Description:
Currently, multi-line text fields in Jira that support rich text formatting via Atlassian Document Format (ADF) have a character limit of 32,767 characters. However, this limit applies to the entire underlying ADF JSON structure, not just the visible content.

This means that metadata, field names, markup elements, and structural components (e.g., "version", "type", brackets, commas) are all counted toward the limit. As a result, users can hit the character cap even when entering what appears to be a relatively small amount of formatted text—especially when using tables, lists, or complex formatting.

Impact:

• The effective limit for visible user content is significantly lower than expected.

• Users experience unexpected cutoffs or save errors when using rich formatting.

• Tables and other structured content become hard to use in multi-line text fields due to inflated character counts.

Suggestion:
We request that Atlassian consider increasing the character limit for multi-line text fields that use ADF, or alternatively, explore optimizing how the limit is enforced—for example, by basing it on visible content or increasing the cap specifically for ADF-enabled fields.

This would greatly improve the usability of rich text in Jira and align better with user expectations.