Planning Poker Guide for Scrum Teams
Planning Poker helps a team turn different assumptions about a story into a clear estimation conversation. Use this guide to prepare the work, run a focused round, and choose a reasonable next step with Free Scrum Poker.
Before the session
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Choose one item
Estimate one story, task, or other backlog item at a time. Make sure the team can see the same description and acceptance criteria before voting.
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Agree on the scale
Decide whether the default Fibonacci deck (0, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, the selected custom emoji, and a question-mark option), T-shirt sizes, or the built-in emoji deck fits the conversation. Fibonacci is a common choice for relative story-point estimation; the other sets can support quicker or less numeric comparisons.
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Set a useful reference
If your team already has an example of a small or familiar item, use it as a shared reference. Compare size and complexity to the reference instead of treating a card as a promise of elapsed hours.
During a Planning Poker round
- Have the product or delivery representative explain the item.
- Invite questions about scope, dependencies, and the definition of done.
- Ask everyone to select a card independently.
- Reveal the cards together, then compare the highest and lowest estimates first.
- Let the people with different estimates explain their assumptions.
- Clarify the item, vote again if useful, and record the agreed estimate in the team’s backlog or planning tool.
What makes an estimate useful?
A useful estimate gives the team a shared relative view of the work. It does not need to predict an exact duration. Large gaps between cards are valuable signals: they often point to an unclear requirement, a hidden dependency, or different assumptions about implementation.
- Keep the discussion about the item being estimated.
- Separate uncertainty from complexity when explaining a high card.
- Split an item when its scope is too broad for a meaningful comparison.
- Capture open questions and follow up instead of forcing false precision.
Planning Poker questions
What is the reveal step for?
The room's reveal step is intended to let the team compare estimates together and discuss the assumptions behind them. Start with the highest and lowest estimates, then clarify the item and vote again if useful.
Which voting system is best?
It depends on the decision. Fibonacci cards suit relative story points, T-shirt sizes suit broad sizing, and emoji cards suit a quick non-numeric signal. Choose the set your team can interpret consistently.
How do I start a room?
Open the ScrumPoker.win homepage, enter a room name, and select “Create or Join Room.” You can then share the room name or URL with your team.