Optiver Interview Questions

Optiver Interview Questions

Practice 83 real Optiver interview questions for 2026. This Optiver interview questions collection is designed for interview preparation and includes real questions from actual interviews with detailed solutions. Lean heavily on coding and systems thinking: expect Coding & Algorithms and System Design problems first, then Statistics & Math, Behavioral & Leadership, and Analytics & Experimentation. For Software Engineer roles (the bulk of our set) recurring themes include designing low‑latency trading infrastructure and queue/data‑structure problems (circular and object‑oriented queues), algorithmic optimization and backtesting of trading strategies, and fast probabilistic/expectation calculations under time pressure. Data Scientist interviews concentrate on probability and expectation puzzles, sequence and pattern‑detection in streams, optimization puzzles (min‑moves, transforming layouts), and communicating statistical tradeoffs to traders. Use this set to simulate timed mental math and whiteboard coding, rehearse system tradeoffs that prioritize latency and correctness, and build clear STAR stories for behavioral loops.

83 Questions 1 Company07.23.2026
Showing 20 results
Role
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Optiver
Medium
Data Scientist

Match alphanumeric patterns in a stream

Given a reference 7–8 character alphanumeric code and four candidate codes, select the exact match as quickly as possible. Design a system that: - Eff...

Coding & Algorithms
6
0
77 people solved
Sep 6, 2025
Optiver logo
Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Design a queue and analyze tradeoffs

Design a FIFO queue data structure that supports enqueue, dequeue, peek, and isEmpty. Compare implementations using a singly linked list, a dynamic ar...

Coding & Algorithms
39
0
326 people solved
Sep 6, 2025
Optiver logo
Optiver
Medium
Software EngineerIntern

Implement a News Publishing System with Topic Subscriptions and Delivery Limits

You are building the core delivery engine for a news publishing service. The service continuously receives news items, stores them, and — whenever a p...

Coding & Algorithms
2
0
26 people solved
Nov 25, 2025
Optiver logo
Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Compute negative-price probability after n steps

Random-Walk Price Crossing Probability Setup - Initial price: S₀ = s (real number). - Step size: x > 0. - Number of days: n (integer ≥ 0). - Each day ...

Statistics & Math
5
0
81 people solved
Aug 13, 2025
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Optiver
Easy
Software Engineer

Compute permutations with repeated letters

Counting Strings with Repeated Characters Problem Given two nonnegative integers m and n, how many distinct strings can be formed that contain exactly...

Statistics & Math
11
0
105 people solved
Aug 13, 2025
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Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Simulate return-weighted rebalancing strategy

Simulate return-weighted rebalancing strategy Problem: Momentum-weighted daily log-return statistics You have N assets with end-of-day prices over T t...

Analytics & Experimentation
7
0
119 people solved
Jul 16, 2025
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Optiver
Hard
Software EngineerNew Grad

Cargo Order Allocation Across Departing Planes

A freight company assigns incoming shipping orders to a fixed fleet of cargo planes. You must implement the order-processing logic: decide whether eac...

Coding & Algorithms
0
0
10 people solved
Nov 16, 2025
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Optiver
Medium
Data Scientist

Expected Wait for a Bus That Runs Late Half the Time

Buses on a certain route are scheduled to arrive at your stop every $x$ minutes. Independently for each bus, the bus arrives exactly on schedule with ...

Machine Learning
2
0
19 people solved
Mar 21, 2025
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Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Maximum Currency Conversion Rate

Maximum Currency Conversion Rate You are given N currency exchange rate pairs. Each pair is a triple (from_currency, to_currency, rate), meaning that ...

Coding & Algorithms
0
0
9 people solved
Jan 31, 2025
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Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Validate a Binary Tree Built from Directed Edges

Validate a Binary Tree Built from Directed Edges You are given a list of directed edges. Each edge is a pair (parent, child) of positive-integer node ...

Coding & Algorithms
0
0
6 people solved
Jul 23, 2025
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Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Identify OS component causing process starvation

A system with 2 CPU cores runs 5 identical processes continuously. Four processes get equal CPU time, but the fifth appears to get none. Which part of...

Coding & Algorithms
6
0
93 people solved
Jul 17, 2025
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Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Count nonnegative buy/sell sequences

You must perform exactly 2n unit trades starting with 0 shares and ending with 0 shares. Each trade is either a buy (+1 share) or a sell (−1 share), a...

Coding & Algorithms
18
0
131 people solved
Jul 16, 2025
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Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Days Between Two Calendar Dates

Days Between Two Calendar Dates You are given two dates as strings, each in the format YYYY-MM-DD. Write a function that returns the number of days be...

Coding & Algorithms
2
0
20 people solved
Apr 21, 2026
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Optiver
Hard
Data Scientist Locked

Find missing numbers in sequences

This question evaluates sequence pattern recognition, numerical reasoning with integers and rational numbers, and the ability to infer recurrences or ...

