Some Agile teams use both throughput and velocity in delivery reports. The two metrics answer different questions.
"Throughput" counts completed items per period, without weighting their size. "Velocity" often adds up the estimate points finished in a sprint. Teams may use story points, but the scale is local. Neither metric shows value delivered.
Items or estimate points?
Throughput and velocity may move differently because they count different things.
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Learn "Throughput" in depth →Item count versus point total
Both metrics can help a team study delivery. Throughput says how many items finished during a period. Velocity says how many estimate points finished on the team's own scale. Point scales are not standard across teams, so cross-team velocity comparisons mislead. Throughput comparisons also need similar work types and workflow boundaries.
"We closed more tickets this sprint" (higher throughput), "but our velocity was actually flat because most of them were small."
"Velocity shouldn't be compared across teams. Throughput comparisons also need stable item definitions and workflow boundaries."
When a product manager asked whether "we completed more items this sprint" meant the team delivered more value, the team clarified that was a throughput gain, not necessarily a velocity or value gain.
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Start the "Throughput" learning path →Why the two numbers can tell opposite stories
Throughput can rise while velocity stays flat. This happens when a team closes many items with low point estimates. Neither number is wrong because the metrics count different things. When someone says "we got more done," ask which measure changed. Also ask whether quality, outcomes, or value changed.
The mistake
Do not treat item counts and story-point totals as the same measure. Do not use either number as proof of value. Velocity comparisons across teams are weak because their scales differ. Throughput comparisons need stable rules and similar work. State what the number actually counts.
Which one to reach for, and when
Throughput is often easier to explain: "we closed 20 tickets." A team can study its trend when the workflow and item mix stay stable. Velocity may support planning when that team already uses point estimates. Points can reflect size, complexity, risk, or unknowns. They are not exact units of effort or capacity.
Some companies try to use one point scale across teams. The comparison stays fragile because each team estimates in its own context. Throughput avoids point-scale differences, but not every comparison problem. Teams may handle different work or mark completion at different stages. Explain those limits before comparing results.
Practice scenarios
Practice using throughput in situations like:
- clarifying whether "more got done" this sprint means more items or more points
- explaining why throughput rose while velocity stayed flat
- avoiding unsupported cross-team comparisons of velocity or throughput
Useful practice phrases:
- "We closed more tickets this sprint -- higher throughput -- but velocity was..."
- "That's a throughput gain, not necessarily a velocity or value gain."
- "Velocity shouldn't be compared across teams; throughput comparisons also need stable definitions."
Explain diverging sprint metrics
Throughput counts completed items per period. Velocity totals completed estimate points.
Know what the report counts, and do not confuse either metric with value.
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