Meta Data Manipulation (SQL/Python) Interview Questions

Meta Data Manipulation (SQL/Python) interview questions are a central part of Meta’s hiring for data scientist, data engineer, and analytics roles and usually emphasize practical, product-focused problem solving over abstract algorithm puzzles. What’s distinctive is the scale and product context: interview problems mirror real-world analytics tasks with messy data, session/event tables, and metrics design. Interviewers evaluate accuracy, clarity, and maintainability of your SQL or pandas code, your handling of edge cases (NULLs, deduplication, sampling), and your ability to explain trade-offs between readability and performance using CTEs, window functions, joins, and vectorized Python operations. For interview preparation, expect a timed technical screen (often using a shared editor) with SQL and Python data-manipulation tasks, followed by deeper loop rounds combining coding, product-metrics reasoning, and behavioral questions. Practice end-to-end problems: translate a product question into concrete metrics, write and optimize queries or pandas pipelines, narrate assumptions, and validate results. Work timed problems in CoderPad-like environments, rehearse clarifying questions, and review common pitfalls such as filter vs HAVING, NULL behavior, and inefficient joins. Regular mock interviews and focused drills on window functions, groupings, merges, and missing-data strategies will give the confidence and fluency Meta typically looks for.

175 Questions 1 Company07.06.2026
Showing 20 results
Role
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Meta
Hard
Machine Learning Engineer Locked

Find A Low-Quality Annotator From Label Data

Practice a pandas-style data analysis prompt for identifying a low-quality annotator from label data. The question emphasizes cleaning, agreement or g...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
4
0
57 people solved
Jun 2, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compare Survey Satisfaction for New and Established Users

The interview report preserved the survey tables and the request to compare response levels for new and old users, but it explicitly noted that the in...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
4
0
70 people solved
Jul 6, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Calculate Daily Survey Response Rates by Country

The interview report preserved the survey tables and the request to calculate response rate, but not the exact grouping or output contract. The follow...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
30
4
353 people solved
Jul 6, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist Locked

Calculate CTR and ad revenue

This question evaluates proficiency in data manipulation and analytics, specifically metric calculation (CTR) and multi-currency revenue aggregation, ...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
7
1
77 people solved
Jan 25, 2026
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Meta
Hard
Data Scientist

Compute Heavy-Caller Percentages

You are given two tables that track voice calls and daily active users for a messaging app. Table: call_events - call_id BIGINT — unique call identifi...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
7
0
59 people solved
Jan 2, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist Locked

Analyze advertiser spend by source

This question evaluates proficiency in data manipulation and analytics using SQL or Python, testing skills such as joins, time-based filtering, cohort...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
5
0
44 people solved
Feb 9, 2026
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Meta
Easy
Data Scientist Locked

Compute CTR for peak vs non-peak hours

This question evaluates a candidate's ability to compute time-based click-through rate metrics using SQL and data manipulation techniques, including j...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
9
0
64 people solved
Feb 16, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist Locked

Write SQL for multi-account metrics

This question evaluates proficiency in SQL for multi-table aggregation, grouping, joins, and conditional counting within a user-account-notification s...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
7
1
52 people solved
Mar 16, 2026
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Meta
Easy
Data Scientist Locked

Compute this-year spend share of last-year whales

This question evaluates proficiency in data manipulation and analytics engineering, specifically SQL and Python skills for aggregations, joins, calend...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
5
1
41 people solved
Feb 15, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compute seller counts and vehicle share

You are given two tables: 1. listing_interactions - buyer_id BIGINT - seller_id BIGINT - event_date DATE - product_id BIGINT - listing_...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
6
0
51 people solved
Jan 5, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compute ad revenue metrics by geography in SQL

You work on a marketplace app that shows shop ads. You are given the following tables. Assumptions - All timestamps are stored in UTC. - “Revenue” is ...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
8
0
80 people solved
Oct 14, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Engineer

Tackle Python tasks under time pressure

In a 15-minute coding round, implement a small Python function or class to solve a well-scoped problem within about 5 minutes of coding. 1) State 1–2 ...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
18
0
148 people solved
Sep 6, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Analyze Thirty-Day Ad Performance with SQL

Analyze Thirty-Day Ad Performance with SQL For this practice version, use the following neutral schema. clicked is a Boolean recorded on each impressi...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
1
0
23 people solved
May 22, 2026
Meta logo
Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compute Each Advertiser's Share of Shop Ad Spend

