Google interview process & questions
Landing a job at the tech giant Google is 8 times harder than getting into Harvard: Google’s acceptance rate is 0.67%, while Harvard’s acceptance rate is 5.2%. In 2019, Google received over 3 million applications but eliminated 99.3% of them. This is largely due to Google’s notoriously tough interview process. To land a job at Google, here are the steps you have to take:
Step 1: Pass the resume screening
Step 2: Pass the phone screenings (1-2 rounds)
Step 3: Pass the on-site interviews (4-5 rounds)
Step 4: Pass the hiring committee reviews
Step 5: Pass the executive reviews and get the offer
In this article, we will look at what goes on in each step of Google’s hiring process, three different types of Google’s interview questions, and three tips to ace any Google interviews. Enjoy reading!
Five steps of the Google recruitment process
Step 1: Pass the resume screening
The first part of Google’s hiring process is, similar to most corporate jobs, resume screening. In this round, recruiters will screen your resume for technical requirements, education, experience,.. to make sure you’re a potential fit.
Although hiring criteria depend on roles and company, the fundamental principles of writing winning resumes at Google is almost identical to writing winning consulting resumes. There are three fundamental rules you must apply in your resume:
What Google looks for in its employees are: leadership ability, analytical problem-solving skills, excellent written and oral communication, “gritty” character, intense curiosity, and humility.
When talking about your experiences and achievements, the way to go is through objective information. A good bullet should sound something like:
“Reduce overhead by 20% (or $2MN) for an online news media company by leading a cross-functional team to migrate the client’s finance operations cost centers to a shared-services model.”
Using professional, structured, and to-the point language implicitly shows screeners that you’re a good communicator. Highlighting your achievements with explicit numbers and good structures also save screening time and leaves a good impression.

Before moving on, I highly recommend you checking out my consulting resume overview and specifically look at the resume examples I corrected to see how these rules can supercharge your resume.
Step 2: Pass the phone screenings (1-2 rounds)
In the phone screening rounds, a recruiter (usually a team member or a manager) will contact you to explain a bit about the interview process and the role you’re applying to. The interview lasts 30 to 60 minutes depending on the role.
Step 3: Pass the on-site interviews (4-5 rounds)
Once you’ve passed the phone screenings, you’ll move on to the tough on-site interviews. In a typical on-site interview, you will be interviewed with another 4-5 people for 45 mins each.
On-site interviews usually consist of 4-5 rounds, in which two things will be assessed: (1) Your fit for the selected role (role-specific fit) and (2) Process, teamwork, and culture fit (firm-specific fit).
For technical roles, there are generally two types of interviews you should be aware of: Coding on-site interviews and System Design on-site interviews. For each type, expect 2 or more interviews.
For both technical and non-technical roles, you’ll definitely get teamwork/process/culture fit interviews. The fit interview will be a combination of topics ranging from agile methodology or workflow, teamwork and collaboration, and conflict resolution.

