How to Prioritize Requirements with the MoSCoW Method

Luke Pivac
Agile | Adapt
Published in
5 min readJan 17, 2024

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The MoSCoW method is a simple and effective way to prioritize requirements in agile projects. It helps you and your stakeholders to focus on the most important and valuable features for your product or service.

But what does MoSCoW stand for? And how do you apply it in practice?

In this blog post, we will explain the basics of the MoSCoW method, its benefits and challenges, and the steps to follow to use it successfully.

Image by Luke Pivac, created on Image Creator, 2024

What is the MoSCoW Method?

The MoSCoW method is an acronym that stands for four categories of requirements:

Must have

These are the essential and non-negotiable requirements that your product or service must deliver. Without ‘Must have’, your project will likely fail or lose its value. For example, a must-have requirement for an online store is the ability to make secure payments.

Should have

These are the important but not critical requirements that add significant value to your product or service. ‘Should have’ are not mandatory, but they are highly desirable. For example, a should-have requirement for an online store is the ability to track orders and delivery status.

Could have

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Luke Pivac
Agile | Adapt

An experienced delivery leader - helping teams succeed by using an adaptive-mindset. Thought-leader and published author. PSM-1, MSP5, ICP-ATF, ICP-APM, ICP-DAS