Setup: Library and Jaspersoft Studio

Maven Dependency

<dependency>
    <groupId>net.sf.jasperreports</groupId>
    <artifactId>jasperreports</artifactId>
    <version>6.20.6</version>
</dependency>

Jaspersoft Studio

Download the free Eclipse-based designer. Create File → New → Jasper Report, pick a template (e.g. Blank A4), and you get a visual canvas plus the JRXML source tab. Designers edit the same .jrxml your Java code compiles — no lock-in.

Compile in Code

import net.sf.jasperreports.engine.*;

JasperReport report = JasperCompileManager.compileReport("invoice.jrxml");

Compile once at startup and cache the JasperReport object — compiling per request is wasteful.