Compute Each Advertiser's Share of Shop Ad Spend You have the following daily advertising table: `text ads_detail( advertiser_id, ad_id, ad_type...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
1
0
15 people solved
May 22, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist Locked

Write SQL for CTR and Revenue

This question evaluates proficiency in SQL-based data manipulation and analytics, focusing on joins across event and reference tables, time-of-day buc...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
13
1
91 people solved
Mar 12, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist Locked

Analyze spend and creation-source shifts

This question evaluates a data scientist's competency in SQL-based data manipulation, time-series aggregation, joins, and metric computation for analy...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
7
0
57 people solved
Mar 1, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compute view prevalence from views and labels

Given the tables below, write SQL to compute view prevalence of violating content. Use “today” = 2025-09-01 and report the last 7 days (2025-08-26 to ...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
8
0
58 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compute time-spent percentage by app category

You work on Oculus app engagement analytics. Tables user_activity - user_id (BIGINT) - date (DATE) — day of activity (assume UTC) - app_id (INT) - ses...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
6
0
51 people solved
Aug 17, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Product Analyst Locked

Write SQL for call metrics

This question evaluates a candidate's competency in SQL-based data manipulation and analytics, specifically aggregations, JOINs across relational tabl...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
4
0
47 people solved
Mar 19, 2026
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist Locked

Count Recent High-Volume Call Users

This question evaluates SQL data manipulation and analytical querying skills, including time-window filtering, joins between user and call tables, rol...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
24
1
156 people solved
Mar 14, 2026

Frequently Asked Questions

How difficult are Meta Data Manipulation (SQL/Python) interview questions?
Meta Data Manipulation (SQL/Python) questions are typically medium-to-hard in difficulty and reward clarity under time pressure. Interviewers expect correct, efficient solutions that handle real-world data quirks such as NULLs, duplicates, and timezone or type issues. SQL problems often require joins, window functions, aggregations, and readable CTE structure rather than clever one-liners. Python tasks evaluate clean data transformations, appropriate use of lists/dictionaries or pandas, and algorithmic thinking for performance-sensitive steps. Strong candidates write defensible, testable code, explain tradeoffs, and can optimize a correct solution when prompted.
Where in the Meta interview process does Data Manipulation (SQL/Python) appear and what is the format?
Data manipulation shows up across screening and on-site (or virtual loop) stages, often during the technical screen and again in role-specific interviews for analytics, data engineering, or data scientist positions. Early screens commonly include a short set of timed problems split between SQL and Python executed in a shared editor. Later loop interviews expand scope with longer, end-to-end tasks that mix data modeling, metric definition, and manipulation tasks, and interviewers may probe for performance, edge cases, and how the candidate would productionize the transformation pipeline.
What is a realistic prep timeline for Meta Data Manipulation (SQL/Python) interviews?
A realistic prep timeline is four to eight weeks for focused preparation, although experienced practitioners may need less. Begin by refreshing SQL fundamentals and Python data structures, then practice common transformation problems and windowing scenarios. Midway through, introduce timed practice sessions mirroring the screening format to build speed and articulation. In the final weeks, do full mock interviews that combine SQL and Python work, review feedback, and polish explanations and test cases. Consistent, deliberate practice with real schema examples and post-solution optimizations produces the best results.
What key subtopics should I study for Data Manipulation (SQL/Python) at Meta?
Key SQL subtopics include joins (inner, left, semi/anti), aggregations, GROUP BY versus HAVING semantics, window functions, CTEs and subqueries, NULL handling, and basic performance considerations such as limiting data scanned and understanding indexes or partitioning. For Python, focus on core data structures, complexity reasoning, defensive coding for edge cases, idiomatic data transformations, and familiarity with pandas or equivalent libraries if appropriate. Also practice writing concise tests, handling date/time and string parsing, and explaining tradeoffs between readability and micro-optimizations.
What standout tips and common pitfalls should I keep in mind when preparing?
Standout tips include always clarifying assumptions up front, sketching the approach before coding, and using readable CTEs or helper functions to break complex logic into verifiable steps. Demonstrate awareness of edge cases, write simple test examples, and explain time/space complexity and production implications. Common pitfalls are ignoring NULL semantics, failing to deduplicate when required, overcomplicating queries instead of prioritizing clarity, and not defending performance tradeoffs. Finally, don’t forget to communicate continuously during the interview; interviewers evaluate reasoning and decision-making as much as the final result.

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