What Are Packs?
Packs are optional capabilities you can add to your Distil workspace. They extend Distil's core functionality for specific use cases.
The Philosophy
Distil's base product is designed to be simple and focused: collect feedback, evaluate it, and push to dev tools.
Packs let you add capabilities when you need them, without cluttering the experience for teams who don't.
Think of it like: Add-ons for your product management workflow.
Available Packs
Governance Pack
Purpose: Add accountability and audit trails to your roadmap decisions.
Key features:
- Enforced acceptance rationale (can't accept without documenting why)
- Card locking to prevent changes
- Full audit trail (who accepted what and when)
- Enhanced Jira/Linear issue descriptions showing acceptance context
Who needs this:
- Regulated industries (healthcare, finance, government)
- Enterprise teams with compliance requirements
- Teams that need to justify roadmap decisions to executives or boards
- Product orgs managing high-stakes or legal commitments
Learn more about Governance Pack
Visibility Pack
Purpose: Share your roadmap with customers and stakeholders transparently.
Key features:
- Public roadmap page you can share
- Choose which cards to make visible
- Customer-friendly formatting
- Embed roadmap on your website
Who needs this:
- B2B SaaS companies that share public roadmaps
- Teams practicing "build in public"
- Customer success teams that need to communicate progress
- Companies that want to build trust through transparency
Learn more about Visibility Pack
Organization Pack
Purpose: Manage feedback across multiple products, teams, or initiatives.
Key features:
- Organize cards into projects or initiatives
- Multi-level hierarchies
- Roll-up metrics and dashboards
- Cross-team coordination tools
Who needs this:
- Multi-product companies
- Large product orgs with multiple teams
- Platform teams managing many integrations
- Enterprise companies with portfolio management needs
Learn more about Organization Pack
Do You Need a Pack?
Start with base Distil. Most teams don't need packs initially.
Consider a pack when:
- You have a specific pain point base Distil doesn't solve
- You're ready to invest in more structure/process
- You have budget for additional capabilities
Don't buy a pack:
- Just because it sounds useful
- Before you've used base Distil for at least 30 days
- If you're not sure you'll use the features
How Packs Work
Pricing
Packs are add-ons to your base plan. They're priced separately and billed monthly or annually.
See Plans Explained for pricing details.
Activation
Once you purchase a pack:
- It's enabled immediately in your workspace
- All team members get access to pack features
- You can disable it anytime (features stop working but data is preserved)
Combining Packs
You can use multiple packs together. For example:
- Governance Pack + Visibility Pack = Transparent, accountable roadmap
- Organization Pack + Governance Pack = Multi-project management with audit trails
Pack Comparison
| Feature | Base Distil | Governance | Visibility | Organization |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Collect feedback | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Accept/reject | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Push to Jira/Linear | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Enforced rationale | – | ✓ | – | – |
| Card locking | – | ✓ | – | – |
| Audit trail | – | ✓ | – | ✓ |
| Public roadmap | – | – | ✓ | – |
| Projects/initiatives | – | – | – | ✓ |
| Roll-up metrics | – | – | – | ✓ |
Trying Before Buying
Most packs offer a 14-day free trial. You can:
- Enable the pack from Settings → Packs
- Start your trial
- Use all features for 14 days
- Cancel anytime (no charge if you cancel before trial ends)
- Or keep it and billing starts after trial
Common Questions
Can I switch packs?
Yes. You can enable or disable packs anytime. Data created with pack features (like acceptance rationale) is preserved even if you disable the pack.
What happens to my data if I disable a pack?
Data is preserved but features become read-only. For example:
- Governance Pack disabled: Acceptance rationale still shows on cards, but you can't require it for new acceptances
- Visibility Pack disabled: Public roadmap page goes offline, but you can re-enable it with the same settings later
Do all team members need the pack?
No. Packs are workspace-level. Once enabled, all members in your workspace get access automatically.
Can I upgrade/downgrade my pack tier?
Some packs have tiers (e.g., Visibility Pack Basic vs. Pro). You can upgrade or downgrade anytime. Changes take effect immediately.
Getting Started with a Pack
- Identify your need: What problem are you trying to solve?
- Read the pack guide: Understand what the pack does
- Start a trial: Test it with real data before committing
- Configure settings: Each pack has configuration options
- Onboard your team: Make sure everyone knows how to use new features
Next Steps
Explore specific packs:
- Governance Pack - Accountability and compliance
- Visibility Pack - Public roadmaps
- Organization Pack - Multi-team management
Or learn about pricing:
- Plans Explained - Base plans and pack pricing