Amazon Interview Prep ​
Read my intro — background, experience, and what I've worked on.
Company Context ​
Amazon's interview process is heavily LP (Leadership Principles) driven. Every round — from behavioral to system design — evaluates how you demonstrate Amazon's 16 Leadership Principles. The bar is high on ownership, diving deep, and customer obsession. Technical rounds cover HLD, LLD, and DSA with a strong emphasis on trade-off articulation and production-level thinking.
Interview Rounds ​
| Round | Focus | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | Leadership Principles (Behavioral) | ~45-60 min |
| Round 2 | High-Level Design (HLD) | ~60 min |
| Round 3 | Low-Level Design (LLD) | ~60 min |
| Round 4 | Data Structures & Algorithms (DSA) | ~60 min |
Prep Notes ​
Leadership Principles ​
| # | File | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 01-leadership-principles-part1 | Customer Obsession, Deliver Results, Ownership, Insist on Highest Standards, Bias for Action |
| 2 | 02-leadership-principles-part2 | Earn Trust, Dive Deep, Learn & Be Curious, Frugality, Have Backbone, Think Big |
High-Level Design ​
| # | File | Problem |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | 03-hld-chat-system | Chat System — security, reliability, delivery guarantees |
| 4 | 04-hld-auction-platform | Auction Platform — concurrency, caching, end-of-auction |
| 5 | 05-hld-social-media | Social Media — celebrity/high-traffic users |
| 6 | 06-hld-url-shortener | URL Shortener |
| 7 | 07-hld-rate-limiter | Rate Limiter — token bucket, fixed/sliding window |
| 8 | 08-hld-cheer-coin | Cheer Coin System |
| 9 | 09-hld-vending-machine-leasing | Vending Machine Leasing Company |
Low-Level Design ​
| # | File | Problem |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | 10-lld-amazon-locker | Amazon Locker System |
| 11 | 11-lld-splitwise | Splitwise — APIs, design patterns, pseudo code |
| 12 | 12-lld-file-filtering-api | File Filtering API System |
| 13 | 13-lld-alexa-devices | Alexa Devices with Battery System |
| 14 | 14-lld-lru-cache-ttl | LRU Cache with TTL |
| 15 | 15-lld-rate-limiter | Rate Limiter (class-level design) |
| 16 | 16-lld-food-ordering | Food Ordering System |
| 17 | 17-lld-in-memory-text-editor | In-Memory Text Editor — gap buffer, cursor, undo/redo |
DSA Problems ​
| # | File | Problem | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18 | 18-dsa-max-sum-path-matrix | Max Sum Path in Matrix (DP) | |
| 19 | 19-dsa-separate-squares | Separate Squares I & II | |
| 20 | 20-dsa-lca-binary-tree-dfs | LCA in Binary Tree + DFS Optimization | |
| 21 | 21-dsa-time-based-key-value-store | Time Based Key-Value Store | Frequently Asked |
| 22 | 22-dsa-detonate-maximum-bombs | Detonate Maximum Bombs | |
| 23 | 23-dsa-next-greater-element | Aggressive Cows / Next Greater Element | |
| 24 | 24-dsa-max-consecutive-ones-iii | Max Consecutive Ones III | Frequently Asked |
| 25 | 25-dsa-max-profit-job-scheduling | Max Profit in Job Scheduling | |
| 26 | 26-dsa-crypto-number | Crypto Number | |
| 27 | 27-dsa-copy-list-random-pointer | Copy List with Random Pointer | |
| 28 | 28-dsa-first-unique-number | First Unique Number | |
| 29 | 29-dsa-car-pooling | Car Pooling | Frequently Asked |
| 30 | 30-dsa-word-break | Word Break I & II | |
| 31 | 31-dsa-random-pick-with-weight | Random Pick with Weight | |
| 32 | 32-dsa-partition-k-equal-sum-subsets | Partition to K Equal Sum Subsets | |
| 33 | 33-dsa-find-min-rotated-sorted-array | Find Min in Rotated Sorted Array | |
| 34 | 34-dsa-132-pattern | 132 Pattern |
Revision Checklist ​
Before LP Round ​
- [ ] Prepare 8-10 strong STAR stories covering all major LPs
- [ ] Practice telling each story in under 3 minutes
- [ ] Map each story to 2-3 LPs it can cover
- [ ] Review the LP-to-question mapping tables in Part 1 & Part 2
Before HLD Round ​
- [ ] Review Chat System and Auction Platform end-to-end
- [ ] Know Rate Limiter algorithms — token bucket, fixed window, sliding window
- [ ] Practice drawing system diagrams for Social Media and URL Shortener
- [ ] Review NFR estimation — DAU, QPS, storage calculations
Before LLD Round ​
- [ ] Review SOLID principles → glomopay-prep/notes/03-solid-principles
- [ ] Practice Amazon Locker and Splitwise class designs from scratch
- [ ] Review design patterns — Strategy, Observer, Factory, Decorator
- [ ] Practice Alexa Devices interface-driven design
Before DSA Round ​
- [ ] Prioritize Frequently Asked problems first
- [ ] Review sliding window, binary search, DP patterns
- [ ] Practice Word Break, Car Pooling, and Job Scheduling
- [ ] Time yourself — aim for optimal solution within 25 minutes
Cross-References (Already Covered Elsewhere) ​
| Topic | Where |
|---|---|
| Design Patterns (Singleton, Observer, Strategy, etc.) | Paytm 02 |
| SOLID principles in code | Glomopay 03 |
| HLD System Design fundamentals | Paytm 04 |
| LLD Problems (Digital Wallet, In-Memory DB) | Paytm 03 |
| Graph DSA (DFS, BFS, Dijkstra) | Temple 01 |
| Arrays, Strings, DP & Trie | Temple 02 |
| OOP & Design Patterns | Temple 03 |