Expedia Group Research Analyst interview questions & guide 2026

The questions you will encounter during the Expedia Group hiring process are designed to evaluate your technical competency, analytical structured thinking, and communication skills. While these questions are representative of actual interview experiences, they are meant to highlight key patterns in how the hiring team assesses talent rather than serve as a memorization list.

SQL & Data Manipulation

These questions assess your ability to query, clean, and aggregate data efficiently from relational databases.

• Write a query to find the top three most-searched destinations for each user segment over the last thirty days.
• How would you use a window function to calculate the running total of bookings per day for a specific hotel brand?

Preparing for the Research Analyst interview at Expedia Group requires a balanced approach. You must demonstrate both the technical rigor needed to process large-scale data and the communication skills required to translate that data into business value.

Technical Execution – You must be fluent in SQL and Python. Interviewers evaluate how cleanly and efficiently you write code to manipulate data. Practice writing optimized queries and using libraries like Pandas for data manipulation, keeping performance and readability in mind.

Analytical & Structured Problem-Solving – You will be assessed on how you approach ambiguous business challenges. When presented with a case study, focus on structuring your thoughts systematically before diving into the data. Clearly define your assumptions, break down the problem into logical components, and explain your analytical framework.

Communication & Presentation – A key differentiator for successful candidates is the ability to present insights clearly. During the final rounds, you will present your findings to a panel. Focus on creating a clear narrative, visualizing data effectively, and explaining the business implications of your analysis rather than just the technical steps.

Cultural Alignment & Collaboration – Expedia Group values collaboration, customer centricity, and data-driven decision-making. Show that you are comfortable working cross-functionally, receptive to constructive feedback, and passionate about solving traveler-centric problems.

The interview process for the Research Analyst position at Expedia Group is designed to evaluate both your technical proficiency and your ability to deliver structured business insights. Candidates generally experience a streamlined, supportive, and highly collaborative assessment journey that moves from initial technical screening to a final presentation-based round.

The journey begins with a technical assessment focused on SQL and Python. This round is typically conducted by working analysts who dive into your data manipulation skills using easy-to-medium level questions. The atmosphere is collaborative, with interviewers often guiding you through hints if you get stuck. The objective is to verify that you can write clean, functional code to extract and process data efficiently.

The final stage is a comprehensive case study and presentation round. You will be provided with a dataset and a business question to analyze ahead of time. During this session, you will present your findings to a panel of team members. This round mimics a real-world project at Expedia Group, evaluating how you structure your analysis, formulate business recommendations, and handle questions from stakeholders.

The timeline above details the typical progression from your initial technical screening to the final collaborative presentation. Candidates should use this sequence to phase their preparation, focusing first on core technical coding speed before transitioning to presentation structure and business case synthesis. While the exact duration can vary slightly by location and team, the overall structure remains highly consistent.

To succeed in the Expedia Group interview process, you must excel across several distinct evaluation areas. Understanding what "strong performance" looks like in each area will help you tailor your preparation effectively.

Technical Execution (SQL & Python)

This area evaluates your hands-on coding skills. Interviewers want to see that you can manipulate datasets efficiently without relying on overly complex or unoptimized code.

Be ready to go over:

• SQL Joins and Aggregations – Knowing when to use specific joins, subqueries, and grouping functions to summarize travel data.
• Data Wrangling in Python – Utilizing Pandas and NumPy to clean, filter, and transform raw datasets.
• Window Functions – Using functions like ROW_NUMBER(), RANK(), and SUM() OVER() to perform advanced analytical calculations.
• Advanced concepts (less common) – Optimizing database queries for execution speed, handling nested JSON data, and basic script automation.

Example questions or scenarios:

• "Write a query to identify users who made a search but did not complete a booking within the same day."
• "Using Pandas, write a script to fill missing values in a hotel price column using the median price of that specific geographic region."

Business Case Analysis & Presentation

This area tests your ability to act as a strategic partner. You are evaluated on how you translate raw data into business recommendations and present them to a panel.

Be ready to go over:

• Data Interpretation – Identifying key trends, anomalies, and correlations within a provided dataset.
• Structured Synthesis – Building a logical flow for your presentation, starting with the business problem and ending with actionable recommendations.
• Stakeholder Communication – Explaining your methodology and findings in a way that is accessible to both technical and non-technical team members.
• Advanced concepts (less common) – Recommending specific A/B testing methodologies to validate your business recommendations.

Example questions or scenarios:

• "Based on this dataset of user search behaviors, what recommendations would you make to improve lodging conversion rates during the off-season?"
• "Present a 15-minute deck detailing which marketing channels drive the highest-value bookings, and justify your resource allocation."

Behavioral & Team Collaboration

This area assesses your cultural fit, communication style, and how you handle real-world workplace challenges.

Be ready to go over:

• Cross-functional Collaboration – How you build relationships and work with product, engineering, and business teams.
• Handling Ambiguity – Your approach to solving problems when requirements are unclear or data is missing.
• Receiving Feedback – How you handle constructive criticism and iterate on your work based on team input.

