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NETFLIX · SDE 1

Netflix SDE 1 interview

The SDE 1 (entry-level software engineer) level at Netflix is L3 Software Engineer 3 (small new-grad program), for new grads and engineers with up to about 2 years of experience. The rounds at this level, how each one is scored, and the questions to practise first.

From public candidate reports and Netflix's careers pages, checked November 2026. Processes vary by team. AlgoRung is not affiliated with Netflix.

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Netflix titleL3 Software Engineer 3 (small new-grad program)
ExperienceNew grads and engineers with up to about 2 years of experience
Interviews after screeningAbout 5
System design roundUsually not

The SDE 1 rounds, in order

  1. Phone / recruiter screen · 30 min

    A recruiter call on background and motivation, which also checks whether you know the culture memo.

    At SDE 1: Usually one medium problem. Explain your idea before coding and test by hand at the end.

  2. Online assessment · 90 min

    Some early-career loops use a two-part online assessment, and one part may allow AI help.

    At SDE 1: The main filter for new grads and campus drives. Expect two medium problems, sometimes one hard. Passing all test cases on both usually gets you to the next round.

  3. Coding (DSA) · 60 min

    The technical screen is live coding, usually a practical problem tied to the team's domain rather than a puzzle.

    At SDE 1: The largest part of the loop: often three coding rounds. Medium problems, sometimes one hard. Correct, clean code and clear reasoning matter more than speed.

  4. Hiring manager · 45 min

    The hiring manager goes through your past work and team fit; on some teams this happens after team matching.

    At SDE 1: Motivation, learning, a project walk-through and sometimes CS fundamentals.

  5. Coding (DSA) · 45 min

    Onsite coding is practical and open-ended (caches, data modeling, concurrency) and builds on follow-up questions.

    At SDE 1: The largest part of the loop: often three coding rounds. Medium problems, sometimes one hard. Correct, clean code and clear reasoning matter more than speed.

  6. Behavioral × 2 · 45 min

    Culture rounds test each value in the culture memo with real stories.

    At SDE 1: Stories from internships, projects or your first job are fine. Show learning, ownership and teamwork.

What Netflix interviewers look for

Behavioral rounds are based on the Culture memo: Selflessness, Judgment, Candor, Creativity, Courage, Inclusion, Curiosity, Resilience. Questions for each one.

Coding questions to practise for Netflix SDE 1

The largest part of the loop: often three coding rounds. Medium problems, sometimes one hard. Correct, clean code and clear reasoning matter more than speed.

Difficulty
Topic
9 questions
  1. LRU Cache Medium Design Data Structures also Amazon, Microsoft, Apple +4
  2. Time Based Key-Value Store Medium Binary Search also Apple
  3. Course Schedule Medium Graphs also Google, Amazon, Uber +1
  4. Valid Parentheses Easy Stack also Apple
  5. Best Time to Buy and Sell Stock Easy Dynamic Programming also Amazon, Apple, Walmart Global Tech
  6. Merge Intervals Medium Intervals also LinkedIn, Atlassian, Oracle
  7. Longest Substring Without Repeating Characters Medium Arrays & Hashing also Amazon, Adobe, Flipkart
  8. Kth Largest Element in an Array Medium Heaps
  9. Lowest Common Ancestor of a Binary Tree Medium Trees & BST also Google, Meta, Atlassian +1

How the coding round is scored · The online assessment

Design at SDE 1

Design comes up from mid-level and gets heavier at L5 and above. It is open-ended and often tied to the team's domain; senior candidates lead the discussion and work through build-vs-buy, operational and failure trade-offs.

All Netflix system design questions

Questions people ask

How many rounds are in the Netflix SDE 1 interview?

About 5 interviews after the screening: phone / recruiter screen, online assessment, coding (dsa), hiring manager, behavioral.

Is there a system design round for Netflix SDE 1?

Usually not as a separate round. Design comes up from mid-level and gets heavier at L5 and above. It is open-ended and often tied to the team's domain; senior candidates lead the discussion and work through build-vs-buy, operational and failure trade-offs.

What coding questions does Netflix ask at SDE 1?

The same question pool is used across levels; the bar rises with level. Most reported: LRU Cache, Time Based Key-Value Store, Course Schedule, Valid Parentheses, Best Time to Buy and Sell Stock.

What does Netflix expect in coding rounds at SDE 1?

The largest part of the loop: often three coding rounds. Medium problems, sometimes one hard. Correct, clean code and clear reasoning matter more than speed.

SDE 1 interviews at other companies

SDE 1 interview questions across all companies · Behavioral questions