BobbinQuick answer
Severity describes the bug (S1 Critical → S4 Cosmetic). Priority describes when you fix it (P0 Now → P3 Backlog). Set severity with six questions, then read priority off a severity × reach matrix and adjust one step for business timing.
Severity scale (S1–S4)
| Level | Test | Examples | Response |
|---|---|---|---|
| S1 Critical | Data is lost, corrupted or exposed, OR a core flow is blocked for most users with no workaround. | Nobody can log in, sign up or check out Saving a document silently drops changes One customer can see another customer's data | Stop other work. Owner assigned within 1 hour. Fix, roll back or disable the feature the same day. Post status updates until resolved. |
| S2 Major | A core feature gives wrong results or fails for a meaningful group of users, and the workaround is painful or unknown to users. | Export produces a file with missing rows Search returns no results for names with accents Checkout fails for one payment method or one country | Fix in the current cycle. Hotfix if it affects revenue, security or a contractual promise. Tell support what to say. |
| S3 Minor | Something works incorrectly but users can still do what they came to do, with an easy workaround or little harm. | Sorting by date ignores the time of day An error message is unhelpful but the retry works A filter resets after going back | Schedule by priority. Group with related work. Review again if reports keep coming in. |
| S4 Cosmetic | Looks wrong, reads wrong or feels rough, with no effect on what users can do. | Typo or inconsistent capitalisation Misaligned icon or spacing Wrong placeholder text | Batch into a polish pass. Good first issues for new teammates. |
Six questions: stop at the first "yes"
- Is data lost, corrupted or visible to the wrong person? → S1
- Is a core flow (sign in, pay, save, send, core job of the product) blocked for most users with no workaround? → S1
- Does a core feature give wrong results, or fail for a meaningful group (a browser, a plan, a country, a payment method)? → S2
- Is the workaround hard, or only known to people who already know about the bug? → S2
- Is something broken, but users still get the job done with an easy workaround? → S3
- Is it only how it looks or reads, with no effect on what users can do? → S4
The priority matrix (severity × reach)
Severity describes the bug. Priority describes when you fix it. Keep them separate: a cosmetic typo on the pricing page during a launch can be fixed before a minor bug in an admin screen. Start from the matrix, then move one step up or down for business timing (a launch, a contract, a demo) and write down why.
| Severity | Everyone or almost everyone | Many users or a key segment | A few users | One user or internal only |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1 | P0 | P0 | P0 | P1 |
| S2 | P0 | P1 | P1 | P2 |
| S3 | P1 | P2 | P2 | P3 |
| S4 | P2 | P3 | P3 | P3 |
| Priority | Meaning | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| P0 | Now | Drop current work. Fix, roll back or switch off today. |
| P1 | This cycle | Next in line for the current sprint or release. |
| P2 | Soon | Planned within the next one or two cycles. |
| P3 | Backlog | Fix when nearby work touches it. Close after 90 days untouched, with a note. |
Copy it into your wiki
| Severity | Everyone or almost everyone | Many users or a key segment | A few users | One user or internal only |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1 | P0 | P0 | P0 | P1 |
| S2 | P0 | P1 | P1 | P2 |
| S3 | P1 | P2 | P2 | P3 |
| S4 | P2 | P3 | P3 | P3 |
- P0 Now: Drop current work. Fix, roll back or switch off today.
- P1 This cycle: Next in line for the current sprint or release.
- P2 Soon: Planned within the next one or two cycles.
- P3 Backlog: Fix when nearby work touches it. Close after 90 days untouched, with a note.Common mistakes
- S1: Not S1 just because a VIP reported it or because it is embarrassing. Use priority for that.
- S2: Not S2 if users have an easy, obvious workaround and nothing is wrong in their data. That is S3.
- S3: Not S3 if a workaround exists only for people who already know about the bug. Then it is S2.
- S4: Not S4 if the wording could mislead users about money, data or consent. Treat that as S2 or S3.
Record the video part
Triage goes faster when the bug comes with a 60-second recording: reviewers can judge severity from what they see. Bobbin is a free Chrome extension that records your screen, a window or a tab with your microphone and an optional webcam bubble. No account, no watermark, no time limit, and nothing is uploaded: the file stays on your computer.
- Click the Bobbin icon in Chrome's toolbar and choose Record screen, window or tab.
- Pick your microphone and turn on the camera if you want the webcam bubble.
- Press Start recording, choose what to share in Chrome's picker, and wait for the 3-second countdown.
- Pause with Alt+Shift+P, stop with Alt+Shift+S, then press Download to save the file.
To keep other tabs and notifications out of it, share just the Chrome tab (the webcam bubble appears only in screen and window recordings). Bobbin saves MP4 where your browser supports it (Chrome 126 or newer), WebM otherwise, and tells you which it used.
File size: our 60-minute 1080p test came to about 246 MB (roughly 4 MB a minute) on a simple synthetic screen; busy real screens can be larger, so a 1–2 minute clip is usually small enough to attach.
From The Bug Report & QA Kit
The kit includes the full severity guide, a triage meeting agenda and a bug bash runbook. The full kit: 10 bug templates for GitHub, Jira, Linear and Markdown, 9 release checklists (126 checks), the severity guide, 8 bug-video scripts and trackers.
See the QA kit ($15, one-time) PDF + ZIP · 7-day refund · more free samples on the page