Step 4: Pass the hiring committee reviews
Congratulations! You’ve passed the toughest on-site interview rounds. At this point, some candidates move directly to the hiring committee but some candidates go through the team-matching phase.
In the team-matching phase, you’ll meet prospective managers to discuss the team you’d be joining and the type of work you would do. If a team wants you, they’ll tell your recruiter and it will be added to your portfolio, which will then be submitted to the hiring committee.
In the day or two leading up to the hiring committee meeting, the reviewers read the candidate’s packet and make a recommendation on whether or not to hire the candidate. At the meeting the reviewers discuss their feedback and if all members agree an offer will be extended.
Step 5: Pass the executive reviews and get the offer
After the hiring committees meeting, the offer list awaits final reviews from an executive. That’s right, at Google, one of the top executives looks at all offers made by the hiring committees before they are extended to candidates.
Often, a Compensation Committee will determine the appropriate total compensation for the offer. Once the results are on the table, your recruiter will contact you, break the exciting news, and explain the details of the offer.
Three tips to ace Google interviews
The beginning of every interview at Google will involve 15-20 minutes of behavioural questions. Hence, it’s crucial that you present yourself in a consistent, thorough manner. Most importantly, however, you must demonstrate the traits that Google looks for in every answer. Below, I’ve summarised three tips to help you ace every fit interview question, keep reading!
Tip 1: Prepare stories, not questions
For any interview, especially fit interviews, it is best to prepare 3-4 detailed, all-round, refined stories exhibiting all the required attributes (for Google, they’re the below “Google” traits). This way, you can tune the stories according to the interviewer’s questions in a flexible, consistent manner.
Instead, in the Case Interview End-to-End Secrets Program, I teach a story-based approach: select a few stories reflecting your best, all-round self, and develop them in detail.
Tip 2: Implicitly show your “Googleyness”
To prepare your stories, compare your past experiences with Google traits, along with personal values you’re most proud of, and select the stories best reflecting those traits and values. You want to show that your values and experiences perfectly match what recruiters look for.
So what are these famous “Google” traits? Above all, Google places emphasis on kindness, empathy, and humility in their people. Successful candidates also excel in these criteria: learning ability, teamwork, communication skills, leadership.
Tip 3: Use the Problem-Action-Result framework
As the name suggests, the Problem-Action-Result method, also known as the STAR method, is a technique you can use to clearly demonstrate specific skills/ traits required for a job position. Using this framework instantly makes your answers more structured, logical, easy for listeners to follow, and easy for you to keep track of.
STAR stands for:
Example: Tell me about a time when you performed well under enormous pressure.
At my previous job, my coworker suddenly needed to take some time off, and their project was left unfinished and without a manager. My supervisor asked me to take on the project, and with no extension on the deadline, I had days to complete a project that should have taken several weeks.
I requested and was granted reduced weekly goals, which freed up more time to finish the special project. I was also able to delegate several of my weekly goals to other teammates. These reductions allowed me to finish the project on time and with complete accuracy.
My supervisor appreciated my attitude and drive, and I was given several more projects after that, along with an eventual promotion and pay raise.
Google interviews’ question types and examples
Google Interview Questions comprises three main types: Fit questions, technical questions, and brain-teaser questions. Fit questions may appear in technical interviews, but are mostly asked during fit interviews. Technical questions are strictly limited to technical interviews, and brain-teaser questions may appear in all types of interviews.
Below, I will walk you through (1) what each question type contains and (2) how you can approach each type. I’ll also include some sample questions so you’ll have a rough idea on how to apply the recommended approach.
No.1: Fit questions
1. What it is:
For example, if you’re applying as a product manager, you might be asked the following fit interview questions:
2. How to approach it:
Remember, the main purpose of behavioural questions is to test your fit for the position you’re applying to. Hence, the key is to prepare 3-4 stories gearing towards the specific job requirements (professional experience, attributes, character, etc).
To prepare an all-rounded story, read this article for the full guide. Alternatively, follow these three steps:
Compare your past experiences with Google traits along with personal values you’re most proud of, and select the stories best reflecting those traits and values.
List down as many details of your stories as possible, make sure they follow this structure: Problem, Actions, Result, Lesson.
Trim the unnecessary details, simplify the technical parts to help the listeners understand, then rearrange and dramatize the rest to make your accomplishments really stand out.
Add the Google spirit into the mix by emphasizing the relevant traits, telling your stories in a structured way, explaining all your actions, etc.
Your style of story-telling should be entertaining for both you and your audience. Take time to practice and find your style – and remember, it should be natural, otherwise you won’t be able to use it in a high-stress, high-stake interview.
Keep in mind that your style should be formal, because it’s a job interview we’re talking about. Don’t do your trademark sarcasms there, it’s not a stand-up comedy session.
No.2: Technical questions
1. What it is:
Technical questions are exclusively reserved for candidates applying for technical roles, such as Software Engineer, Electrical Engineer, Test Engineer, Network Engineer, to name a few. Coding interview questions often fall into the following categories:

2. Example questions:
Below is a comprehensive list of Facebook Coding Interview questions, for all aforementioned categories. Solutions are at the end of every problem.
No.3: Brain-Teaser questions
1. What it is:
But because they’re not officially eliminated, there’s still chances that you might encounter one of them. Hence, it’s still useful to grasp how to deal with brain-teasers. You will also impress the interviewer with the ability to think and work through problems with little data if you get them right.
Brain-teaser questions will generally look like this:
2. Sample questions & answers:
Below, I’ve compiled 10 brain-teaser questions, with answers for each. Alternatively, check out my full A to Z brain-teasers guide, with over 30 example questions and answers.
Answer: 60 minutes. There are only two 30-minute intervals, not three.
Answer: 10. There are two alternating sequences: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 0, 2, 4, 6, 8.
Answer: A nickel (5 cents), and a quarter (25 cents). This question tricks you into thinking neither coin is a nickel.
Answer: 1945 was the number of the hospital room.
Answer: At the start, the number of vacant seats on the bus was x/2. After the first bus stop it becomes x/2 + y.
Answer: M. Letters are in pairs, backwards skipping every third letter: M N (O) P Q (R) S T (U) V W (X) Y Z.
Answer: One that shows an indirect relationship between smoking and lung cancer, i.e “smoking causes X, X causes lung cancer”. The key here is to look at “cause” as a direct relationship.
Answer: Thursday. Today is Friday because “two days from now will be Sunday”. “day follows the day before yesterday” is just yesterday, so it’s Thursday.
Answer: Both are lying. If any of them told the truth, they would deliver one same answer.
Answer: You can’t have “Before-Christ” in the Before-Christ years, because nobody knew who this Christ was.
Read next
Why Google? Answers to this question are essential. This article will show you how to answer the "Why Google" question during your interview.