Choose Kendis if
- PI Planning, objectives, ROAM and predictability are your main need.
- Your teams use Azure DevOps as well as Jira.
- You have many Jira users but only a few people who plan.
- You are on Jira Data Center and want a tool that outlives the migration.
- You want a confidence vote and Inspect and Adapt built in.
Choose BigPicture if
- Your PMO needs Gantt charts, critical path and resource management.
- You run classic or hybrid projects alongside agile ones.
- You need budgets and Capex/Opex tracking inside Jira.
- You want everything to live inside Jira, with a small site of ten users or fewer.
What is the best BigPicture alternative for SAFe?
Kendis is a strong BigPicture alternative when the goal is SAFe PI Planning. It provides a program board, dependencies, PI Objectives, a ROAM risk register, a confidence vote and predictability reports, works with Jira and Azure DevOps, and is licensed per planner. BigPicture is the better choice for Gantt-based PPM, resources and budgets inside Jira.
BigPicture, by Appfire, is listed on the Atlassian Marketplace as "PPM & Strategic Portfolio Management for Jira."[1] It supports "Sprint management, SAFe planning, Classic, and hybrid methodologies"[2] and comes in two editions, Standard (PPM) and Advanced (SPM). It covers much more ground than PI Planning. Kendis covers less ground and goes deeper on the planning event and the tracking after it.
Kendis vs BigPicture at a glance
| Kendis | BigPicture | |
|---|---|---|
| Type of product | Standalone PI Planning and tracking tool | PPM and portfolio app that runs inside Jira[1] |
| Pricing | $14 per user per month billed annually, $16 monthly. You license the people who plan, not every Jira user. Pricing | Priced on your Jira user tier. Standard (PPM) on Cloud is $5,730 a year at 51 to 100 users. Advanced (SPM) is $10,570.[2] Free for up to 10 users.[1] |
| Free trial | 6 months free, no credit card | Free trial through the Atlassian Marketplace[1] |
| Deployment | Cloud or self-hosted on your own infrastructure | Jira Cloud and Jira Data Center[1] |
| Hosting region | Your choice at signup: EU (OVHcloud, Frankfurt) or US (AWS) | Data is stored outside Atlassian, in Ireland, Germany, the US, Australia, Singapore or Canada[3] |
| Work sources | Jira Cloud, Jira Data Center, Azure DevOps and TFS, two-way | Jira. Advanced (SPM) can connect multiple Jira Cloud instances.[2] |
| Azure DevOps | Yes | Not documented on Appfire's integrations page[4] |
| Security | ISO/IEC 27001 certified, GDPR compliant, DORA Schedule available | ISO/IEC 27001:2022, ISO/IEC 27017 and SOC 2 Type II[5] |
How do Kendis and BigPicture compare on PI Planning features?
BigPicture documents boards for Program Increments, dependency mapping, capacity and a risk register, with OKRs and budgets in its Advanced edition. Kendis adds a confidence vote, predictability reports and Inspect and Adapt, and treats PI Objectives and ROAM as core features on every plan.
| Feature | Kendis | BigPicture |
|---|---|---|
| Program board | Yes. Program board with team rows and iteration columns | Yes. Boards that "visualize cross-team dependencies and Program Increments (PI) for SAFe and LeSS"[1] |
| Dependency management | Yes. Lines on the board, list view, dependency wheel, due dates and alerts | Yes. Dependency mapping across teams, projects and programs[2] |
| Capacity and load | Yes. Capacity per team per iteration against planned load | Yes. Team and individual capacity, skills and workload[2] |
| Risks | Yes. ROAM risk register linked to features | Yes. Risk registers and matrices.[2] ROAM by configuring the heat map, per archived Data Center documentation.[6] |
| PI Objectives with business value | Yes. Planned and actual business value, linked to features and stories | Objectives and OKR management is listed under the Advanced (SPM) edition[2] |
| Confidence vote | Yes. Per team and for the whole PI | Not documented |
| Predictability reporting | Yes. Predictability and performance reports | Not documented |
| Inspect and Adapt | Yes. Inspect and Adapt module with PI comparisons | Not documented |
| Budgets and financials | No. Roadmaps, strategic themes and OKRs, without budgets or financials | Yes in Advanced (SPM). Budgets, Capex and Opex[2] |
| Gantt and critical path | No | Yes. A core BigPicture capability |
When is BigPicture the better choice?
Choose BigPicture when the PMO needs classic project portfolio management inside Jira: Gantt charts, resource and skills planning, what-if scenarios and budgets, with agile boards as one part of a wider picture.
- Breadth. Gantt, resources, risks, boards and portfolio views in one Jira app, for classic, agile and hybrid work.[2]
- Financials. Advanced (SPM) tracks project and portfolio budgets, Capex and Opex.[2] Kendis does not.
- Inside Jira. No separate login, and it is free for up to 10 users.[1]
- Certifications. ISO/IEC 27001:2022 and SOC 2 Type II.[5]
Why do teams choose Kendis instead of BigPicture for PI Planning?
