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PHONEPE · SDE 1

PhonePe SDE 1 interview

The SDE 1 (entry-level software engineer) level at PhonePe is Software Engineer 1, 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 PhonePe's careers pages, checked November 2026. Processes vary by team. AlgoRung is not affiliated with PhonePe.

Track my PhonePe prep
PhonePe titleSoftware Engineer 1
ExperienceNew grads and engineers with up to about 2 years of experience
Interviews after screeningAbout 3
System design roundYes

The SDE 1 rounds, in order

  1. Phone / recruiter screen · 20 min

    An HR call on experience and expectations.

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

  2. Online assessment · 90 min

    Campus hiring uses a coding test; lateral loops usually start straight with machine coding.

    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. Low-level design / machine coding · 90 min

    Machine coding: about 90 minutes to build a working in-memory app, then a 30-minute debrief full of 'why' questions.

    At SDE 1: Object-oriented design with clear classes and responsibilities. Working code matters more than patterns.

  4. Coding (DSA) · 60 min

    PSDS: two problems candidates often rate hard; a well-explained approach can earn partial credit.

    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.

  5. Hiring manager · 55 min

    Your current project's architecture in depth (sharding, replication, APIs), sometimes with a design problem.

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

What PhonePe interviewers look for

Coding questions to practise for PhonePe 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
4 questions
  1. Distribute Coins in Binary Tree Medium Trees & BST also Amazon
  2. Word Search Medium Recursion & Backtracking also Microsoft
  3. LRU Cache Medium Design Data Structures also Amazon, Microsoft, Apple +4
  4. Subarray Sum Equals K Medium Arrays & Hashing also Meta

How the coding round is scored · The online assessment

System design at SDE 1

Every level faces machine coding, and it is the main filter: code that works but is poorly structured or not thread-safe gets rejected. SDE-2 and above add an HLD round.

All PhonePe system design questions

Questions people ask

How many rounds are in the PhonePe SDE 1 interview?

About 3 interviews after the screening: phone / recruiter screen, online assessment, low-level design / machine coding, coding (dsa), hiring manager.

Is there a system design round for PhonePe SDE 1?

Yes. Every level faces machine coding, and it is the main filter: code that works but is poorly structured or not thread-safe gets rejected. SDE-2 and above add an HLD round.

What coding questions does PhonePe ask at SDE 1?

The same question pool is used across levels; the bar rises with level. Most reported: Distribute Coins in Binary Tree, Word Search, LRU Cache, Subarray Sum Equals K.

What does PhonePe 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