Planning Poker Tools Compared: Scrum Poker Online vs. the Alternatives (2026)
If your team has decided that running planning poker over a video call without a dedicated tool is too slow, the next question is which tool to use. The market has more options than most Scrum Masters realize, and they differ in ways that matter — pricing model, friction for new participants, customization, and whether the tool stays out of the way during a session or competes for attention.
This guide compares the five planning poker tools that show up most often in real teams: PlanningPokerOnline, PlanITPoker, PointingPoker, Parabol, and our own Scrum Poker Online. We built one of them, so this comparison is not pretending to be neutral — but we have tried to be honest about where each tool genuinely fits and where we (or our competitors) fall short.
Quick Comparison Table
| Feature | Scrum Poker Online | PlanningPokerOnline | PlanITPoker | PointingPoker | Parabol |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Yes, fully functional | Yes, with story-count limits | Yes, basic features | Yes, fully functional | Yes, generous |
| Registration required | No (for participants) | Yes (for hosts) | Yes | No | Yes |
| Custom card values | Yes (registered users) | Yes | Yes | Limited | Yes |
| Session timer | Premium only | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Auto-average/median | Premium only | Yes | Limited | No | Yes |
| Jira/Backlog integration | No | Limited | Limited | No | Yes |
| Retros + other meetings | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Price (paid tier) | 40 USD/year | ~5–15 USD/user/month | Free or paid plans | Free | ~6 USD/user/month |
| Best fit | Simple, ad-supported, no-friction | Mid-size teams wanting full feature set | Small teams already familiar | Smallest teams, simplest setup | Teams wanting bundled ceremonies |
The honest takeaway from the table: no single tool is best for every team. Below, we walk through each option and explain when it actually fits.
PlanningPokerOnline (planningpokeronline.com)
PlanningPokerOnline is the market leader for online planning poker by a clear margin. It has been around since 2010, has the strongest brand-recognition, and consistently ranks #1 in Google for most planning-poker-related searches.
Where it shines: Mature feature set, polished UI, mature integrations (Jira plugin available), and well-developed reporting that helps teams who track velocity carefully. The session-management features — auto-reveal, story-by-story progress tracking, easy export — work well for teams that run lots of sessions.
Where it falls short: The free tier is functional but visibly limited. Story-count caps per session and feature gates on basic things like customizing cards create friction. The pricing scales per-user, which adds up fast for teams beyond 8–10 people. Upgrade prompts are noticeable during sessions.
Best fit: Mid-size to enterprise Scrum teams (10+ people) where the team or organization is willing to pay for the polish, and where the project lead specifically values the full feature set over simplicity.
PlanITPoker (planitpoker.com)
PlanITPoker has been a longstanding mid-tier player in the planning poker space. Smaller team, smaller feature set, but enough functionality that teams who started there often stay.
Where it shines: Straightforward interface, decent free tier for small teams, supports the most-used deck types. Session creation is fast, and the learning curve is shallow.
Where it falls short: Smaller-team feel translates into a smaller feature roadmap. Compared to PlanningPokerOnline, the reporting and integration options are limited. The UI feels dated in places. The keyword footprint in Google is also much smaller, which says something about ongoing investment in the product.
Best fit: Small teams (3–6 people) who got introduced to PlanITPoker by a Scrum Master who used it before and stuck with it. There is little reason to actively choose PlanITPoker today over the alternatives below — but no reason to switch away if it works for the team.
PointingPoker (pointingpoker.com)
PointingPoker is the no-frills option. Truly minimal — create a room, share a link, vote, reveal, done.
Where it shines: Zero-friction onboarding. No registration, no account creation, no upsell prompts. The simplest tool in this list.
Where it falls short: No custom card values (the deck is fixed), no premium tier, no session-management features beyond the basics. Teams with non-standard estimation scales (T-shirt sizes, half-points) will hit the wall quickly.
