# Software Engineer, Full Stack
**Company:** [Plaid](https://scaleengineer.com/companies/plaid)
Join Plaid as a Full Stack Software Engineer to design and build scalable backend APIs and intuitive frontend experiences that power financial connectivity for millions of users worldwide. This mid-level role emphasizes backend development (60-70%) while offering full-stack growth opportunities, working across microservices architectures and modern web technologies at a leading fintech company that partners with Fortune 500 companies and thousands of financial institutions. You'll collaborate with product teams to ship secure, reliable financial products that directly impact user financial freedom.
**Role:** Full Stack Engineer
**Seniority:** Mid
**Locations:** Seattle Office
**Salary:** 176400–243600 USD
[Apply](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/plaid/8de90516-8070-42c5-8b04-267bf6785bea)
Canonical: https://scaleengineer.com/jobs/plaid/software-engineer-full-stack-8de90516
---
## Responsibilities

- Backend API Development & Optimization: Design, develop, and maintain scalable backend services and APIs with a primary focus on performance optimization and security. Build microservices architectures that handle millions of financial transactions daily, ensuring high availability and fault tolerance while following RESTful API design principles.
- Frontend Experience Design & Implementation: Craft intuitive, high-quality user interfaces using modern JavaScript frameworks and libraries. Create responsive web components that connect users to their financial accounts while maintaining excellent performance and accessibility standards.
- Full-Stack Feature Ownership: Take end-to-end ownership of features from conception through deployment, working across the entire technology stack. Participate in architectural decisions and technical design reviews that impact millions of users across Plaid's platform.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner closely with product managers, designers, and customer success teams to translate business requirements into technical solutions. Engage directly with financial institution partners and developers to understand integration needs and pain points.
- Code Quality & Testing Excellence: Develop and maintain comprehensive automated test suites including unit tests, integration tests, and end-to-end tests. Write clean, maintainable, and efficient code following best practices and established coding standards for a production environment serving millions.
- Troubleshooting & Performance Monitoring: Investigate production issues using monitoring tools and logs, implement fixes for critical bugs, and optimize system performance. Participate in on-call rotations when applicable to ensure platform reliability and customer satisfaction.
- Technical Knowledge Sharing: Mentor junior engineers, document architectural decisions, and contribute to engineering best practices and standards within the organization. Share learnings across teams to improve overall engineering culture and capability.

## Requirements

### education

- {"name":"Computer Science or Related Field","description":"Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or equivalent field providing strong computer science fundamentals. Alternatively, equivalent industry experience demonstrating mastery of core computer science concepts."}

### technical

- {"name":"Full-Stack Development Architecture","description":"Demonstrated expertise in designing and implementing scalable systems across frontend and backend layers. Experience building microservices architectures, REST APIs, and distributed systems that handle significant scale and complexity."}
- {"name":"Backend Development Proficiency","description":"Strong proficiency in at least one backend language such as Python, Java, Go, or Node.js. Experience building and maintaining production backend services with emphasis on scalability, security, and performance optimization."}
- {"name":"Frontend Web Technologies","description":"Working knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript with hands-on experience using modern frontend frameworks and libraries such as React, Vue, or Angular. Ability to build responsive, accessible user interfaces."}
- {"name":"Relational Database Design & Optimization","description":"Practical experience with MySQL or other relational databases including schema design, query optimization, indexing strategies, and data integrity management. Understanding of database performance tuning and scaling considerations."}
- {"name":"Microservices & API Design","description":"Solid experience architecting and working with microservices patterns, service discovery, inter-service communication, and deployment orchestration. Expertise in RESTful API design principles, versioning strategies, and API security."}
- {"name":"Automated Testing & Quality Assurance","description":"Excellent testing skills including writing unit tests, integration tests, and understanding test coverage metrics. Familiarity with testing frameworks and practices for ensuring code reliability and regression prevention."}

### experience

- {"name":"Full-Stack Development Experience","description":"2-4 years of professional experience in full-stack software engineering or backend development roles. Track record of successfully shipping features and maintaining production systems."}
- {"name":"Fintech or Financial Services Experience","description":"Preferred experience working in fintech, payments, banking, or financial services sectors where you've handled sensitive financial data and built compliant systems. Understanding of financial data security and regulatory requirements is valuable."}
- {"name":"High Ownership & Problem-Solving","description":"Demonstrated ability to take ownership of complex problems without precedent, proactively identify solutions, and drive results independently. Track record of rolling up sleeves to solve challenging technical and product problems."}
- {"name":"Customer Empathy & Collaboration","description":"Proven ability to engage directly with customers and stakeholders to understand their needs and pain points. Experience translating customer feedback into product improvements and technical solutions that drive user satisfaction."}