Teams choose Kendis when PI Planning is the job to be done and they want a tool shaped around it, priced for the people who plan, and independent of any one Jira site.
Focused on the PI, not on everything
Kendis gives an RTE the PI Planning sequence out of the box: capacity, feature planning, dependencies, objectives, ROAM, confidence vote, then tracking against the baseline and an Inspect and Adapt module. There is no PPM model to configure first.
Priced per planner
BigPicture is priced on the Jira user tier. On the Atlassian Marketplace the Standard edition on Cloud is listed at $24,780 a year for a 1,000-user Jira site[1], however many people use it. Twenty-five Kendis planners on annual billing cost $4,200 a year. For a small Jira site BigPicture is the cheaper option, and under ten users it is free.
Jira and Azure DevOps together
Kendis syncs with Jira Cloud, Jira Data Center and Azure DevOps, and a solution board can combine them. Azure DevOps does not appear on Appfire's BigPicture integrations page.[4]
Not tied to Data Center
BigPicture's Data Center edition is a Marketplace app, and Atlassian states that Data Center subscriptions and their Marketplace apps expire on 28 March 2029.[7] Kendis is a separate application, so the same boards work before, during and after a move to Cloud. See the Data Center end-of-life guide.
How do you try Kendis alongside BigPicture?
You do not need to replace anything to evaluate Kendis. It reads from and writes to the Jira or Azure DevOps backlog you already have, so you can run it next to BigPicture for a PI and compare the two on real work.
- Sign up for the six-month free trial and pick EU or US hosting. No credit card is asked for.
- Connect Jira or Azure DevOps and choose the boards or projects for one Agile Release Train.
- Load the features for the next PI with a JQL filter or Azure DevOps query. Linked stories come in with them.
- Run PI Planning on the board: capacity, dependencies, objectives, ROAM and the confidence vote.
- Track the PI against the planning baseline, then decide with two PIs of evidence.
Jira issue links you already use for dependencies in BigPicture appear in Kendis as dependency lines, so that work carries over.
Try Kendis free for 6 months
Kendis is a PI Planning and tracking platform that sits on top of Jira and Azure DevOps. The free trial runs for six months, long enough to plan and track two full PIs with your real backlog before anyone has to approve a budget.
- 6 months free, no credit card
- Choose EU hosting (OVHcloud, Frankfurt) or US hosting (AWS)
- Planning board, dependencies, PI objectives, ROAM risks, solution boards
- Two-way sync with Jira Cloud, Jira Data Center and Azure DevOps
- ISO/IEC 27001 certified, GDPR compliant, DORA Schedule available
- No user caps and no setup costs during the trial
One trial per organisation that has not used Kendis in the last twelve months. After the trial, Premium Cloud is $14 per user per month billed annually, or $16 monthly, and you license only the people who plan. SSO, Kendis AI and premium support are part of paid plans. See pricing and the free trial terms.
Compare Kendis with other PI Planning tools
New to the topic? Read the PI Planning guide or the scaling agile guide.
Kendis vs BigPicture: frequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to BigPicture for SAFe?
For SAFe PI Planning, Kendis is a focused alternative with a program board, dependencies, PI Objectives, a ROAM risk register, a confidence vote and predictability reports. BigPicture remains the broader choice for Gantt-based portfolio and resource management in Jira.
How is BigPicture priced compared with Kendis?
BigPicture is sold on the Atlassian Marketplace and priced on your Jira user tier, so you pay for every Jira user. Appfire lists Standard (PPM) at $5,730 a year for 51 to 100 users. Kendis is $14 per user per month on annual billing and you license only the people who plan.
Does BigPicture work with Azure DevOps?
Azure DevOps is not listed on Appfire's current BigPicture integrations page. Kendis syncs two-way with Azure DevOps as well as Jira.
Is BigPicture affected by the Atlassian Data Center end of life?
The Data Center edition is a Marketplace app, and Atlassian states that Data Center subscriptions and associated Marketplace apps expire on 28 March 2029. BigPicture for Jira Cloud is not affected.
Does BigPicture support PI Objectives and ROAM?
Appfire lists objectives and OKR management under the Advanced (SPM) edition, and risk registers in both editions. ROAM is set up by configuring the risk heat map, according to archived Data Center documentation.
Does Kendis have Gantt charts?
No. Kendis is built around program boards, roadmaps and timelines for agile planning. If Gantt and critical path are central to how you work, BigPicture is the better fit.
Sources
Every external claim in this guide links to the primary source below. All links were checked on 12 October 2026.
- Atlassian Marketplace. BigPicture PPM and Strategic Portfolio Management for Jira.
- Appfire. BigPicture plans and pricing.
- Atlassian Marketplace. BigPicture: privacy and security.
- Appfire. BigPicture integrations.
- Appfire. BigPicture product page.
- Appfire. BigPicture Risks module (archived Data Center documentation).
- Atlassian. Data Center end of life.
How this comparison was made: statements about BigPicture come from the vendor's own website, documentation and marketplace listing, linked above and checked on 12 October 2026. Statements about Kendis come from Kendis. Products change, so if something here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it. All product names are trademarks of their respective owners.