In agile development, an **epic** is a chunk of work that has a common objective. It is used to segment a large body of work into smaller tasks.  


An epic can be broken down into specific tasks (called user stories) based on the needs/requests of customers or end users. An epic will typically require development work that covers several #key# sprints: A set period of time during which specific work has to be completed. #key#.  

> When several epics share a common goal, they are grouped together under a still-broader business objective called a **theme**.

Epics are a helpful way to organize your work and to create a hierarchy. The idea is to break work down into shippable pieces so that large projects can actually get done, and you can continue to regularly ship value to your customers. Epics help teams break their work down while continuing to work towards a bigger goal.

What is an agile epic?

An epic in agile development breaks down large bodies of work into smaller tasks with a common objective, aiding in organization and goal-oriented progress.