How to evaluate an Xray alternative for Jira Cloud
Updated by Pledona
Xray is one of the most widely installed test management apps on the Atlassian Marketplace. Teams start looking elsewhere when the bill grows with every Jira user, or when they only use a small part of it. Here is how to check what you really need, price the options fairly and move your tests without losing what matters.
What Xray does well
- Tests are Jira work items. Xray adds Test, Pre-Condition, Test Set, Test Plan, Test Execution and Sub-Test Execution types, so tests get Jira permissions, JQL, boards and workflows.
- Manual, Generic and Cucumber tests, with Preconditions you can reuse across many tests.
- Run history per release. Each test run keeps a snapshot of the test and its status, so one test can have many runs over time.
- Many automation formats. Its REST API imports Xray JSON, JUnit, TestNG, NUnit, xUnit, Robot Framework, Cucumber and Behave results.
If your team writes Gherkin scenarios, keeps formal Test Plans per version, or imports TestNG, NUnit or Robot Framework reports, Xray covers that today and a lighter tool may not. Staying put can be the right call.
Why teams look for an alternative
- You pay for every Jira user, not every tester. Atlassian bills Marketplace apps for Jira on the site's Jira user count, even if only a few people use the app. On October 20, 2026, Xray's Marketplace price was $10 a month for up to 10 users, then $7.28 per user per month for users 11 to 100. A 25 user site pays $182 a month and a 100 user site pays $728, even if three people write tests. Annual billing is 10 times the monthly price.
- Test work fills your site. Every test, set, plan and execution is a Jira work item. Decide where they live (Xray's docs describe both one project for everything and separate test projects) and filter them out of boards and reports that should only show product work.
- You use a small slice. Many teams only write manual tests, run a cycle each release and attach CI results. If that is you, most of the bill pays for features you do not open.
Step 1: list the Xray features you actually use
Go through this list with your QA lead and mark each line as must have, nice to have or unused:
- Manual tests with steps, test data and expected results
- Cucumber or other BDD scenarios
- Preconditions shared between tests
- Test Sets and Test Plans
- Test Executions per version or sprint
- CI result import, and in which format (JUnit XML, Cucumber JSON, TestNG and so on)
- Requirement coverage on stories and epics
- Xray JQL functions, gadgets and generated documents
Any must have that a candidate lacks rules it out, however cheap it is.
Step 2: price every option at your real user tier
For any app billed through the Atlassian Marketplace, the monthly cost is your number of Jira users times the app's per user rate for that tier. Open each listing's Pricing tab, pick Cloud and your user count, and write the totals side by side:
| Jira users | Xray (Marketplace price, October 20, 2026) | Proofline (planned price, pending review) |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | $10.00 a month | Free |
| 25 | $182.00 a month | $50.00 a month |
| 100 | $728.00 a month | $200.00 a month |
Standalone test tools work differently: they bill per tester, but they need their own license and login next to Jira, and their Jira integration links the two systems instead of keeping tests inside Jira. Count the second login and the sync as part of the cost.
Step 3: export your tests from Xray
- Steps of one test: open the Test, use the more actions menu, then Export, To CSV. Xray exports all steps with their Action, Data and Expected Result. This is ideal for a pilot of 20 tests.
- The whole library: Xray's knowledge base points to its GraphQL API to export tests with their steps in bulk, and its document generator can render tests and steps through a template. Jira's own Export Excel CSV (all fields) gives you each Test's Jira fields such as key, summary, labels and links. Migration guides from other vendors note that images and attachments do not come through a CSV, so check the file before you rely on it.
- Keep the old key. Put each Xray test key in a column or label so anyone can trace old results back.
- Save execution reports you need for audits before you cancel. When the subscription ends you lose the app's screens.
Step 4: trial with your own data
- Import 20 real tests with steps. Check steps, folders and links to stories.
- Rebuild one regression cycle at its real size, run a few tests and log a bug from a failed step.
- Point one CI job at the new tool. If you send JUnit XML to Xray today, most Jira test apps accept JUnit too, so the change is usually the endpoint and token. Check that test names match your cases.
- Check coverage for your current fix version with JQL.
- Run both tools for one release, then move the rest of the library.
Option: Proofline, a lighter test app inside Jira
Proofline is built for teams that use the core of a test tool: test cases with steps, test data and expected results, nested folders, reusable steps by calling one test case from another, cycles with step by step runs and defect links, an issue panel and a coverage report for any JQL, and CI import of JUnit XML, Playwright JSON and Cypress mochawesome JSON with one curl call. Its CSV and Excel importer reads one row per step, so an Xray step export maps directly: put the test's Summary on the first row of each test, leave it blank on the step rows below, and the Action, Data and Expected Result columns are recognized as they are.
What it does not do: there is no Cucumber or BDD test type, no separate Test Plan or Test Set objects, and no TestNG, NUnit, Robot Framework or Behave import. Tests live in the app's own storage rather than as Jira work items, so they stay off your boards but are not searchable with standard JQL. A cycle holds up to 1,500 tests and the coverage report reads up to 500 issues per JQL. Proofline runs entirely on Atlassian Forge, is free for up to 10 users, then $2 per user per month for users 11 to 100 (lower at larger tiers) through Atlassian, and is pending Atlassian Marketplace review.
Which way to go
- Stay on Xray if you rely on BDD, Test Plans, Preconditions or the wider set of result formats.
- Move to a lighter Jira test app if you mostly write manual cases, run a cycle per release and import JUnit, Playwright or Cypress results.
- Move to a standalone tool if only a few testers need it on a large Jira site and you accept a second login and a sync.
Sources: Xray Cloud documentation, Terminology, Import Execution Results (REST v2), Test Steps, Project Organization; Xray knowledge base, Export from Cloud to Data Center. Atlassian Support, Understand billing for Marketplace apps. Price from the Xray Marketplace listing pricing data, checked October 20, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Why does Xray cost so much for my team?
Atlassian bills Marketplace apps for Jira on the site's Jira user count, so you pay for every Jira user, not only testers. On October 20, 2026 Xray cost $10 a month for up to 10 users and $7.28 per user per month for users 11 to 100.
Can I export test cases with steps from Xray Cloud?
Yes. Each Test can export its steps to CSV from its more actions menu. For a whole library, Xray's knowledge base points to its GraphQL API. Check images and attachments separately, since a CSV does not carry them.
Will my CI pipeline still work after leaving Xray?
If it produces JUnit XML, most Jira test apps accept that, so you usually change only the endpoint and token. Cucumber, Behave or Robot Framework results need a tool that supports those formats.
Is there a cheaper Xray alternative for small teams?
Several Jira test apps, including Proofline, are free for up to 10 users, while Xray charges $10 a month at that size. Compare at your real user count, because every Marketplace app is billed on all Jira users.
Does Proofline support BDD or Cucumber?
No. Proofline covers manual test cases with steps, cycles, coverage and JUnit, Playwright and Cypress result import. If you depend on Gherkin scenarios, keep a tool that supports them.