Free Backlog Template (Excel)
What's inside the free backlog template
One Backlog sheet, up to 100 rows. Each row is an epic or backlog item with four inputs: Reach (users or customers affected per quarter), Impact (scored 0.25 to 3, from minimal to massive), Confidence (a percentage reflecting how sure you are of the estimate), and Effort (person-weeks to build it).
Score and Priority calculate automatically from those four inputs, and the summary below the table counts how many items landed in each priority band and shows the average score across your whole backlog.
How the RICE score and priority band calculate
Score = Reach x Impact x Confidence / Effort - a standard simplified RICE formula. A high-reach, high-impact item that's cheap to build scores highest; a low-reach item that takes months of effort scores lowest, regardless of how good the idea sounds.
Priority reads High at a score of 8 or above, Medium from 3 up to 8, and Low below 3. Those thresholds are fixed in the formula, so if your team's scoring scale runs differently, you can edit the Priority column's formula directly - it's not locked behind a macro or add-in.
Backlog prioritization vs. sprint capacity: what this template doesn't do
This is a backlog prioritization tool, not a sprint planning tool. It has no capacity input, no committed-points column, and no over-capacity flag - it only scores and ranks what should get built next.
Once you've decided which items to pull into an upcoming sprint, a dedicated sprint planning template (tracking team capacity in story points against what's committed) is the better fit for managing execution within that sprint.
Who this template is for
Product managers and small teams who want a repeatable, formula-driven way to rank backlog items instead of eyeballing priority or relying on gut feel in a meeting.
It works equally well for a single product owner scoring a personal backlog or a team discussing scores together before sprint planning.
How to use it
- List every backlog item with its estimated Reach, Impact, Confidence and Effort - Score and Priority calculate automatically.
- Impact is scored 0.25 (minimal) to 3 (massive) - type the number that best matches the item.
- Sort or filter by Score or Priority to decide what to pull into the next sprint.
- Check the summary for a count of High, Medium and Low priority items and your average score.
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Frequently asked questions
What is RICE scoring?
RICE stands for Reach, Impact, Confidence and Effort - a prioritization framework popularized by Intercom. This template uses a simplified version: Score = Reach x Impact x Confidence / Effort.
Does this template track sprint capacity or velocity?
No. It only scores and prioritizes backlog items. For sprint capacity (team points vs. committed) and a rolling velocity average, use a dedicated sprint planning template instead.
Can I change the High/Medium/Low priority thresholds?
Yes. The Priority column is a plain IF formula (score >= 8 is High, >= 3 is Medium, below that is Low) - open the formula in any row and edit the threshold numbers to match your team's scale.
Can I use this in Google Sheets?
Yes. Upload the downloaded file to Google Drive, then open it and choose File > Save as Google Sheets. Scoring and priority formulas keep working.
How many backlog items can I list?
The Backlog sheet is built for up to 100 items. For a larger backlog, add rows and extend the formulas down further.
What's the usage license?
Personal use or use within one business. It's not meant to be resold or redistributed as a template product.