Data Scientist applicants have rated the interview process at Spotify with 2.9 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 40% positive. To compare, the company-average is 47.4% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Data Scientist roles take an average of 43 days to get hired, when considering 57 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Spotify overall takes an average of 39 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Spotify as a Data Scientist according to 57 Glassdoor interviews include:
Phone interview: 34%
Presentation: 21%
One on one interview: 18%
Group panel interview: 9%
Skills test: 9%
Background check: 5%
IQ intelligence test: 2%
Personality test: 2%
Here are the most commonly searched roles for interview reports -
I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Spotify
Interview
Really bad interview process. There were 4 rounds, and the final round is a full day of interviewing and requires doing a lengthy (>4hr) take-home assignment. All in all, it was at least a 12-15hr time commitment for the full process. Additionally, the interviewing was inefficient with repeat interviewers.
Lots of red flags to watch out for:
- Recruiters are not responsive and don't provide much guidance on the interview process (compare that to Meta, which helps candidates prepare and fully leads them through the process).
- FTE Interviewers weren't even enthused about their own company. The culture seems to lean towards bottom->up, which creates some difficulty in getting alignment and having impact. Too entrepreneurial and isolated. Also, some DS roles seem to skew towards data analysis (creating and monitoring KPIs) which is something to keep in mind. Employees didn't seem happy about that.
- Coding questions are done through an actual compiler. This creates some frustrations and waste of time if you're not familiar with the dialect of SQL they use. Seriously, who cares if you know T-SQL vs. MySQL vs. SQL-XYZ. Move to a non-compiling version or pseudo-SQL where the interviewer can move on to more effective questions rather than fixing a MySQL-specific syntax error.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
SQL questions, python/R questions, take-home case study
Gonna do it in a few days, so i'll get back with more info after that. I recieved the email invitation, with some instructions. Tone is inviting right now, we'll see how the interview feels after this
I applied online. I interviewed at Spotify (Toronto, ON) in Apr 2026
Interview
So, At first it was HR interview, After that a technical interview (SQL and Python - 2 questions each) and a long code of SQL that needed to be explained.
After that. I had an interview with Hiring Manager and a case study in the last round. It had 4 rounds in total.
The hiring manager started the first round interview with "I'm gonna get ahead of this but based on your experience I don't think it's a good fit." Huh?? Then why do the interview in the first place? this wasn't even a referral? They were dismissive the whole interview and I couldn't wait for it to end. Also mentioned the role wouldn't be technical which tells me the JD was misleading. Additionally, the pay is below average for the level of experience they were requiring. Overall, not worth it - especially if the interview would be indicative of management style.