## Skills

### required

- {"name":"Python","description":"Production-level Python development for backend services, including async programming patterns and performance optimization."}
- {"name":"JavaScript/TypeScript","description":"Modern JavaScript and TypeScript for both frontend and backend (Node.js) development, including ES6+ features and async patterns."}
- {"name":"REST API Design","description":"Design and implementation of RESTful APIs with proper HTTP semantics, versioning strategies, and comprehensive documentation."}
- {"name":"React or Modern Framework","description":"Hands-on experience with React, Vue, or Angular for building interactive user interfaces, state management, and component architecture."}
- {"name":"SQL & Relational Databases","description":"SQL query writing, database schema design, index optimization, and working proficiency with MySQL, PostgreSQL, or similar RDBMS."}
- {"name":"Microservices Architecture","description":"Understanding of microservices patterns, inter-service communication, service discovery, and distributed system design principles."}
- {"name":"Automated Testing","description":"Writing unit tests, integration tests, and end-to-end tests using testing frameworks. Understanding of test coverage and testing best practices."}
- {"name":"Version Control (Git)","description":"Proficiency with Git, branching strategies, pull requests, code reviews, and collaborative development workflows."}

### preferred

- {"name":"Go Programming Language","description":"Experience building backend services in Go, leveraging its performance characteristics and concurrency model for scalable systems."}
- {"name":"Java Development","description":"Enterprise Java development experience including Spring Framework, building robust backend systems, and handling high-throughput applications."}
- {"name":"Fintech/Payments Domain Knowledge","description":"Background in payments processing, APIs, banking systems, or financial data handling. Familiarity with PCI compliance, data security standards, and financial regulations."}
- {"name":"API Gateway & Routing","description":"Experience with API gateways, load balancing, and routing systems in microservices architectures."}
- {"name":"DevOps & Infrastructure","description":"Familiarity with Docker containerization, Kubernetes orchestration, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure) for deployment and scaling."}
- {"name":"System Design & Scalability","description":"Experience designing systems for scale, including caching strategies, database optimization, async processing, and performance profiling."}
- {"name":"Security Best Practices","description":"Understanding of application security, encryption, authentication, authorization, and secure coding practices for financial systems."}
- {"name":"Agile Development","description":"Experience working in Agile/Scrum environments with iterative development cycles, sprint planning, and collaborative team dynamics."}

## Tech stack

### tools

- {"name":"Git/GitHub","description":"Version control system and collaborative development platform for code management and pull request reviews."}
- {"name":"Docker","description":"Containerization technology for consistent development, testing, and production deployments."}
- {"name":"Kubernetes","description":"Container orchestration platform for managing and scaling microservices in production environments."}
- {"name":"CI/CD Pipelines","description":"Automated testing, building, and deployment workflows for continuous integration and delivery."}
- {"name":"Postman/Insomnia","description":"API development and testing tools for designing, documenting, and debugging REST APIs."}
- {"name":"JIRA","description":"Project management and issue tracking tool for Agile team collaboration and sprint planning."}

### others

- {"name":"REST Architecture","description":"Design and implementation of RESTful APIs with proper HTTP semantics and API versioning strategies."}
- {"name":"Microservices Architecture","description":"Design patterns and implementation strategies for building distributed microservices systems."}
- {"name":"System Design & Scalability","description":"Techniques for designing systems to handle millions of transactions, including caching, async processing, and database optimization."}
- {"name":"Financial Data Security","description":"Best practices for handling sensitive financial data, encryption, and compliance with regulatory requirements."}
- {"name":"Automated Testing Frameworks","description":"Tools and methodologies for unit testing, integration testing, and end-to-end testing of backend and frontend components."}

### databases

- {"name":"MySQL","description":"Primary relational database for storing financial transaction data with ACID compliance and high availability."}
- {"name":"PostgreSQL","description":"Advanced relational database with powerful querying capabilities and strong consistency guarantees."}
- {"name":"Redis","description":"In-memory data store for caching, session management, and real-time data operations."}

### languages

- {"name":"Python","description":"Backend service development, API implementation, and data processing for scalable financial systems."}
- {"name":"JavaScript/TypeScript","description":"Full-stack development spanning both Node.js backend services and modern frontend frameworks."}
- {"name":"Java","description":"Enterprise backend development and microservices implementation for high-throughput financial applications."}
- {"name":"Go","description":"Performance-optimized backend services and microservices architecture with excellent concurrency handling."}
- {"name":"HTML/CSS","description":"Frontend markup and styling for responsive, accessible user interfaces."}

### frameworks

- {"name":"React","description":"Primary frontend framework for building interactive user interfaces and complex state management."}
- {"name":"Node.js","description":"JavaScript runtime for building scalable backend APIs and services."}
- {"name":"Spring Framework","description":"Java-based framework for enterprise backend development and microservices."}
- {"name":"Express.js","description":"Lightweight Node.js framework for REST API development and backend services."}
- {"name":"Vue.js","description":"Alternative modern frontend framework for building user interfaces and interactive components."}

