Cloud-First Doesn’t Mean Cloud-Only: Does Data Center Still Matter in 2025?

[#1]

Think Data Center is fading? Not so fast. We analyzed 6 months of trends to uncover how DC, DC-only, and Cloud apps are really performing in 2025.

Atlassian’s shift to a cloud-first approach has left vendors wondering about the future of Data Center (DC) apps. With Cloud at the center of Atlassian’s roadmap and resources, is it time for vendors to abandon DC altogether—or is there still life (and opportunity) in the Data Center ecosystem?

To answer this, we analyzed real-time data about marketplace apps from Marketplace Insights Chat, focusing on:

• Top 5 overall Data Center apps

• Top 5 DC-only (exclusive) apps

• Top 5 Cloud apps

• 6-month installation trends across all segments

Let’s dive into the data and decode what’s really happening—for vendors looking to make smart, strategic decisions.

---

📊 Segment 1: Top Data Center Apps – Still Solid

Rank	App Name	Installs	Platform	Vendor
1	Atlassian Plugin SDK – TGZ	125,349	Bamboo	Atlassian
2	draw.io Diagrams	73,355	Confluence	Seibert Media
3	Atlassian CLI	61,059	Bitbucket	Appfire
4	ScriptRunner for Jira	38,574	Jira	Adaptavist
5	Xray Test Management	32,438	Jira	Xblend

These cross-platform heavyweights show that Data Center still serves large-scale teams—especially those needing custom workflows, build tools, and integrations.

---

🔼 DC Installation Trend (6 Months)

Marketplace Insights Chat Analysis:

• Plugin SDK – TGZ gained ~10.9K installs, showing the strongest momentum.

• draw.io showed steady growth (~73K+).

• CLI flattened out—typical of mature, niche utilities.

---

🏆 Segment 2: Top Jira DC-Only Apps – A Niche That’s Growing

These are apps only available on Data Center (not Cloud or Server):

Rank	App Name	Installs	Vendor	Category
1	CoDesign	1,548	Digitwin Technology	–
2	Sonrai for Jira On-Prem	1,417	Sonrai Security	Security
3	Data Theorem Integration	1,367	Data Theorem	Security, Integrations
4	JVM to Cloudwatch	1,294	S4E	Admin tools
5	mO Salesforce Data Sync	1,274	miniOrange	Data sync

These vendors focus on on-premise security, integrations, and monitoring, serving regulated industries.

---

🚀 DC-Only Installation Trend

Key Insight: All five apps show linear, consistent growth—despite the limited addressable market.

---

☁️ Segment 3: Top Cloud Apps – Growth Dominates

Rank	App Name	Trend	Total Installs (Est.)
1	GitHub for Jira	📈 Upward trend	~159K+
2	Jira Cloud for Excel	📈 Reliable growth	~84K
3	draw.io Diagrams	📈 Stable, consistent	~73K
4	Figma for Jira	🟰 Fluctuating	57–58K
5	Atlassian CLI (Cloud)	⬜ Flat	~61K

---

☁️ Cloud Installation Trend (6 Months) 

What we see from Marketplace Insights Chat:

• GitHub for Jira added ~9.4K installs and is the clear leader.

• Jira Cloud for Excel jumped from ~77K to ~84K

• draw.io grew in Cloud at the same time as DC—great example of dual deployment success.

🌤️ Conclusion: Cloud is growing faster, but that doesn’t mean it’s the only place to grow.

---

🤖 How Marketplace Insights Chat Powers This Analysis

Marketplace Insights Chat gives vendors instant answers to strategic questions:

Capability	What It Does
📊 Trend Analysis	Tracks install growth/decline across DC & Cloud
🧠 Context-Aware Comparison	Flags segment-specific growth (e.g., security, dev tools)
📈 Forecasting	Guides roadmap shifts & sunset decisions

---

💡 Strategic Takeaways for Vendors

Deployment	What's Happening	Vendor Tip
Cloud	Strong, sustained growth	Prioritize Cloud-first innovation
DC (General)	Still strong in critical tools and security niches	Maintain support for enterprise-heavy apps and secure organisations
DC-Only	Smaller scale, reliable growth	Focus on niche, regulated, or legacy industries

Don’t Guess—Analyze

Atlassian’s cloud-first future is clear—but the present is more complex. The data shows that while Cloud is accelerating, Data Center still plays a critical role for specialized, enterprise-grade, and compliance-heavy use cases.

For vendors, this isn’t a time to panic. It’s a time to pivot with purpose.

Whether you're considering launching a Cloud version, scaling back your DC support, or entering a niche segment, data should guide your decisions—not assumptions.

---

🚀 Ready to Analyze Your Own App or Niche?
Whether you're launching, scaling, or repositioning your app, Marketplace Insights Chat gives you the full picture—installs, reviews, app descriptions, version history, and more.

👉 Start a conversation with Marketplace Insights Chat and analys apps or niches you really interested in.