What is planning poker?
By Thimira Dulakshitha Kularatne · Updated
Planning poker, also called scrum poker, pointing poker or point poker, is a consensus-based way for agile teams to estimate how much effort a piece of work will take. Each person privately chooses a card, everyone reveals at once, and the team talks through the differences.
Why teams use it
- It avoids anchoring. When people estimate out loud one by one, the first number shapes everyone else’s. Hidden cards keep each estimate independent.
- Everyone gets a voice. Quiet teammates, juniors and specialists all put a card down, not just the most confident person in the room.
- Disagreement surfaces risk. A 2 next to a 13 usually means someone knows something the others don’t. That conversation is where the value is.
- It’s fast. Most stories take a minute or two once a team gets the rhythm.
How a round works
- The facilitator (often the Scrum Master or Product Owner) presents a user story and the team asks questions.
- Each estimator privately picks a card that represents the size of the story.
- When everyone is ready, all cards are revealed at the same time.
- If the estimates are close, the team agrees on a number. If not, the highest and lowest voters explain their thinking.
- The team re-votes if needed, locks in the estimate, and moves to the next story.
Choosing a card deck
Fibonacci
The classic. Gaps widen as stories grow, because big work is harder to size precisely. Arguing 13 versus 14 is wasted time.
Modified Fibonacci
Adds a half point for tiny tasks and rounder numbers (20, 40, 100) for epics you’ll split later.
T-shirt sizes
Good for roadmap-level sizing, or teams new to estimation who don’t want to think in numbers yet.
Powers of 2
Each size is double the last: a simple mental model if your team thinks of work as ‘twice as big’.
Most decks also include ? (not enough information) and ☕ (time for a break). Benchmark supports all of these, plus custom decks with your own cards.
What do the numbers mean?
Story points measure relative size, combining effort, complexity and uncertainty. They aren’t hours. A 5 should feel a bit more than twice a 2. Over a few sprints, a team learns how many points it usually finishes, which makes planning far more reliable than guessing time. More on this in Fibonacci story points explained.
Tips for facilitators
- Ask the highest and lowest voters to explain first. Their reasons are usually the most useful part of the round.
- Time-box discussion. A two- or three-minute timer keeps one story from eating the whole meeting.
- Don’t just take the average. It’s a starting point; agree on the number that reflects the conversation.
- Use “?” and ☕ honestly. “?” means the story needs more detail; the coffee card means the team needs a break.
- Re-vote after a real discussion, not after every small disagreement. Close numbers are close enough.
- Compare with stories you’ve already finished. Relative sizing works better than guessing hours.
Planning poker for remote teams
Physical cards don’t work over a video call, so distributed teams use an online planning poker tool. Benchmark is free and needs no sign-up: open a room, share the link, and everyone’s cards stay hidden until the facilitator reveals. Read how to run planning poker with a remote team.