarchy in a tree view

4. Focus on what matters with Quick Filters and Saved Views

5. Track progress with roll-ups through your whole hierarchy

Hierarchy for Jira vs. Plans: which one fits?

Final thoughts

Jira's default three-level hierarchy works, until you need more flexibility. Here's how to add levels above, below, or between epics using Jira Plans, Hierarchy for Jira, or both.

You start with Jira's default epic, story, subtask hierarchy, and it works fine. But as your team grows and your projects grow in complexity, your product managers need initiatives above epic, or maybe your engineering team wants a 'feature' level between epics and stories.

You start doing things like renaming epics to 'features' or duct taping labels and components together to add an extra hierarchy level.

These work at first, but they break in ways that are expensive down the line. Think: broken reports, confused team members, and a gap between how you structure projects in Jira and how your team are actually working.

The good news is that you don't need to restructure everything to fix this. There are two reliable ways to extend your Jira hierarchy without causing problems you'll need to solve in six months' time.

In this guide, we'll cover both. Jira Plans (for adding levels above epics) and Hierarchy for Jira (for full flexibility above, below, or between any level). We'll show how each option works, and help you figure out which one is right for you.

When Jira's default three-level hierarchy isn't enough

Jira's three-level hierarchy works, but when your projects grow beyond the three-tier structure, problems start to emerge:

Product managers need to group epics under larger initiatives, themes, or goals, but there's no native level above epic to put them in.
Feature-driven teams want to insert a 'feature' level between epic and story, so they can organise sprint-sized work without forcing everything into stories.
Teams using frameworks like SAFe need multiple additional levels like capabilities, program epics, solution epics to name a few, that don't map to three tiers (forcing them to use a tool like Jira Align alongside Jira).
Development teams want tasks that can live alongside stories in sprints, rather than being buried as subtasks.

When teams hit these limits, that's when they usually try one of the workarounds mentioned earlier. These might superficially solve the problem for a while, but when your leadership team starts asking questions that aren't immediately obvious on your boards, the cracks in the workarounds start to appear.

Option 1: use Plans to add custom hierarchy levels above epics

The most common way to add a level above epics is through Plans (formerly Advanced Roadmaps), which is included with Jira Cloud Premium and Enterprise.

Plans lets you configure custom work item types, like 'Initiative' or 'Theme', that sit above epics in your hierarchy. If your main pain point is that stakeholders need a bird's eye view of work across epics and teams, this is likely the fastest path (assuming you are on Jira Premium or Enterprise).

Here's how it works:

Step 1: create your higher-level work item types

Plans lets you configure work item types like 'Initiatives' or 'Features' that sit above epics in your hierarchy.

Source: Configuring initiatives and other hierarchy levels

This gives portfolio and project managers the top-level grouping not immediately available without Plans, and the bird's-eye view they need.

Step 2: link your existing work

Once configured, link your epics to your new parent work items through the 'parent link' field. There's no need to restructure all your existing work, as Plans integrates nicely with your usual Jira experience, so your team can continue working as they always have, but now with better organisation at the top level.

Step 3: see your new hierarchy in action

After adding your new level(s) in your Plans configuration, you can open your Jira Plans roadmap, and child epics display inside their parent initiatives (or whatever new level you added), creating a clean visual hierarchy that makes tracking progress and reporting to stakeholders far easier.

Adding your new hierarchy levels in Plans

Source: Configuring initiatives and other hierarchy levels

You can create as many hierarchy levels as you need, but keep in mind that any new level you add via Plans will be applied to all of your other projects.

A few things to be aware of

Plans is mainly designed for top-level planning, so it works best when your hierarchy needs are at the portfolio level. There are a few things worth knowing before you go this route:

Plans supports levels above epics, but doesn't currently support inserting levels below epics or between existing levels. If you need a custom epic, feature, story, task hierarchy, Plans won't cover that.

It does require a Jira Cloud Premium or Enterprise licence, which may be a factor if only a few teams need the custom hierarchy, as there's a price tag associated with the upgrade. (That said, Premium includes a host of other benefits that may justify the cost regardless).

If you're already on Premium or Enterprise, Plans is worth testing. But, if you need more flexibility at other levels of your hierarchy, keep reading.

Option 2: use Hierarchy for Jira to build a fully custom hierarchy

If you need more flexibility out of your custom hierarchy, like adding levels below epics, levels between existing work item types, or a completely custom structure, Hierarchy for Jira could be for you.

Hierarchy for Jira's custom hierarchy with additional levels beyond epic story subtask

You don't need to restructure anything for it to start working. Hierarchy for Jira reads your existing Jira work item link relationships and visualises those relationships in a custom hierarchy. Because it uses links rather than modifying your Jira hierarchy configuration, nothing changes site-wide, and there's nothing to undo if you change your mind.