Coding & Algorithms
14
0
275 people solved
Feb 3, 2026
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Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer Locked

Design a circular queue data structure

This question evaluates understanding of circular buffer data structures and the ability to implement fixed-capacity queue operations with O(1) time a...

Coding & Algorithms
8
0
69 people solved
Jan 13, 2026
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Optiver
Medium
Data Scientist

Solve a Skyscraper puzzle efficiently

Design and implement a solver for the Skyscraper logic puzzle on an $N \times N$ grid, where $3 \le N \le 7$. The board is a grid of building heights....

Coding & Algorithms
47
0
329 people solved
Sep 6, 2025
Optiver logo
Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Design a satellite propagation simulator

Question Implement a SatelliteNetwork class that simulates message propagation over an undirected satellite graph. The class consumes a stream of inst...

Coding & Algorithms
77
0
586 people solved
Sep 6, 2025
Optiver logo
Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Decide and implement DP/heap and approximation

You have 90 minutes to complete three related coding tasks: a) Dynamic programming: Given an integer array nums (n ≤ 2e 5) and a threshold T, design a...

Coding & Algorithms
22
0
167 people solved
Aug 13, 2025
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Optiver
Easy
Data Scientist

Stone Pile Doubling Game: Can One Pile Be Emptied?

You are given two piles of stones containing a and b stones respectively (both piles start non-empty). You repeatedly apply the following move: - Let ...

Coding & Algorithms
0
0
2 people solved
Jul 26, 2025
Optiver logo
Optiver
Medium
Software Engineer

Count the Days Between Two Dates

Count the Days Between Two Dates You are given two calendar dates as strings in YYYY-MM-DD format. Return the number of days between them as a non-neg...

Coding & Algorithms
0
0
8 people solved
Jul 23, 2025

Frequently Asked Questions

How difficult are Optiver interview questions for Software Engineer and Data Scientist roles?
Optiver interview questions are challenging and time-pressured, with a heavy quantitative and problem-solving emphasis. Expect questions that test algorithmic rigor, low-latency engineering intuition, and fast probabilistic reasoning rather than long, open-ended design essays. Data scientist rounds skew toward probability, expectation, and pattern-detection puzzles that must be solved accurately under time constraints. The 83 Optiver interview questions represented here reflect that mix: many are medium-to-hard algorithmic or probability problems that reward clear assumptions, efficient solutions, and concise explanations rather than brute force or long code. Preparation must be deliberate and simulation-driven.
What is the typical Optiver interview process and where do these questions appear?
The Optiver funnel usually begins with an online assessment or cognitive test, followed by a short technical screen and then multi-round onsite or virtual interviews. Coding and algorithmic problems show up in the early technical screens and the software engineering rounds, while timed probability puzzles and sequence detection exercises appear in cognitive and data scientist interviews. Senior or system-focused roles include architecture conversations that probe low-latency tradeoffs and data models. Behavioral and fit conversations run alongside technical rounds to evaluate ownership, communication, and trading-alignment. Expect tightly timed, focused interviews rather than long exploratory sessions.
How should I structure my preparation timeline for Optiver interviews?
Plan a 6–8 week structured timeline if you have time: start with core algorithm practice and data structures, add timed probability and expectation drills in weeks two to four, and introduce low-latency design thinking and backtesting problem work in the middle weeks. In the final two weeks, do end-to-end mock interviews that mirror real timings and mix problem types, then review mistakes and simplify explanations. If you have less time, prioritize timed practice, mental math, and 15–30 minute coding drills that force concise, testable solutions. Regularly simulate pressure to build speed and clarity.
Which key subtopics do the 83 Optiver interview questions cover?
These questions concentrate first on coding and algorithmic problem solving, then on quantitative reasoning and puzzles. For software engineers you will see circular queue and general queue data-structure design, low-latency trading infrastructure and backtesting strategy questions, tradeoffs between object-oriented and performance-oriented implementations, plus fast pattern and numeric-sequence detection and probability-expectation computations. For data scientists the recurring themes are probability and expectation problems, sequence-rule detection and streaming pattern matching, optimization puzzles such as minimal-move transforms, and program-equivalence reasoning under time pressure.
What are standout preparation tips and common pitfalls to avoid for Optiver interviews?
Practice under realistic time pressure and verbalize assumptions early; Optiver values concise thinking and clear tradeoffs. Prioritize mental math, small worked examples, and writing correct, testable code quickly rather than perfecting micro-optimizations prematurely. For probability problems, check edge cases and derive expectations stepwise; for engineering problems, state latency and memory constraints and justify design choices. Common pitfalls are poor communication of assumptions, overcomplicating simple heuristics, failing to test with quick examples, and ignoring performance considerations in designs. Mock interviews that mix coding, puzzles, and behavioral questions reduce these risks.

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