Use a Consistent Effort Scale in Productboard
Use the numeric Effort field with a team-agreed unit. Productboard accepts numbers and offers Fibonacci choices from a zero-valued cell; this is not a custom t-shirt-scale configuration.
Before you start: Use editing access and agree with engineering whether the numbers represent points or another consistent unit. Check whether the item is using manual effort or a rollup.
Worked example: A Feature has two subfeatures estimated at 3 and 5 points. A rollup of 8 is useful, while manually setting the parent to 13 creates a separate estimate that no longer follows its children.
Step-by-step guide
Agree on the unit
Document the sizing convention before entering values. Keep story points and calendar days out of the same numeric comparison.
Expose Effort
On a grid use Add columns and enable Effort. Review a few parent and child items before bulk entry.
Enter the estimate
Click the Effort cell and type the value. Click again while zero to use the offered Fibonacci numbers when they fit your convention.
Inspect the calculation mode
Check the field icon or hover text. A rollup follows child values; entering a manual value changes that behavior.
Restore aggregation deliberately
If the parent should aggregate again, right-click its manual Effort field and switch back to rollup. Check the resulting value against the children.
Common mistakes
Overwriting a rollup without noticing
A manual edit stops automatic updates from children. Review the mode before treating an unchanged parent estimate as fresh data.
Sources and verification
Based on product documentation checked on 2026-11-04. This is a documentation-based guide, not a hands-on benchmark. Features and availability can change.