Best fit: Teams that just need to vote on a number, want to be in the session within 10 seconds of clicking the link, and use the standard Fibonacci deck without modification. Often a good intro tool that teams outgrow in 6–12 months.
Parabol (parabol.co)
Parabol is the broader-scope option. Not just planning poker, but a bundled meeting-facilitation tool that handles retros, daily standups (async), and other Scrum ceremonies.
Where it shines: Reduced tool-switching. If your team already uses Parabol for retros and weekly check-ins, adding planning poker to the same workflow is a clear win. The integration into the broader Scrum ceremony flow is the strongest in this list.
Where it falls short: As a generalist, Parabol’s planning poker module is competent but not best-in-class. Compared to a dedicated tool, the estimation experience has more clicks and more UI to navigate. Pricing scales per-user, similar to PlanningPokerOnline.
Best fit: Larger teams (20+ people) or organizations that want to standardize on one tool for multiple Scrum ceremonies, and are willing to accept a slightly less focused estimation experience in exchange for fewer tools to maintain.
Scrum Poker Online (scrumpoker-online.org)
Our own tool. We will try to be honest.
Where it shines: Simplest possible onboarding for participants — no registration, share a link, the team is in. Designed to stay out of the way during a session: no upsell prompts, no story-count caps, no feature gates on the basics. The 40 USD/year Premium tier is intentionally cheaper than the per-user pricing of competitors and adds the things teams actually use (no ads, session timer, attendance, personal room ID, average/median).
Where it falls short: No native Jira integration. If your team writes story-point estimates back into Jira after every session, you will either need a different tool or you will need to update Jira manually (in our experience, most teams end up running Scrum Poker Online in a browser tab next to Jira anyway, but a native integration would clearly be more elegant). No bundled retros or other ceremonies — for that, Parabol is the better fit. The free tier shows ads (we are honest about this — see the section below on what we are still figuring out).
Best fit: Small to mid-size teams (3–15 people) who value simplicity over breadth, who want a tool the team can join in 5 seconds without an account, and who are using a separate Jira/Linear/Trello workflow for backlog management.
Which Tool Should You Choose?
A practical heuristic, by team archetype:
You are 3–8 people, just started using planning poker, want to keep things simple: Try Scrum Poker Online or PointingPoker first. Both are free, both work in 10 seconds. If you need T-shirt sizes or custom decks, Scrum Poker Online (with a registered account) wins.
You are 10–25 people on a Jira-heavy workflow, polish matters: PlanningPokerOnline is probably the right choice. Its feature density and Jira plugin justify the per-user cost at that team size.
You are 20+ people and tired of having four separate tools for four parts of the sprint: Parabol is worth the trial. The reduced tool-switching is real, and the per-user pricing is competitive once you factor in what you would otherwise pay for separate estimation, retro, and standup tools.
You are a Scrum Master tired of paying per-user fees and just want a working free tool: Scrum Poker Online is built for this case. The 40 USD/year Premium is one bill, not a per-seat scale-up. Live with ads or upgrade — that is the deal.
What We Are Still Figuring Out
In the spirit of an honest comparison: Scrum Poker Online’s ad-supported free tier has been under pressure since 2024. Google’s AdX Smart Pricing reduced our effective ad revenue per session significantly, which is one reason the Premium tier exists at all — it lets teams who can pay 40 USD/year keep the tool funded for everyone else. We are working on improving the ad experience and adding more value to Premium, and we appreciate that not every team wants ads in their sprint planning session. It is a real trade-off, and PlanningPokerOnline’s „pay-per-user, no ads” model is the cleaner alternative for teams that have the budget.
Conclusion
There is no single best planning poker tool. The right choice depends on how big your team is, what other tools you already use, how much you care about features beyond the core vote-reveal flow, and how much you are willing to pay. The five options above cover most real use cases, and the comparison table at the top should give you a quick read on which one fits.
If you want to try Scrum Poker Online without signing up for anything: open a free room and share the link with your team. If a different tool fits your team better, that is the right choice — we would rather you used a tool you like than struggled with one you do not.