Last Comment Field for Jira — Documentation

Last updated: 19 August 2026.

Last Comment Field adds a read-only custom field, Last Comment, that mirrors the most recent comment on an issue — an excerpt of the text plus its author and date — and keeps it in sync automatically. Because it is a real indexed field, the latest comment can be used in JQL, as a board or list column, and in exports.

Requirements

• Jira Cloud.
• Site administrator rights to install the app.
• The field is provided by a Forge app and is intended for use in company-managed projects, where it can be added to screens and board or list columns.

Installation

1. Install from the Atlassian Marketplace listing, or in Jira go to Settings → Apps → Manage apps, search for Last Comment Field and install it.
2. Review the requested permissions and confirm. No configuration, API key or account creation is needed.
3. Jira provisions the Last Comment field on install; it then becomes available in the field picker, JQL and screen configuration.

Where to find it

• On the issue — as the Last Comment field once you add it to the relevant screen, and as a Last Comment panel in the right-hand context area of the issue view (the glance), which shows a longer preview with author and date.
• In search — as a field in JQL, in filter and board column configuration, and in CSV exports.

Using Last Comment Field

1. Add the field where you want to see it. Add Last Comment to an issue screen, or add it as a column on a board, a list view or a filter result.
2. Let it fill itself. The app listens for two Jira events: a comment being added or edited, and an issue being updated. Either event causes the app to fetch the newest comment on that issue, build a single-line value in the form excerpt — Author, YYYY-MM-DD, and store it in the field. This is fully automatic; there is no manual refresh and no scheduled job.
3. Filter and sort. Use the field in JQL, for example "Last Comment" IS NOT EMPTY to find issues that have been commented on, or ORDER BY "Last Comment" DESC to sort by it. Exact-value matching is supported.
4. Open the glance on an issue to read a fuller preview (up to 500 characters) of the newest comment without scrolling through the comment stream.

Limitations

• JQL free-text search. The field matches on its stored value: use empty / not-empty checks, exact value matching and ordering. Jira's free-text ~ ("contains") operator is not supported on this field.
• Excerpt, not the full comment. The field value is capped at 254 characters so it fits Jira's single-line searchable index; longer comments are truncated with an ellipsis. The glance panel shows up to 500 characters.
• Newest comment only. The field reflects the single most recent comment, not a history of comments.
• Populated on activity. Values appear once the app sees a comment or issue-update event for an issue; there is no bulk backfill of historical issues at install time.
• Read-only. The value is set by the app and cannot be edited by users.
• Comment text is rendered as plain text — formatting, mentions and attachments in the comment are not reproduced in the field value.
• Comment-level restrictions are not applied. If the newest comment on an issue is restricted to a role or group, its excerpt and author still appear in the Last Comment field and glance for everyone who can browse the issue. Do not use the field on projects where comment restrictions carry confidential content.

Support

Questions, bug reports or feature requests: info@kyc-checks.nl. Please include your Jira site URL and, where relevant, an issue key.