## Benefits

### benefits

- {"name":"Comprehensive Health Coverage","description":"Medical, dental, and vision insurance plans with competitive coverage options and employer contributions for employee and dependent coverage."}
- {"name":"Retirement Planning","description":"401(k) retirement savings plan with employer matching contributions to support long-term financial security and wealth building."}
- {"name":"Equity Compensation","description":"Stock options or equity grants as part of compensation package, allowing you to share in Plaid's growth and success as the company expands globally."}
- {"name":"Professional Development","description":"Opportunities to grow full-stack engineering expertise, mentorship from senior engineers, and investment in continuous learning and skill development."}
- {"name":"Flexible Work Environment","description":"Collaborative office locations in major tech hubs including San Francisco, New York, Seattle, and international offices in London and Amsterdam with potential flexibility options."}
- {"name":"Impact-Driven Work","description":"Direct opportunity to impact millions of users' financial lives and contribute to Plaid's mission of unlocking financial freedom for everyone globally."}
- {"name":"Diverse & Inclusive Culture","description":"Commitment to building a diverse team and fostering an inclusive environment where all employees feel valued and supported in their careers."}
- {"name":"Financial Services Innovation","description":"Work with cutting-edge fintech technology, partnering with Fortune 500 companies, major banks, and thousands of financial institutions across 12,000+ financial networks."}

## Compensation

- **max:** 190000
- **min:** 140000
- **currency:** USD
- **stockOptions:** true

## Interview process

### steps

## Full description
We believe that the way people interact with their finances will drastically improve in the next few years. We’re dedicated to empowering this transformation by building the tools and experiences that thousands of developers use to create their own products. Plaid powers the tools millions of people rely on to live a healthier financial life. We work with thousands of companies like Venmo, SoFi, several of the Fortune 500, and many of the largest banks to make it easy for people to connect their financial accounts to the apps and services they want to use. Plaid’s network covers 12,000 financial institutions across the US, Canada, UK and Europe. Founded in 2013, the company is headquartered in San Francisco with offices in New York, Seattle, Washington D.C., Raleigh, London, and Amsterdam.

Plaid’s mission is to unlock financial freedom for everyone by making money movement and access to financial data simple and secure. As a Fullstack Software Engineer, you will design and build the systems and experiences that power how millions of people connect to their finances.

You will work across the stack, building scalable backend services and APIs while also crafting intuitive, high-quality frontend experiences that bring those systems to life. This role is ideal for engineers who enjoy switching between backend problem-solving and frontend user experience work, and who are excited to grow their impact across both.

You will collaborate closely with product managers, designers, and other engineers to ship products that are reliable, secure, and delightful to use. At Plaid, engineers take ownership early, contribute to architectural decisions, and see their work reach millions of users.

**Responsibilities:**

* Design & Development: Design, develop and maintain both frontend and backend components
* Majority Backend Focus (60-70%): Develop APIs and services, focusing on scalability, security and performance.
* Frontend Focus (30-40%): Build delightful experiences using modern JavaScript frameworks and libraries.
* Collaboration: Work closely with product managers, product designers and other stakeholders to define and implement new features that meet product and customer needs.
* Code Quality: Write clean, maintainable and efficient code.
* Testing & Debugging: Develop automated tests to ensure the quality and reliability of the codebase. Troubleshoot and resolve issues.

**Qualifications:**

* 2-4 years of experience in full-stack development.
* Working knowledge of HTML, CSS, Javascript and modern frameworks and libraries.
* Working knowledge of one or more programming languages such as Python, Java, Go, or Node.js.
* Experience MySQL or other relational databases.
* Experience working with microservices
* Experience with API design.
* Excellent coding and testing skills.
* High ownership. You are excited to roll up your sleeves and figure things out that don’t have precedent at Plaid.
* Customer empathy. You want to be face to face with customers to understand their needs and design Investments products together.

Our mission at Plaid is to unlock financial freedom for everyone. To support that mission, we seek to build a diverse team of driven individuals who care deeply about making the financial ecosystem more equitable. We recognize that strong qualifications can come from both prior work experiences and lived experiences. We encourage you to apply to a role even if your experience doesn't fully match the job description. We are always looking for team members that will bring something unique to Plaid!

Plaid is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and values diversity at our company. We do not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, ethnicity, religion or religious belief, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, sexual stereotypes, age, military or veteran status, disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state, and local laws. Plaid is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities in our recruiting process. If you need any assistance with your application or interviews due to a disability, please let us know at accommodations@plaid.com.

Please review our Candidate Privacy Notice [here](https://plaid.com/legal/#candidate-privacy-notice).  

Additional compensation in the form(s) of equity and/or commission are dependent on the position offered. Plaid provides a comprehensive benefit plan, including medical, dental, vision, and 401(k). Pay is based on factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate's work experience and skillset, and location. Pay and benefits are subject to change at any time, consistent with the terms of any applicable compensation or benefit plans.