Start practising

INTERVIEW PREP · US AND INDIA

Uber software engineer interview

The rounds at each level, what interviewers score, the Interview competencies (official interview guide), 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 Uber's own careers pages, checked November 2026. Processes vary by team and change over time. AlgoRung is not affiliated with Uber.

Track my Uber prep Jump to questions
Your level

Levels

AlgoRung levelUber titleExperienceInterviews after screeningDesign rounds
SDE 1L3 Software Engineer INew grad to about 2 years about 4Yes
SDE 2L4 Software Engineer IIAbout 2 to 5 years about 5Yes
SDE 3L5A Senior Software EngineerSenior, about 5 to 10 years about 6Yes
SDE 4L5B Staff, L6 Senior StaffStaff, 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. Phone / recruiter screen · 30 min

    A recruiter call on background, the target business line and why Uber.

    All levels

  2. Online assessment · 90 min

    A timed online assessment scored on hidden tests; problems are hard and must pass every case.

    SDE 1, SDE 2

  3. Coding (DSA) · 60 min

    The business phone screen mixes coding with some design, and largely sets the level you interview for.

    All levels

  4. Coding (DSA) · 60 min

    Onsite Coding 1 covers algorithms and data structures at medium-hard level; graphs and DP are common.

    All levels

  5. Low-level design / machine coding · 60 min

    Coding 2, 'Depth in Specialization', is often machine coding or object-oriented design for backend roles, such as file-system commands with concurrency.

    SDE 1, SDE 2, SDE 3

  6. System design (HLD) · 60 min

    System design focused on scale, async processing and failure handling, sometimes starting from your own past work.

    SDE 2, SDE 3, SDE 4

  7. Hiring manager · 60 min

    Collaboration & Leadership: a behavioral round, usually with the hiring manager, on past projects and conflicts.

    All levels

  8. Bar raiser · 60 min

    A cross-org Bar Raiser runs a project deep dive or reverse design, carries a lot of weight for leveling, and moderates the debrief.

    SDE 3, SDE 4

ScreeningCodingDesignBehavioralDecision

What interviewers look for

  • Working, test-passing code under time pressure
  • Extensible OOP design with concurrency awareness in machine coding
  • Scalability and failure handling in design
  • Scope and impact of past projects
  • Bias towards action and ownership

Topics to focus on

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

Behavioral: Interview competencies (official interview guide)

The official guide lists these as the competencies scored across rounds; the recruiter tells you which apply to your role. The behavioral round wants STAR stories showing ownership, influence and grit.

Collaboration & 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?
Design & ArchitectureBig impact and long-term thinking

Show you thought beyond the next sprint and made a bet with a long payoff.

  • Tell me about a time you made a decision that hurt in the short term but helped in the long term.
  • Describe an idea of yours that the team adopted.
  • Describe a project that needed several teams. How did you get them aligned?
Software EngineeringHigh standards

Show you raised the bar on quality even when nobody asked, and why it mattered.

  • Tell me about a time you were not satisfied with "good enough".
  • Describe a time you had to choose between quality and speed.
  • Describe how you assess or help hire a new team member.
AdaptabilityResilience 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.
Bias Towards ActionSpeed and delivery

Show a hard deadline met by cutting scope wisely, not by heroics alone.

  • Tell me about a time you missed a deadline.
  • Tell me about a decision you made without all the data you wanted.
  • Tell me about a time you delivered under a very tight deadline.
EntrepreneurialInvention and simplification

Show a simpler or new way of doing something and the measurable result.

  • Tell me about a time you simplified a complex process or system.
  • Describe an idea of yours that the team adopted.
  • Tell me about the most ambitious project you have proposed.
GritResilience 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.
Interpersonal InfluenceCollaboration 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?
InquisitivenessCuriosity and growth

Show something you learned on your own and how you used it at work.

  • Tell me about the hardest feedback you have given or received.
  • Tell me about a project that failed. What did you learn?
  • Tell me about something you had to learn quickly for a project.

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
4 questions
  1. Evaluate Division Medium Graphs also Stripe
  2. Surrounded Regions Medium Graphs
  3. Course Schedule Medium Graphs also Google, Amazon, Netflix +1
  4. Longest Repeating Character Replacement Medium Arrays & Hashing also Adobe

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

Also reported, not on AlgoRung yet (6)

Swim in Rising Water · Number of Operations to Make Network Connected · My Calendar I · Task Scheduler · Number of Islands II · Minimum Number of Taps to Open to Water a Garden

Design questions

L4 candidates get one standard HLD round. At L5A and above, design weighs more and is checked again by the Bar Raiser through a deep dive on your own past systems.

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

Worth knowing

Interviewing at Uber?

Add the date and your level. AlgoRung builds a plan back from the interview day, schedules revisions before it, and counts problems you have already solved for every company that asks them.

Start my Uber plan

Sources

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

All companies