Scale Engineer

Software Engineer

Software EngineerIC4Medium to Hard

The Yelp Software Engineer (IC4) interview process is designed to assess a candidate's technical proficiency, problem-solving abilities, system design skills, and cultural fit within the company. It typically involves multiple rounds, including HR screening, technical interviews focusing on data structures and algorithms, a system design interview, and a behavioral/managerial interview. The goal is to identify engineers who can contribute effectively to Yelp's platform and collaborate well with existing teams.

Rounds·4

Timeline·~7d

Experience·3 - 7 yrs

Comp band·US$130000 - US$180000

Interview time·180 min

Evaluation

What they measure.

  • Problem-solving approach and clarity of thought.
  • Knowledge of data structures and algorithms.
  • Coding proficiency and best practices.
  • Ability to design scalable and robust systems.
  • Communication skills and ability to articulate technical concepts.
  • Behavioral aspects: teamwork, adaptability, ownership, and learning agility.

Preparation

How to prepare.

Tips

  1. Review fundamental data structures (arrays, linked lists, trees, graphs, hash maps) and algorithms (sorting, searching, dynamic programming, graph traversal).
  2. Practice coding problems on platforms like LeetCode, HackerRank, or Coderbyte, focusing on medium to hard difficulty.
  3. Study system design concepts, including scalability, availability, reliability, databases, caching, load balancing, and microservices.
  4. Prepare to discuss your past projects in detail, highlighting your contributions, challenges, and learnings.
  5. Understand Yelp's business, products, and engineering challenges.
  6. Practice behavioral questions using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
  7. Prepare thoughtful questions to ask the interviewers about the role, team, and company culture.

Study plan

Fig · Study plan — 04 phases

01 / 04
01

Phase 01 of 04

Data Structures & Algorithms

Weeks 1-2: DSA fundamentals and practice (2-3 problems/day).

Weeks 1-2: Focus on Data Structures and Algorithms. Cover arrays, linked lists, stacks, queues, trees (binary, BST, AVL), heaps, hash tables, graphs. Practice algorithms like sorting (quicksort, mergesort), searching (binary search), dynamic programming, recursion, and graph traversal (BFS, DFS). Aim to solve 2-3 problems per day.

Questions

Commonly asked.

  • Given an array of integers, find the contiguous subarray with the largest sum.
  • Design a system to store and retrieve user profiles for a social media platform.
  • How would you implement a rate limiter for an API?
  • Describe a time you had a conflict with a teammate and how you resolved it.
  • What are the differences between processes and threads?
  • Explain the concept of eventual consistency.
  • How do you ensure the quality of your code?
  • Tell me about a project you are particularly proud of.
  • What are your thoughts on microservices architecture?
  • How would you design a news feed for a platform like Facebook or Twitter?

Locations

Regional differences.

Fig · Regions — 02 locations

01 / 02

Location

San Francisco

Interview focus

Emphasis on practical application of data structures and algorithms.Strong focus on distributed systems and scalability for senior roles.Understanding of Yelp's specific technical challenges and product.Cultural fit and collaboration skills are highly valued.

Common questions

  • How would you design a URL shortener like bit.ly?
  • Discuss a challenging technical problem you solved recently.
  • Explain the trade-offs between SQL and NoSQL databases.
  • How do you handle concurrency in a web application?
  • Describe your experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure).

Tips

  • Research Yelp's tech stack and recent engineering blog posts.
  • Be prepared to discuss your contributions to past projects in detail.
  • Practice explaining complex technical concepts clearly and concisely.
  • Understand the business context of Yelp and how engineering supports it.

Rounds

Round-by-round.

Expand a step for evaluation criteria, sample questions, and prep notes.

DSA

Coding questions at Yelp.

Frequently reported on Yelp loops

View all at Yelp

Other guides

More at Yelp.