If your work items are already linked, setup takes just a couple of minutes. There's no complicated migration or scripting needed to get started, and it works with whatever Jira Cloud plan you're on.

Here's how to set it up.

Step 1: link your work items together

Hierarchy for Jira builds your custom hierarchy from your existing work item links, so the first step is making sure your work items are connected in a way that reflects how your work is actually structured.

If you don't have any work item links in place, here's the quick process: open any work item, select 'Link work item', choose the relationship type (e.g., 'is parent of'), and link to an existing work item or create a new one. That's it.

And because your hierarchy is built on standard Jira work item links, everything works with the features you already use. Board filters, dashboards, and any automation rules in place will still recognise your underlying work items and the relationships between them.

Step 2: Install and open Hierarchy for Jira

Install Hierarchy for Jira from the Atlassian Marketplace. Once installed, open the app from the apps section of your Jira sidebar, and you're ready to go.

There’s a free 30-day trial, so you can test it on your own projects before committing.

Step 3: See your custom Jira hierarchy in the tree view

This is where it comes together.

When you open Hierarchy for Jira, your linked work items appear in a nested tree view. Each indentation represents a deeper level in your hierarchy, so you can see exactly how your work breaks down, from high-level initiatives all the way to individual subtasks, in a single tree view.

A screenshot of a custom issue hierarchy in Hierarchy for Jira

Unlike native Jira, where you can only see one level of linked work items at a time, the tree view shows your entire chain of relationships in a single view. If an epic has three features, each with five stories, you'll see all of that structure at once without clicking through individual work items to piece together the full picture.

A few things that make this extra helpful in practice:

Switch between link types: From the tree configuration menu, select which link type defines your hierarchy. Want to see 'parent of / child of' relationships? Select that. Want to see 'blocks / is blocked by' chains? Switch to that instead. Your hierarchy restructures instantly!
Cross-project visibility: The tree view works across multiple Jira projects out-of-the-box. If your design team's work in Project A connects to your engineering team's work in Project B, you can visualise both in the same hierarchy, no scripting needed.
Expand and collapse: Click any hierarchy level to expand or collapse it, allowing you to zoom into the detail when you need it, or keep the view high-level for a quick status check.

How Forty8Fifty Labs creates a SAFe hierarchy

"Hierarchy for Jira allows you to go into the product [Jira] and actually add levels in between both the story and the epic, which really solves the problem."

Robert Nadon, Lead Atlassian Architect @ Forty8Fifty Labs

See the full testimonial

Step 4: focus on what matters with Quick Filters and Saved Views

A custom hierarchy with hundreds of work items can get noisy fast. Quick Filters and Saved Views in Hierarchy for Jira help you cut through that and find the signal you care about.

Quick Filters are simply JQL expressions that filter the work items shown in your hierarchy. A few examples:

See only critical work: priority = critical
Focus on your own tasks: assignee = currentUser()
Show the current sprint: Sprint in openSprints()
Show your full portfolio view: project in ("Healthcare Telemedicine", "Healthcare Unit") ORDER BY key DESC

Creating your quick filters in Hierarchy for Jira

You can toggle your quick filters on and off instantly: think of them as a way to get real-time, custom lenses on your hierarchy.

Then, you can save those specific views and lock in a useful configuration (specific filters, columns, link types) and come back to them anytime, or share them with your team so everyone's on the same page.

You can even share any saved view via a shareable URL, export to CSV, embed in Confluence, or add to your Jira dashboard with a gadget, so stakeholders can check progress without needing you to build a custom report.

Step 5: Track progress with roll-ups through your whole hierarchy

With your custom hierarchy in place, you can add columns to track your team's progress at every level.

Hierarchy for Jira supports roll-up and sum-up aggregation for metrics like story points completed, time logged, progress percentage, and custom numeric fields.

Roll-ups and sum-ups aggregate the value of child work items upward through your entire hierarchy, so if an epic contains four stories worth 3, 5, 8, and 2 story points respectively, the epic row shows 18 total, with no custom formulas required.

Hierarchy for Jira showing rolled up story point totals and progress

Progress bars also update in real time as your team completes work, so your custom hierarchy becomes a live progress dashboard that keeps your team, and external stakeholders, informed at all times.

Bonus: see your hierarchy on a Gantt-style timeline

We've gone deep into the custom hierarchy in this guide, but as a bonus, Hierarchy for Jira also includes a cross-project timeline view that transforms your custom hierarchy into a Gantt-style schedule. Your hierarchy levels appear on the left, with timeline bars showing dates, milestones, and dependencies on the right.

