Tesbo vs Zephyr Scale
Zephyr Scale keeps your tests inside Jira, which is genuinely convenient. The catch is the licence: Atlassian makes you buy it at the same user tier as Jira itself, so five testers in a hundred-person company pay for a hundred seats.
Claims last checked against Zephyr Scale’s own pages on Aug 22, 2026
The short answer
Zephyr Scale is the right answer if your team lives in Jira and never wants a second tool. It is also cheaper than Tesbo if you have ten Jira users or fewer, at $100 a year. Above that its price is tied to your total Jira headcount rather than your QA headcount, so it climbs as the company grows. Tesbo is a separate tool that connects to Jira and charges $360 a year per workspace regardless of size.
Where Tesbo is different
Your price stops depending on how big the company is
Atlassian bills Marketplace apps at your Jira user tier, not your app user tier. Hire thirty engineers who never open a test case and your Zephyr Scale bill still moves up a tier. Tesbo is one workspace price, so only your own growth in projects matters, not the company org chart.
No cliff at eleven users
Zephyr Scale is $100 a year for up to 10 Jira users. At 15 it is $1,021.50. That is ten times the price for five more people, and most teams hit it without noticing. Tesbo is $360 a year on either side of that line.
The cases get drafted for you
Say what behaviour needs covering. Tesbo writes the preconditions, steps, expected results and the edge cases you did not think of, in your suite’s own format. You review and keep what is good.
Your test history is not tied to a Jira licence
Because Zephyr Scale keeps tests as Jira entities, leaving Jira means moving your test history too. Tesbo links to Jira issues but keeps the tests in their own database, so a change of tracker does not put four years of run history at risk.
Tesbo and Zephyr Scale, side by side
| Capability | Tesbo | Zephyr Scale |
|---|---|---|
| How it is pricedAtlassian requires the app tier to match the Jira tier, whether or not those people test. | Per workspace. $360 a year billed annually, at any team size. | Per Atlassian user tier, through the Marketplace. |
| Cost at 10 Jira usersZephyr Scale is genuinely cheaper here. If you are a small team on Jira, this row matters most. | $360 a year | $100 a year |
| Cost at 25 Jira users | $360 a year | $1,702.50 a year |
| Cost at 100 Jira users | $360 a year | $6,810 a year |
| Where tests are storedTheir way means one less system. Ours means your history survives leaving Jira. | In Tesbo, linked to Jira issues | Inside Jira as Jira entities |
| Works without Jira | Yes | No — Jira is required |
| Free option | Community edition, self-hosted, free forever, unlimited members | No free tier; 30-day trial through the Marketplace |
| Run it on your own servers | Yes, free | Only via Jira Data Center, which is its own licence |
What it costs
Zephyr Scale is sold through the Atlassian Marketplace and priced by user tier. At the annual cloud list price it is $100 a year for 10 users, $1,021.50 for 15, $1,702.50 for 25, $3,405 for 50 and $6,810 for 100. The important part is which users get counted. Atlassian’s own licensing policy says to "purchase the license tier that matches the number of users you have licensed for your host product", and that the app "will only function if its license matches or exceeds the tier of the host product — even if only some of your licensed users need to use the app". So a company with 100 Jira users and 5 testers buys the 100-user tier. Tesbo Cloud Pro is $30 per workspace a month billed annually, $360 a year, at any size, and Tesbo Community is free forever on your own servers. Marketplace figures read from Atlassian’s own pricing data on 22 August 2026.
Which one should you pick?
Pick Tesbo if
Your Jira user count is much larger than your QA team, so you are paying for people who never open a test. Or you want a free self-hosted option, or you want the agent to draft the cases, or you would rather your test history not depend on staying with Jira.
Pick Zephyr Scale if
You have ten Jira users or fewer, where it costs $100 a year and nothing else comes close. Or your team genuinely never wants to leave Jira, and having tests as Jira issues — same permissions, same boards, same searches — is worth more to you than the licence maths.
Zephyr Scale vs Tesbo: common questions
Why is Zephyr Scale priced on my Jira users instead of my testers?
Because Atlassian requires it. Their Marketplace licensing policy says an app licence has to match the user tier of the host product, and that the app only works if it does — even when just a few of those people need it. So the number that sets your Zephyr Scale bill is your Jira headcount, not your QA headcount.
Can I import my test cases from Zephyr Scale?
Yes. Zephyr Scale exports to CSV and Excel, and Tesbo imports CSV. Check your Jira custom field mapping first, because Zephyr Scale keeps a lot of test detail in those fields and they need somewhere to land.
Is Zephyr Scale ever cheaper than Tesbo?
Yes, below about eleven Jira users. At the 10-user tier Zephyr Scale is $100 a year against Tesbo’s $360. Past that the tiers move fast — 15 users is $1,021.50 — and Tesbo stays at $360 however large you get.
Does Tesbo work with Jira?
Yes. Tesbo links test cases and results to Jira issues, and Jira is included on every plan including the free Launch tier. The difference is that the tests live in Tesbo, so your run history is not tied to your Jira licence.
Try it against your own suite
Work out your Jira user tier, then compare it with $360. If the numbers surprise you, try the free self-hosted edition against one project.
Sources
- Atlassian — Marketplace app licensing policy
- Atlassian Marketplace — Zephyr Scale pricing
- SmartBear — Zephyr Scale product page
- Tesbo — pricing page
Last verified Aug 22, 2026.
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