Amazon Senior SDE Loop
The Senior SDE loop runs five interviews, and Amazon looks for a system-wide, architectural view alongside strong coding. Design depth and stories with impact beyond a single team carry the level decision. System design is where SDE II and Senior SDE candidates most often separate, so a shallow design can lead to an SDE II offer.
The Rounds
Screens
- Technical Phone ScreenA screen with a senior leader, split between Leadership Principles and a technical half of coding and system design. Senior candidates usually skip the online assessment.Practice Technical Phone Screen
Onsite
- CodingUsually two rounds of medium problems, each ending with Leadership Principles questions. · 55 minPractice Coding
- System DesignAt least one design round. Ask questions to complete and validate the design, and cover reliability, security, and scale. · 55 minPractice System Design
- Low-Level Design or Deep DiveDepending on the team, either object-oriented class design or an architecture deep dive into a project you led. · 55 minPractice Low-Level Design or Deep Dive
- Bar RaiserAlmost entirely behavioral, led by an interviewer from outside the hiring team, with close questions on your own role and the size of the result. · 55 minPractice Bar Raiser
What the Senior SDE Loop Weighs
- A design that covers security, least-privilege access, testability, and operations along with the core components.
- Technical leadership and mentorship across two or more teams.
- Stories that reach business value and adoption beyond your own team, told with metrics.
- Clean, tested code that holds up under follow-up questions.
Sources
Last checked Nov 2026. Loops vary by team and change over time, so confirm the details with your recruiter.