Is it possible to update the content of issues by importing CSV?

[光野 かおる]

Hello, Jira community!

Our team  currently have a lot of issues to create and to update. 
We would like to find a way to make this process easier. 

I asked a question about how to create new issues by importing CSV and know how to do it. 

But this time what I want to do is:
Exporting existing issues into CSV and add some change to update some fields such as status and importing it back to JIRA  so that the field of issues that were on the CSV has changed.

Is it possible ?  Does anyone know how to do it ?

[Akash Singh]

Hi @光野　かおる, It is possible to update existing issues in Jira by exporting them, making changes, and re-importing them. Here's how you can do it:

1. Export the Issues:
   Use the guide in the following article to export issues from Jira in CSV format:
   How to Export Issues from Jira Cloud in CSV Format.

   When exporting, ensure you include the necessary columns:

   • Issue Key (essential for identifying existing issues during the import)
   • Summary (mandatory field during import)
   • Any other fields you want to update (e.g., Status, Priority, Assignee).

   If you're updating issues from multiple projects, also include:

   • Project Key
   • Project Name

2. Make the Changes:
   Open the exported CSV file and make the required changes to the fields you want to update, such as the issue Status.

3. Import the Updated CSV:
   Follow the steps in this guide to import the updated CSV back into Jira:
   Import Data from a CSV File.

   During the import process, Jira will match the Issue Key to the existing issues and update the specified fields accordingly.

Note: It’s always a good idea to test the process with a small batch of issues before doing a large-scale update.

[Hannes Obweger - JXL for Jira]

Hi @光野　かおる

just to add to @Akash Singh's great answer: If you're open to solutions from the Atlassian Marketplace, you'll find great options for quick and easy issue editing and creation, without having to export and re-import.

E.g., you may want to have a look at the app that my team and I are working on, JXL for Jira.

JXL is a full-fledged spreadsheet/table view for your issues that allows viewing, inline-editing, sorting, and filtering by all your issue fields, much like you’d do in e.g. Excel or Google Sheets. It also comes with a number of advanced features, including support for inline bulk editing via copy/paste, (configurable) issue hierarchies, issue grouping by any issue field(s), sum-ups, or conditional formatting.

This is how it looks in action:

Any questions just let me know,

Best,

Hannes