How do I search by a keyword and then apply a label to all the seach results.

[Mepong Kilang]

How do I search by a keyword and then apply a label to all the search results. I have just added a label called 'Affected Customer' . there are many tasks already created with the customer name. so i want to search for a customer and then add a label to the results. I tied bulk update but it only has options to Move work items or Transition work items etc. there is no option to add a label. 

[Ivan Manolov _Appfire_]

@Mepong Kilang the trick is which bulk-edit entry point you use - the older "Bulk change" flow has limited field options, but the List view bulk edit supports labels.

Here's the quickest path:

1. Open Work item search (the magnifying-glass icon in the left nav, or go to your project and switch to List view).
2. Run your keyword search in the search bar (or use JQL: text ~ "customer name").
3. Select all matching issues — check the top checkbox to select the page, or use Shift+click to pick a range.
4. Click Edit in the toolbar that appears at the bottom of the screen.
5. In the bulk-edit sidebar, search for Labels and set it to Add new → Affected Customer.
6. Click Next, review the preview, and confirm.

That will add the label without overwriting any existing labels on those issues. Repeat the search/select/edit cycle for each customer name you need to tag.

A few things to keep in mind:

• The List view bulk edit supports up to 1,000 issues per operation.
• If you need to cover more issues than fit on one page, work in batches or narrow the JQL filter.
• The "Work item search" bulk change (via the ⋯ menu → Bulk change work items) is the older flow with fewer field options - stick to the List view approach for label edits.

Cheers,

Ivan

[Ivan Manolov _Appfire_]

@Mepong Kilang one more thing that may help if you find yourself doing this kind of mass-labelling often: if you're open to solutions from the Atlassian Marketplace, JXL for Jira makes bulk label editing feel much more like working in a spreadsheet.

You filter your sheet by any combination of criteria (keyword in summary, project, status, etc.), then select all matching rows and type or paste the label value directly into the Labels cell - no sidebar, no confirmation steps. You can also paste a single value across an entire selection in one keystroke, which is handy when applying the same label to hundreds of issues.

Disclosure: I work for the team that builds JXL.

Cheers,

Ivan

[Mepong Kilang]

Thanks Ivan, 

    I managed to get to the list view and show the column for Affected customer. However, I cannot get to copy and paste the Affected customer. When I right click, it only displays the generic right click choices. No options to copy and paste. 

Regards,

Mepong