MoSCoW Prioritization
Must, Should, Could, Won't — sort features by true necessity.
What is it?
MoSCoW is a prioritization framework that categorizes features or requirements into four buckets: Must have (critical), Should have (important but not vital), Could have (nice-to-have), and Won't have (out of scope for now). It forces teams to make explicit trade-offs.
When to use it
Use MoSCoW during sprint planning, roadmap discussions, MVP definition, or any time a team needs to ruthlessly prioritize a backlog of features or requirements.
How to do it
List all features, requirements, or user stories to be prioritized.
Define clear criteria for each category (Must = launch blocker, Should = high value, Could = nice-to-have, Won't = deferred).
Have the team categorize each item. Discuss disagreements — they reveal hidden assumptions.
Validate that 'Must haves' are truly non-negotiable. If everything is a Must, the exercise failed.
Use the prioritized list to scope sprints, releases, or MVPs.
Pro tips
The 'Won't have' category is the most powerful. It creates clarity by making explicit what you're NOT doing.
Revisit MoSCoW each sprint. Yesterday's 'Could' might be today's 'Must' based on new data.