Dependency lines connect linked work items visually, so you can spot scheduling conflicts at a glance. You can add milestones to align your team around key project dates, highlight must-complete work, and pull in as many projects as you need into a single timeline view.

The timeline is included in your existing Hierarchy for Jira licence; no expensive upgrade needed.

Hierarchy for Jira vs. Plans: which one fits?

Both tools extend Jira's default hierarchy, but they solve different parts of the problem. This table should help you decide which one (or both) makes sense for your team.

	Plans	Hierarchy for Jira
Add levels above epics	Yes	Yes
Add levels below or between epics	No	Yes
Visual tree view of your hierarchy	No (roadmap view)	Yes
Works with Jira's built-in reports	Yes	Yes (plus roll-ups and sum-ups for progress tracking at every level)
Cross-project visibility	With setup	Out-of-the-box
Gantt-style timeline	Yes	Yes (cross-project, with simple setup)

What this won't solve

A custom hierarchy fixes how your work is structured and visualised in Jira. But, you'll still need to maintain the system that allows you to benefit from your custom hierarchy.

They won't fix bad linking hygiene: If your team doesn't consistently link work items together, no tool will create the relationships or allow you to visualise those relationships. The tree view is only as good as the links that power it.

They won't replace process conversations: Adding a ‘feature’ level between epic and story requires your team to agree on what a ‘feature’ actually means in your context.

They won't make Jira simpler. For small teams that work fine with epics and stories, adding complexity for its own sake is a mistake. Only extend your hierarchy when the default one is actively causing problems or you’re finding yourself coming up with workarounds to visualise work in the way you need to.

Final thoughts

Jira's default hierarchy is a solid starting point, but as your team and projects grow, you'll likely need more levels in Jira to reflect how your work is actually structured.

If you only need levels above epics and you're already on Jira Cloud Premium, Plans handles that well.

If you need levels below or between epics, or want a visual tree view, rolled-up progress metrics, and cross-project visibility, Hierarchy for Jira gives you that flexibility.

And if you need both, they work together!

The biggest misconception we hear is that setting up a custom hierarchy requires a painful migration. In most cases, if your work items are already linked, it takes minutes, rather than the weeks-long restructuring project people fear.

Ready to create your custom hierarchy?

If you want to transform your flat lists of work items into visual hierarchies with new levels above and below epics, then you can try Hierarchy for Jira for free with a 30-day trial.

Prefer to learn more first? Book a demo with our friendly team!

Start your free trial Book a demo

Frequently asked questions

What makes Jira's native work type hierarchy limiting?

While Jira's default hierarchy works well for all types of use cases and teams, it can become limiting as projects grow more complex.

For instance, it doesn't easily support tracking large initiatives spanning multiple epics or allow development teams to add tasks directly to sprints without converting them to stories or sub-tasks. This can lead to workarounds, inconsistencies, and difficulties in accurate reporting.

How does Jira Cloud Premium and Plans help with custom hierarchies?

Plans (part of Jira Cloud Premium, formerly known as Advanced Roadmaps) lets you configure custom issue types that sit above epics in your hierarchy. You can create levels like 'Initiative' or 'Theme" and link your epics to them using the parent link field. It's a solid option for portfolio-level planning.

What are the drawbacks of using Jira Cloud Premium and Plans for custom hierarchies?

The main limitations of using Jira Cloud Premium and Plans for custom hierarchies include the cost, the inability to add extra levels below epics, and the lack of flexibility that other options like Hierarchy for Jira provide.

You'll also lose the links between epics and parent issues if you stop using the tool, leading to high admin overhead if things change in the future.

How does Hierarchy for Jira enable custom work type hierarchies?

Hierarchy for Jira reads your existing Jira work item links to build a fully custom hierarchy. You can create levels above, below, or between epics, supporting structures like epic > feature > story > task > subtask. The app visualises your hierarchy in a nested tree view, supports JQL-based Quick Filters, Saved Views, and rolled-up progress metrics at every level. Plus, there's a handy timeline view to visualise your work over time!

Can I use Plans and Hierarchy for Jira together?

Yes. Plans handles levels above epics and roadmap planning, while Hierarchy for Jira extends your hierarchy further with levels below or between epics. The two tools complement each other, and any levels you've created in Plans remain fully compatible with Hierarchy for Jira.

How Forty8Fifty Labs builds a SAFe issue hierarchy

an illustrated jira board with connected tasks and a tree view overlaid on top

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Written by

Georges Petrequin

Content Marketing Manager

Georges is a Content Marketing Manager at Upscale with a focus on our Jira apps. He spends his time crafting content that helps our customers solve their everyday work pain points and get more out of their Atlassian tools.

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