The Three Scrum Artifacts

Scrum has three artifacts: the Product Backlog, the Sprint Backlog, and the Increment. Learn what each one is, its commitment, and how they create transparency.

Scrum has three artifacts: the Product Backlog, the Sprint Backlog, and the Increment. Each one represents work or value, and each exists to create transparency — so the team and its stakeholders share the same honest picture of what is planned, in progress, and done. In the 2020 Scrum Guide, every artifact also carries a commitment that keeps it focused.

The three Scrum artifacts and their commitments

The Product Backlog — commitment: the Product Goal

The Product Backlog is the single, ordered list of everything that might be done to improve the product. It is owned by the Product Owner, and it is never complete — it evolves as the product and its market change. Its commitment, the Product Goal, describes the longer-term objective the team is working towards, so the backlog is always ordered in service of something concrete.

The Sprint Backlog — commitment: the Sprint Goal

The Sprint Backlog is what the Developers select from the Product Backlog for the current sprint, plus their plan for delivering it. Its commitment is the Sprint Goal — the single objective for the sprint that gives the work coherence and helps the team make trade-offs when reality intervenes. The Sprint Backlog is the team’s own plan, updated throughout the sprint as it learns more.

The Increment — commitment: the Definition of Done

The Increment is a usable, valuable step toward the Product Goal — the sum of all the completed work. Its commitment is the Definition of Done, the shared standard a piece of work must meet to count as complete (for example: reviewed, tested, documented, deployable). Work that does not meet the Definition of Done is not part of the Increment. Teams often revisit and tighten their Definition of Done in the retrospective.

How the artifacts create transparency

The artifacts are not paperwork — they are how Scrum stays honest. Each is inspected at a Scrum ceremony: the Product Backlog at refinement and planning, the Sprint Backlog at the Daily Scrum, and the Increment at the Sprint Review. When the artifacts are kept transparent and their commitments are clear, the team’s inspect-and-adapt loop works; when they are vague or out of date, decisions are made on bad information. That is why keeping the Definition of Done meaningful is a frequent and valuable retrospective topic.

Frequently asked questions about the Scrum artifacts

What are the three Scrum artifacts?

The three Scrum artifacts are the Product Backlog, the Sprint Backlog, and the Increment. Each represents work or value and is designed to maximise transparency, so the whole team and its stakeholders share the same understanding of what is planned, what is in progress, and what is done.

What are the commitments for each Scrum artifact?

Each artifact has a commitment that gives it focus. The Product Backlog’s commitment is the Product Goal, the Sprint Backlog’s commitment is the Sprint Goal, and the Increment’s commitment is the Definition of Done. These commitments were added in the 2020 Scrum Guide to strengthen transparency and keep each artifact pointed at a clear outcome.

What is the difference between the Product Backlog and the Sprint Backlog?

The Product Backlog is the single, ordered list of everything that might be done on the product — it is owned by the Product Owner and is never finished. The Sprint Backlog is the subset the Developers select for the current sprint, plus their plan for delivering it and the Sprint Goal. In short, the Product Backlog is the whole roadmap of possibilities; the Sprint Backlog is this sprint’s committed slice.

What is the Definition of Done?

The Definition of Done is the shared standard a piece of work must meet to be considered complete — the commitment attached to the Increment. It might include code reviewed, tested, documented, and deployable. A clear Definition of Done prevents “done but not really done” work and is something teams often revisit and tighten in their retrospectives.