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INTERVIEW PREP · US AND INDIA

Google software engineer interview

The rounds at each level, what interviewers score, the Googleyness and Leadership, plus the four hiring attributes, and the questions candidates report, linked to problems you can solve here with the editor, walkthrough video and solutions in four languages.

Based on public candidate reports and Google's own careers pages, checked November 2026. Processes vary by team and change over time. AlgoRung is not affiliated with Google.

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Your level

Levels

AlgoRung levelGoogle titleExperienceInterviews after screeningDesign rounds
SDE 1L3 Software Engineer IINew grad to about 2 years about 5Usually not
SDE 2L4 Software Engineer IIIAbout 2 to 5 years about 5Usually not
SDE 3L5 Senior Software EngineerSenior, about 5 to 10 years about 5Yes
SDE 4L6 Staff, L7+ Senior Staff and aboveStaff, principal and above about 5Yes

The rounds, in order

Pick your level above to see only your rounds. Each step links to a guide on how that round is scored.

  1. Online assessment · 90 min

    Some candidates, often from referrals or recruiter outreach, get the Google Hiring Assessment (a survey-style questionnaire) and an easy coding test before any live interview.

    SDE 1

  2. Phone / recruiter screen · 45 min

    One live data-structures-and-algorithms problem, sometimes two, in a shared doc with no code execution; a second screen is added only when the first gives too little signal.

    All levels

  3. Coding (DSA) × 3 · 45 min

    Junior loops are mostly coding (about 3 rounds); senior loops drop to about 2 as design rounds take their place, and some prompts ask you to build a small class with several methods.

    All levels

  4. AI-assisted coding · 45 min

    A pilot reported in May 2026 for some US junior and mid-level loops swaps one coding round for a code-comprehension round where you read, debug and optimize an existing codebase with Gemini available.

    SDE 1, SDE 2

  5. System design (HLD) · 45 min

    An open-ended design round is standard from L5; staff candidates may get two and are expected to drive the discussion.

    SDE 3, SDE 4

  6. Behavioral · 45 min

    The Googleyness and Leadership round uses STAR-style questions on ambiguity, conflict and learning; the 2026 pilot adds a technical talk-through of a past project.

    All levels

  7. Team match · 30 min

    You talk with managers who have open headcount, both sides have to opt in, and this step now usually comes before the hiring committee review.

    All levels

  8. Hiring committee

    A panel of Googlers who did not interview you reviews the full packet and decides hire or no-hire and the level, so passing the onsite does not guarantee an offer.

    All levels

ScreeningCodingDesignBehavioralDecision

What interviewers look for

  • Breaks a vague problem into parts and asks clarifying questions before coding
  • Reaches an optimal or near-optimal algorithm and explains the complexity trade-offs
  • Writes clean, correct code without running it and checks it by hand
  • Thinks out loud: the reasoning counts as much as the final answer
  • Handles follow-ups that change the constraints
  • Collaboration, humility and comfort with ambiguity
  • At L5+: architecture reasoning, scalability and defensible trade-offs

Topics to focus on

Weighted by what candidates say comes up and by the reported questions below.

Behavioral: Googleyness and Leadership, plus the four hiring attributes

Every interviewer writes standardized feedback that maps to these attributes. The G&L round covers Googleyness (comfort with ambiguity, bias to action, collaboration) and emergent leadership: stepping up when the situation needs it.

General Cognitive AbilityDiving deep · Ambiguity and judgment

Show you went to the data or the code to find the real root cause.

  • Tell me about a time you had to balance a customer need against a technical constraint.
  • Describe a project where the requirements were unclear. How did you move forward?
  • Tell me about a decision you made without all the data you wanted.
Role-Related Knowledge and ExperienceDiving deep · Ambiguity and judgment

Show you went to the data or the code to find the real root cause.

  • Tell me about a time you had to balance a customer need against a technical constraint.
  • Describe a project where the requirements were unclear. How did you move forward?
  • Tell me about a decision you made without all the data you wanted.
LeadershipCollaboration and inclusion

Show how you helped others succeed and made people feel they belonged.

  • Describe a decision you argued against but then had to carry out.
  • Tell me about a time you helped a teammate succeed.
  • Describe a project that needed several teams. How did you get them aligned?
GoogleynessResilience and courage · Ambiguity and judgment

Show you kept going through a setback or made an unpopular call that was right.

  • Tell me about a time you had to balance a customer need against a technical constraint.
  • Describe a project where the requirements were unclear. How did you move forward?
  • Tell me about a decision you made without all the data you wanted.

All behavioral questions · Write your STAR stories in the story bank

Coding questions candidates report

Each links to the AlgoRung problem: write-up, animated walkthrough, solutions in Java, Python, C++ and JavaScript, and an editor with hidden tests. Shared questions show the other companies that ask them.

Difficulty
Topic
12 questions
  1. Implement Trie (Prefix Tree) Medium Tries
  2. Decode String Medium Stack also Microsoft
  3. Minimum Window Substring Hard Arrays & Hashing also Meta, LinkedIn, Oracle
  4. Word Ladder Hard Graphs also Amazon, LinkedIn
  5. Binary Tree Maximum Path Sum Hard Trees & BST also Amazon, Adobe
  6. Lowest Common Ancestor of a Binary Tree Medium Trees & BST also Meta, Netflix, Atlassian +1
  7. Course Schedule Medium Graphs also Amazon, Netflix, Uber +1
  8. Cheapest Flights Within K Stops Medium Graphs also Airbnb, Flipkart, Swiggy
  9. Longest Common Subsequence Medium Dynamic Programming
  10. Coin Change Medium Dynamic Programming also Airbnb, Goldman Sachs, Salesforce
  11. Maximal Square Medium Dynamic Programming
  12. Evaluate Reverse Polish Notation Medium Stack

Google coding questions by topic · Google SDE 1 interview · Google SDE 2 interview · Google senior interview · Google staff interview

Also reported, not on AlgoRung yet (13)

Snapshot Array · Minimum Domino Rotations For Equal Row · Long Pressed Name · Expressive Words · Text Justification · Robot Room Cleaner · Longest Increasing Path in a Matrix · Non-overlapping Intervals · Maximal Rectangle · Race Car · Strobogrammatic Number II · Best Meeting Point · Confusing Number II

Design questions

Formal system design usually starts at L5. At L4, design ideas show up inside coding rounds, and staff candidates may get two design rounds. Prompts lean toward Google-scale products and infrastructure: Docs, Maps, YouTube, search and indexing, job scheduling.

Also reported: Design a load balancer

Google system design questions in detail · How to answer any design question: the LADDER method

Worth knowing

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Sources

Written in our own words from these public pages and candidate reports, checked November 2026. Company names are trademarks of their owners.

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