Example questions or scenarios:

• "Tell me about a time when you had to convince a product manager to change their strategy based on your data analysis."
• "Describe a situation where a data pipeline broke right before a major presentation. How did you handle it?"

As a Research Analyst at Expedia Group, your day-to-day work is dynamic and highly collaborative. You will act as the analytical engine for your team, translating traveler behaviors into actionable insights.

Your primary responsibility is to design and execute data analyses that answer critical business questions. This involves writing SQL queries to extract data from cloud data warehouses, using Python to clean and analyze the data, and building dashboards to monitor key performance indicators. You will constantly monitor the health of the business, looking for opportunities to optimize the traveler journey.

Collaboration is central to this role. You will work closely with:

• Product Managers to define success metrics for new features and analyze user interaction data.
• Engineering Teams to ensure that data is captured accurately and pipelines are built to support analytical needs.
• Business Leaders to present insights that shape marketing, pricing, and partnership strategies.

Ultimately, your goal is to ensure that Expedia Group remains a data-driven organization, using empirical evidence to make travel more seamless and enjoyable for users worldwide.

To be competitive for the Research Analyst position, you must demonstrate a strong foundation in data analytics alongside excellent communication skills.

• Must-have skills – Strong proficiency in SQL (joins, aggregations, window functions) and Python (specifically Pandas and NumPy for data manipulation).
• Must-have skills – Proven experience in data visualization and a track record of presenting data-driven insights to stakeholders.
• Must-have skills – Strong structured problem-solving abilities and comfort working with large, complex, and sometimes messy datasets.
• Nice-to-have skills – Experience in the travel, e-commerce, or tech industries.
• Nice-to-have skills – Familiarity with cloud data platforms (such as Snowflake or AWS) and BI tools (such as Tableau or PowerBI).
• Nice-to-have skills – Basic understanding of A/B testing methodologies and statistical analysis.

Ideally, candidates should have a background in a quantitative field (such as Statistics, Economics, Computer Science, or Business Analytics) and a passion for solving user-centric travel problems.

Q: How technical is the Research Analyst interview process? A: The process is moderately technical. You will need a strong grasp of SQL and Python for data manipulation, but you will not be tested on complex software engineering algorithms. The focus is on using code to solve analytical problems.

Q: What is the format of the final round case study? A: You will be given a dataset and a business question a few days before your final interview. You will analyze the data, build a presentation deck, and deliver a 15-to-20-minute presentation to a panel of analysts and team members, followed by a Q&A session.

Q: How collaborative is the interview environment? A: Very collaborative. Interviewers at Expedia Group are known to be friendly and helpful. They view the interview as a collaborative discussion and are happy to guide you or provide hints if you get stuck during technical questions.

Q: What tools and technologies does the team use day-to-day? A: The team primarily uses SQL, Python, and cloud-based data platforms for analysis, along with standard visualization tools like Tableau to share insights with stakeholders.

Q: What is the typical timeline from the first round to an offer? A: The entire process usually takes between three to five weeks, depending on candidate availability and team scheduling. Recruiters generally keep candidates well-informed throughout each stage of the process.

To excel in your interviews, keep these practical, insider tips in mind:

• Focus on the "Why": When writing SQL or Python code, do not just focus on getting the syntax right. Explain your thought process aloud to the interviewer, detailing why you chose a specific join or function.
• Structure Your Presentation: For the final case study, start with a clear summary of your findings and recommendations (the TL;DR) before diving into the technical details. This keeps your audience engaged and aligned.

• Brush Up on Travel Metrics: Familiarize yourself with common e-commerce and travel industry metrics, such as conversion rates, search-to-book ratios, average order value (AOV), and customer lifetime value (LTV).
• Prepare for Iterative Questions: During your presentation, the panel will ask questions about your assumptions and methodology. Do not be defensive; treat this as a collaborative brain-storming session and show that you are receptive to feedback.

• Ask Strategic Questions: At the end of your interviews, ask questions that show you are already thinking like an Expedia Group analyst. Ask about their current data challenges, team structure, or how they measure the success of recent product launches.

The Research Analyst position at Expedia Group offers an exciting opportunity to work with vast, global datasets and make a meaningful impact on the travel experiences of millions of users. By combining technical execution in SQL and Python with structured business thinking and clear communication, you can stand out as a highly competitive candidate.

As you prepare, focus on mastering data manipulation basics, practicing structured case analyses, and refining your presentation skills. Remember that the interviewers are looking for collaborative partners who can turn complex data into compelling narratives that drive business decisions.

The salary insights shown above reflect the competitive compensation packages offered at Expedia Group. When evaluating an offer, consider the complete package, which typically includes base salary, performance bonuses, and travel-related perks. For more detailed interview preparation resources, candidate reviews, and compensation benchmarks, you can explore additional insights on Dataford. Good luck with your preparation—you are well-equipped to succeed!