How to stop being added as a Watcher when working on issues

Related content

  • No related content found

Still need help?

The Atlassian Community is here for you.

Ask the community

Platform Notice: Cloud and Data Center - This article applies equally to both cloud and data center platforms.

Support for Server* products ended on February 15th 2024. If you are running a Server product, you can visit the Atlassian Server end of support announcement to review your migration options.

*Except Fisheye and Crucible

Summary

For every new issue a user creates or works on, they are automatically added to the watcher's list.

The autowatch feature is enabled by default.

Disable the autowatch feature

You can disable the autowatch feature for your user account. Jira administrators can toggle the autowatch feature for the instance on/off.

For Jira Cloud instances

  1. While in Jira, go to Account Preferences by clicking on the icon in the top right corner:
    A screenshot of a Jira user menu. The menu options include Account, Jira (with sub-options for Profile and Your boards), Personal settings (highlighted), Slack, and Log out. At the top are icons for Search, Notifications, Help, and Settings, along with the user's profile picture.
  2. Set Watch your issues to Disabled:
  3. Click Save to confirm the change.

Turning off autowatch for Cloud instances

Autowatch can be disabled by default in Settings > System > Default user preferences > Edit default values:

Jira's System User Default Settings page. The Autowatch own issues option is checked, meaning users will be automatically added as watchers on issues they create or interact with. Other visible settings include Email format (text), Issues per page (50), Default access (Private), and Notify users of their own changes (unchecked). A red arrow points to the checked Autowatch own issues checkbox. The left sidebar shows Jira's system administration menu, and the top bar displays standard Jira navigation. Update and Cancel buttons are present. 

For Jira Server and Data Center instances

  1. Go to Profile by clicking on the icon in the top right corner:
  2. Scroll down to Preferences and click on the Pencil icon:

  3. Set the Autowatch property to Disabled:
    Jira's Update User Preferences page. The Autowatch setting is highlighted and set to Enabled, meaning the user will automatically watch issues they create or interact with. Other settings shown include Email Type (HTML), Language (English Netherlands), Time Zone (Jira default), My Changes (Notify me), Sharing (Unshared), Keyboard shortcuts (Enabled), and External links (Open in new tab).

Turning off autowatch for Server and Data Center instances

Autowatch can be disabled by default in Jira Administration > System > User Interface > Default User Preferences:
Jira's Administration - User Default Settings page. The settings displayed include Default outgoing email format (html), Number of issues displayed per Issue Navigator page (50), Default sharing for filters and dashboards (Private), Notify users of their own changes (No), and Autowatch own issues (Yes). The User Default Settings section is highlighted, and the Autowatch own Issues setting is circled. The left sidebar shows the Jira administration menu, and the top navigation bar displays standard Jira options.


Last modified on Dec 18, 2024

Was this helpful?

Yes
No
Provide feedback about this article

Related content

  • No related content found
Powered by Confluence and Scroll Viewport.