How to Download a PDF Report of all Jira Changes with Comments

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When you have tried to download all the Jira changes and comments in a single PDF file, you've likely noticed that Jira doesn’t provide this feature by default. Issue history and comments are available within Jira; however, you can’t export all of them in one report.

This turns out to be a problem in cases where you require a complete audit report, project summaries, or compliance documentation. Most teams waste hours manually copying data, only to understand and see who changed what and when in Jira projects.

However, this can be a quick and easy task if you use the right tools.

Why Choose PDF Format for Jira Change Reports

CSV or Excel formats of reports are great for analysis, but not always suitable for sharing or auditing. PDF reports have certain advantages when it comes to presenting change history with comments. 

That is why a lot of teams choose PDF as an alternative to Excel or CSV:

• Easy to read and share. Whatever the device, PDFs appear the same way, with no formatting problems, columns that break, or chaotic data. You can simply share them with managers, clients, or auditors.
• Ready for audits and reviews. The PDF reports are ideal for compliance review or submission of audits. They give a clean and professional history of all changes, comments, and are locked for updates and non-editable.
• Preserves context and structure. PDFs can display field changes, comments, authors, and timestamps in a structured and readable way, telling the story behind the changes.
• More secure. PDF files are not easy to edit, which makes them a secure format for official reports or evidence in regulated sectors such as finance, IT, or healthcare.

In short:

• Use Excel or CSV formats when you need to analyze or filter data related to changes made in Jira tasks.
• Use PDF when you need to present, share, or store official records.

Jira’s Native PDF Export Options and Their Limits

Jira offers basic PDF export options, but they’re pretty limited. Especially when we are talking about the detailed change tracking and comments in one place.

By default, you can export a single work item as a simple PDF file. For that, you need to open the necessary work item, go to Actions (...), choose Print and Save as PDF. You will get such a file:

If you need to export multiple work items at once in PDF format, you won’t be able to do so using Jira's native functionality. It is possible only to export bulk work items to formats like CSV or Excel, which contain basic field data but no change history.

So, in case you have to prepare a complete audit report, compliance summary, or need a full project history, Jira's built-in export options aren’t enough for that. You will need to gather details directly from each work item, which is time-consuming, or use a third-party app, like Issue History for Jira. 

Create Detailed PDF Reports of Work Item Changes in Jira

Using Issue History for Jira app provided by SaaSJet, you can easily turn your Jira work item updates into a clear and well-organized PDF report. This app provides two options for displaying your data, depending on the level of detail you want in your report.

1. Export of a single work item in PDF format (Panel View). 

The Panel View of Issue History for Jira app provides a concise and easy-to-read history of changes to your work items. It includes:

• Status and assignee changes
• Field updates
• Comment changes
• Dates and users who made the changes

To export all the details related to one specific work item with the help of Issue History for Jira app, you need to do the following:

1. Open the work item.
2. Go to Activity → 🕒Issue History. 
3. Select the desired date range and the updater if needed. Also, you can use the Field filter and select only the specific fields. For example, you can get the data related only to the Comment field. 
4. Then, click the Export button and select the PDF format.
5. You will receive the report with all changes related to the work item or the specific field changes chosen. The report will look like this (in case of downloading all work item fields' data):    

This option is ideal when you only need to get key information related to a specific work item at a glance.

2. Export of multiple work items in PDF format (Activity View). 

The Activity View of Issue History for Jira app shows all changes made to multiple work items.

You can see:

• Every field change (old and new values)
• Who made the change and when
• Workflow transitions

To export all the details related to multiple work items with the help of Issue History for Jira app, you need to do the following:

1. Open the app and go to the Activity View.
2. Choose the desired project and the updater if needed. Select the date range (e.g., the last 10 days). You can also use the Field filter and select only the specific fields. For example, you can choose to get the data related only to the Comment, Due Date, and Priority fields. 
3. Then, click the Export button and select the PDF format. You will receive the report with all changes related to the multiple work items, as filtered by you.

This option is suitable for audits, compliance checks, or detailed project tracking, when you have to see the complete story of what changed and when.

📄 Ready to create your own Jira PDF reports?

Track every work item change, comment, and update in one place with Issue History for Jira.

👉 Try Issue History for Jira on the Atlassian Marketplace

Summing Up

When you need to export Jira work item data, the right option depends on the level of detail you require.
Jira’s native PDF export works for basic needs, but if you want full change tracking and comments updates, Issue History for Jira app gives you much more flexibility.

Here’s a quick comparison:

PDF Export	Jira Native Export	Panel View (Issue History app)	Activity View (Issue History app)
Export single work item	✅ Yes	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Export multiple work items	⚪ No	⚪ No	✅ Yes
Includes field change history	⚪ No	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Includes comment history	⚪ No	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Best for	Printing one work item for reference	Team or client reports	Audits, compliance, detailed tracking
Ease of use	Easy	Easy	Easy