Software Engineer Interview Questions
45+ questions covering everything from behavioral rounds to system design. Each with detailed answers and explanations of what makes them work.
Question Categories
Behavioral Questions
Leadership, teamwork, conflict resolution, and career stories
- Tell me about yourself
- Describe a technical disagreement with a teammate
- Tell me about a project that failed
Technical Questions
Coding problems, debugging scenarios, and technical discussions
- Walk me through your approach to debugging
- Explain a complex system you've built
- How do you decide between different technical solutions?
System Design
Architecture discussions, scalability, and trade-off analysis
- Design a URL shortener
- Design a real-time chat application
- How would you scale a database?
SWE Interview Tips
Think Out Loud
Interviewers can't evaluate what they can't see. Verbalize your thought process even when you're uncertain. Silent thinking looks like being stuck.
Clarify Before Coding
Ask about edge cases, constraints, and expected inputs before writing code. It shows maturity and prevents wasted effort on the wrong solution.
Know Your Resume
Every project on your resume is fair game. Be ready to discuss trade-offs, what you'd change, and specific metrics for each one.
Prepare Stories, Not Scripts
Have 5-6 stories ready that you can adapt to different behavioral questions. Know the key beats but don't memorize word-for-word.
What Companies Actually Look For
Problem-Solving Process
They care less about whether you get the optimal solution and more about how you approach problems. Can you break down complex issues? Do you consider edge cases? How do you handle being stuck?
Communication Skills
Senior engineers spend more time explaining and discussing than coding. Can you explain technical concepts clearly? Do you ask good questions? Can you adjust your explanation for different audiences?
Collaboration Signals
Behavioral questions assess whether you'll be a good teammate. They want evidence that you can handle conflict, give and receive feedback, and work effectively with non-engineers.
Technical Depth + Breadth
You should have deep expertise in some areas and working knowledge of others. It's fine to say "I don't know" as long as you can reason from first principles and show curiosity about learning.
Ready to Practice?
Reading questions is step one. Practicing out loud is step two. Getting feedback is what actually moves the needle.