Amazon Advertising interview process & guide 2026
Everything we know about interviewing at Amazon Advertising: the process stage by stage, what each round tests, compensation by level, and reports from candidates who interviewed.
- 1Application review and recruiter screening
- 2Online assessment
- 3Technical interviews
- 4Behavioral and Leadership Principles loop interviews
- 5Bar raiser and/or final loop check
Interviewing at Amazon Advertising
Amazon Advertising uses a multi-step funnel that mixes recruiter or phone screening, an online assessment, and then technical interviews plus leadership-focused interviews. Across reported roles, you can see the same themes repeatedly: SQL and coding show up early, and Leadership Principles style evaluation shows up throughout the loop.
The loop tests both execution and decision-making. On the technical side, SQL and Python are the most prominent topics, and Large Language Models and RAG also appear in the extracted topic list. Behaviorally, Ownership and Problem Solving are prominent, and interviews often expect you to use STAR Method structure for your stories.
From candidate reports, the process is often time-consuming, and even when interviews feel smooth or moderate, candidates still commonly do not receive offers. The reported difficulty mix skews toward medium and hard questions, and the overall offer rate across the dataset is 0.0%, so plan for rejection as a likely outcome rather than a surprise.
Leadership Principles and STAR-based storytelling are not just a single behavioral round. The topic emphasis and the candidate report themes show they are repeatedly coupled with technical questions across the process, so you should prepare your impact stories in parallel with your SQL and coding practice.
How hard is the Amazon Advertising interview?
Aggregated from 960 interview experiencesAbout 1 in 3 candidates with a known outcome convert.
The interview process, end to end
5 rounds · based on 960 candidate reports- 1Application review and recruiter screening
Your application is reviewed for qualifications and fit. Then you may have a recruiter screen or phone screen to discuss your background, resume, location or basic requirements, and alignment with Amazon Leadership Principles.
- 2Online assessment
You complete an online assessment that evaluates coding proficiency and SQL knowledge. Reports also describe automated assessments like logic games, personality tests, and situational judgment scenarios.
- 3Technical interviews
You go through a series of technical interviews focused on problem-solving and technical depth. Extracted topics highlight SQL and Python heavily, and the topic list also includes Large Language Models and RAG, plus data modeling and A/B testing concepts, depending on the role.
- 4Behavioral and Leadership Principles loop interviews
You participate in behavioral interviews that evaluate cultural fit, communication, and problem-solving abilities. Leadership Principles and STAR Method structure are emphasized, including Ownership and cross-functional collaboration themes across the reported topic list.
- 5Bar raiser and/or final loop check
Some candidates report a Bar Raiser interview, described as a senior engineer style evaluation against high standards. There may also be a final loop stage with additional technical and behavioral evaluations.
What Amazon Advertising actually tests for
How prominent each skill is across reported loopsFind the guide for your role
This is your next step: open the guide for the role you are interviewing for. Each one carries the questions Amazon Advertising interviewers actually ask that position, the loop structure, and pay by level.
Real interview experiences
What candidates said about the loop, difficulty, and outcomes, straight from recent reports for these roles.
What Amazon Advertising pays, by level
Estimated total compensation: base salary plus stock and annual cash bonus.
What separates offers from rejections
Patterns from candidates who got offers, and the mistakes that most often sink a loop.
Do this
- Prepare SQL and Python to a level where you can answer live questions after the online assessment. SQL is the highest-percentile topic and shows up in the assessment descriptions, so treat it as core, not bonus.
- Practice STAR stories that directly demonstrate Ownership and Problem Solving. Your answers should clearly connect situation, actions, and measurable results, because STAR Method and those leadership-related topics are prominent in the extracted interview topics and report takeaways.
- Be ready for LLM and RAG-related discussion if the role is in that orbit. Large Language Models (LLMs) and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) both appear in the topic list, and you may get these alongside more traditional technical rounds.
- Do not treat the online assessment as a ticket to pass. Candidate reports include cases where candidates cleared the OA but still did not move forward, including instances where Leadership Principles linked reasoning was still required during the loop.
Avoid this
- Do not underprepare for Leadership Principles, even if the day you interview feels mostly technical. Multiple reports describe STAR-focused loops and leadership emphasis as a key differentiator, and some candidates report failure even when technical discussion felt acceptable.
- Do not rely on feeling comfortable in one interview to carry the loop. Reports include candidates who described clear or kind interviewers but still received no offer, which suggests you must meet the evaluation criteria across multiple rounds.
- Do not ignore hard difficulty signals. The dataset difficulty split contains a large hard portion (32.0%) and very hard questions (4.4%), so you should be ready for technical depth rather than only medium problems.
- Do not assume timing or logistics will be perfectly consistent. Candidate reports mention scheduling inconsistency and shifting timelines, so confirm your schedule and be flexible.
Amazon Advertising interview FAQ
Answered from real candidate and workplace dataIs there an online assessment, and what does it test?
Yes. Several roles report an online assessment that focuses on SQL and analytics to evaluate technical skills, and candidates also complete automated assessments such as logic games, personality tests, and situational judgment scenarios. Candidate reports consistently describe an OA before moving to technical interviews.
How hard are the technical questions?
The reported difficulty distribution across candidate reports is 10.4% easy, 53.2% medium, 32.0% hard, and 4.4% very hard. This means you should expect a mix with a substantial portion of harder questions.
What should I prioritize most: SQL, coding, or behavior?
Prioritize SQL and Python first for technical readiness, because they are the most prominent extracted topics (SQL percentile 86, Python percentile 85). In parallel, prepare Leadership Principles style answers using STAR Method structure, since Ownership and Problem Solving are prominent and leadership evaluation appears repeatedly in both the topic list and candidate report takeaways.
Do I need to prepare for LLMs, RAG, or feature engineering?
Possibly. Large Language Models (LLMs) and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) appear in the extracted topic list, and feature engineering is also present, though at lower prominence. Only prepare to the extent appropriate for the role you applied to, but do not ignore these topics if they map to the job.
What is the offer rate from your dataset?
Across the 500 candidate reports in the dataset, the offer rate is 0.0%. That indicates rejections are the typical outcome in these reports, even for candidates who progress through multiple stages.
Should I re-apply if I get rejected?
The provided data does not say anything about re-application policy or whether candidates can re-apply. If you want, tell me the role and stage where you were rejected, and I can help you map what likely needs improvement based on the topics and stage patterns.
What people say about Amazon Advertising
Verbatim snippets from employee and candidate reviews“The compensation is high, but the workload is excessive for the pay received.”
“The large company structure offers diverse teams and valuable resources for professional development.”
“Stressful at times, yet still a decent job overall.”
“Be prepared for a high-pressure environment; it can be stressful at times but offers decent opportunities.”
“The focus on RTO5 and performance improvement plans can negatively impact team morale.”
“The company's mature internal developer tools significantly enhance day-to-day engineering efficiency.”
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Ready for your Amazon Advertising interview?
Practice the exact questions from this guide with AI feedback, and walk into your loop knowing what to expect.