Sprint Retrospective Templates
Free sprint retrospective templates: What Went Well, Start Stop Continue, Sailboat, Mad Sad Glad and 4Ls, with a guide to picking the right one.
4Ls Retrospective Template: Liked, Learned, Lacked, Longed For
How to run a 4Ls retrospective live or async: Lacked vs Longed For explained, 12 example prompts, the origin of the format and example action items.UpdatedSailboat Retrospective Template: Winds, Anchors, Rocks and Island
Run a sailboat retro live or async: winds, anchors, rocks and the island explained, 12 example prompts, a 45-minute agenda and real action items.UpdatedMad Sad Glad Retrospective Template
Run a Mad Sad Glad retro live or async: Mad vs Sad explained, 12 example prompts, how to keep it safe, and how to turn feelings into action items.UpdatedStart Stop Continue Retrospective Template
How to run a Start Stop Continue retro live or async: what goes in each column, 12 example prompts, a 30-minute agenda, and action items that stick.UpdatedWhat Went Well Retrospective: The Four-Question Template
Run a What Went Well retro live or async over a sprint: the 4 questions, 12 example prompts, a 45-minute agenda, good action items and a free template.Updated
A retrospective template is a set of columns, or prompts, that gives your team's reflection a shape. The right one makes people think about the sprint from an angle they wouldn't take on their own. Below are the five formats built into Retro Rabbit. Each page explains when to use the format (and when not to), how to run it live or async over a sprint, example prompts, and the action items it tends to produce.
The five formats
| Template | Columns | Best for | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| What Went Well | What went well? / What didn't go well? / What did we learn? / What puzzles us? | Default; new teams; mixed sprints | 30–45 min |
| Start Stop Continue | Start / Stop / Continue | Deciding behavior changes quickly | 30 min |
| Sailboat | Winds pushing us forward / Anchors holding us back / Rocks to watch out for / Island to head towards | Goals, risks and long projects | 45–60 min |
| Mad Sad Glad | Mad / Sad / Glad | Hard sprints, big changes, morale checks | 45 min |
| 4Ls | Liked / Learned / Lacked / Longed For | Releases, project phases, mixed-role groups | 45–60 min |
Which template should you use?
Start from what happened this sprint, not from what you used last time.
| If this sprint... | Use | Why |
|---|---|---|
| was ordinary, with some good and some bad | What Went Well | Covers results and learning without needing a theme |
| left people frustrated or upset | Mad Sad Glad | Lets feelings be heard before anyone analyzes them |
| had a clear goal and risks on the horizon | Sailboat | Adds a goal and future risks to the picture |
| ended with everyone agreeing on what's wrong | Start Stop Continue | Goes straight to behavior changes |
| wrapped up a release or a big chunk of work | 4Ls | A balanced, reflective look back |
| repeated the same complaints as last time | Sailboat or 4Ls | A new angle shakes loose new notes |
| is your team's very first retro | What Went Well | Nobody needs it explained |
Two more rules of thumb:
- Keep a default and rotate around it. Teams that change format every sprint can't compare one retro with the next. Pick a default and switch when the notes start repeating, usually every three to five sprints.
- The format matters less than the follow-through. A team that reviews last retro's action items at the start of every retro will get more out of any template than a team that keeps switching formats.
Run any template live or async
Every template here works in two ways.
Live: the team writes notes in silence, groups them, votes, discusses the top few, and agrees on one to three action items, all in one 30–60 minute meeting.
Async over a sprint: the board opens on day one, and people add a note when something happens, not two weeks later when they've forgotten. Before the retro, someone groups related notes and the team votes. The meeting, if you hold one, starts at the discussion. That cuts recency bias and saves most of the writing time.
In Retro Rabbit, notes can come from the board, the Quick Notes box on the Team Room page, or /retro your note in Slack if your team uses it. CarrotIQ names groups as you create them, summarizes each column, and suggests action items. Action items from the last retro show up in the next one, so nothing quietly disappears. See how to run an async retrospective and the complete guide to sprint retrospectives.
Make your own format
Every Retro Rabbit template can be edited. Rename columns, or type your own, up to five, in the Team Room settings under Topics. Changes apply to the current retro and future ones. That means you can run these popular formats today by typing the columns in:
| Format | Columns to type in |
|---|---|
| Starfish | Keep doing / More of / Less of / Stop doing / Start doing |
| Rose, Bud, Thorn | Rose: what's going well? / Bud: what's starting to grow? / Thorn: what's hurting? |
| KALM | Keep / Add / Less / More |
| DAKI | Drop / Add / Keep / Improve |
| Plus / Delta | Plus: what worked? / Delta: what would we change? |
Prompts and questions for any format
Columns get people started; good questions get them to say what they actually think. For situation-based question sets (a missed sprint goal, an incident, a new team, the same issue keeps coming back), see 60 sprint retrospective questions. To warm up before you start, see retrospective icebreakers for remote teams. And to make sure what you decide actually happens, read retrospective action items that actually get done.
Try a template in Retro Rabbit
Start a 14-day free trial with no card required, name your team, and pick a format. Your team can start adding notes today, so your first retro already has material in it. Pricing is per team, not per user: see pricing.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best retrospective template?
There isn't one best template, only the best one for this sprint. What Went Well is the safest default. Use Mad Sad Glad after a hard sprint, Sailboat when there's a clear goal and real risks, Start Stop Continue when the team knows what to change, and 4Ls after a release or a project phase.
How often should we change retrospective formats?
Change when the notes start repeating or people stop adding them, often every three to five sprints. Changing every sprint makes it harder to compare one retro with the next, so keep a default format and rotate in others when you need a new angle.
Can I use these templates for an async retrospective?
Yes. Every format on this page works async: open the board at the start of the sprint, let people add notes as things happen, then group, vote and agree on action items in a short call or in writing. Each template page has an async run sheet.
Can I create my own retrospective template?
Yes. In Retro Rabbit you can rename the columns of any template or type your own, up to five, in the Team Room settings. That's how you can run formats like Starfish or Rose, Bud, Thorn today.
Are these retrospective templates free?
The guides and prompts on these pages are free to use with any tool, or on a whiteboard. Using them in Retro Rabbit starts with a 14-day free trial with no card required, then $30 or $40 per team per month.
Run retros that actually lead to change
Notes during the sprint, AI grouping and summaries, and action items that carry into the next retro. Free for 14 days, no credit card.