Spotify Backend Engineer interview with unexpected domain questions

Spotify·Backend Engineer·Reported May 2026
Technical ScreenRejectedHard

I started with an initial screening, which led to a technical screen divided into three parts: a discussion of my project, domain questions, and LeetCode-style coding. I expected the domain questions to relate to the project I’d discussed, but the atmosphere felt cold.

During the domain section, the interviewer seemed to jump around and choose questions on the spot. I got a lot of basic, exam-like topics that I genuinely hadn’t anticipated. It disrupted my rhythm. I could prepare for the coding and project discussion with more confidence, while the domain questions felt random.

The interviewers weren’t rude, but the experience was difficult for me because of that mismatch. I didn’t get an offer, and I left feeling that my preparation didn’t map cleanly to what I was actually asked.

Location: Stockholm, Stockholm. Overall feedback: Negative. Offer status: No offer.

Published

Curated and edited by PracHub

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Interview at a glance

Company
Spotify
Role
Backend Engineer
Rounds
Technical Screen
Outcome
Rejected
Difficulty
Hard
Date
Reported May 2026

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