I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Spotify (New York, NY) in Oct 2013
Interview
Responded within 24 hours after I submitted the application. Really interesting job requirements. Went through two phone interviews, basic knowledge questions and not hard coding problems. Went on-site for interviews about two weeks after the last phone interview. Everything feels good, the company is clearly a more than awesome place to work in, though I myself is to blame to code some really dirty in one of the coding interviews. That can be the major reason I am rejected.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
There is only one unpleasant experience, it is the system design interview. The interviewer kept prying the system architecture I designed in my last summer internship, where I did in a small startup. He asked every details and clearly impatient and displeased with the simple design I brought about. That made me uncomfortable, since his questions are based on some facts which already happened in the past and there is nothing I can change about. And clearly my design is also based on the practical need and some conventions already established in that company. Wouldn't it be more proper that questions are drawn like "what's your opinion over XXX situation? what's your ideal design if faced with XXX?" Instead, I am getting responses like "Oh so you guys make it this simple? Why?" with displeased expressions. I felt it so unfair since he was evaluating the company I interned in but not myself. Just hope these kind of interview questions can be better designed. nobody likes being put in the situation that either you lie about the things you did or you admitted some naive design you have applied, which is actually very reasonable under that certain practical circumstance.
One of the most disrespectful interview processes I've ever been a part of. First stage was a call with a recruiter, which went fine although there was more than a whiff of wannabe silicon valley waffle from his end.
I progressed and was booked in for a 2nd stage with an engineer. However on the day of the interview it was cancelled as I was told there were scheduling conflicts. Ok fine, it happens. The interview was rearranged for the following week - when the same thing happened again! Interview cancelled on the day due to scheduling conflicts. Booked in again for the following week (third time lucky?) and this time it wasn't cancelled on the day. BUT I joined the call and no-one showed up! After 10-15 minutes I emailed the recruiter who told me the interviewer was off sick but apparently hadn't told anyone?
Finally at the fourth attempt I had my interview with an engineer. It was 75 minutes and consisted of a discussion about a recent project as well as some technical questions and a leetcode task (2 largest elements). It seemed to go ok and I was told I would hear back soon. However after 2 weeks I hadn't heard anything so I decided to email the recruiter asking for an update. That was almost a month ago and as of yet I've still heard nothing back. I'm fine with not passing an interview but I expect at least a cursory "thanks but no thanks" but apparently even that is asking too much.
This whole experience has left me almost glad I wasn't progressed - if this is an insight into life at Spotify I'm happy to not work there. This kind of behaviour shows a complete lack of respect for candidates and their time, so I dread to think how they treat their employees.
I applied online. I interviewed at Spotify (New York, NY) in May 2026
Interview
Spoke with a recruiter, was ghosted after the interview. He asked all the standard questions - why Spotify, expected level, salary expectation, what are the priorities, why left previous company, etc.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
What was the most complicated project you were working on in your previous company?
Initial HR Call and screening, then arround two weeks later leet code task, followed by on-site architectural/design test and the final culture fit check with HR/Managers. Overall the process was 3-4 weeks.
Software Engineer applicants have rated the interview process at Spotify with 3.1 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 46% positive. To compare, the company-average is 47.4% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Software Engineer roles take an average of 29 days to get hired, when considering 72 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Spotify overall takes an average of 39 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Spotify as a Software Engineer according to 72 Glassdoor interviews include:
Phone interview: 34%
One on one interview: 21%
Skills test: 13%
Presentation: 10%
Group panel interview: 9%
Other: 3%
Background check: 2%
IQ intelligence test: 2%
Drug test: 2%
Personality test: 2%
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