The hiring process
| Round | Format | What's tested |
|---|---|---|
| Online Assessment | ~90 min | DSA filter |
| DSA Round | ~60 min | Coding + Java 8 refactoring |
| System Design + LLD | ~60 min | HLD/LLD, DB internals, APIs |
| Bar Raiser / Deep Dive | ~60 min | Project improvement + DB design |
| Hiring Manager / Culture Fit | ~45 min | Ownership and fit |
Process and cutoffs vary by drive/team and change over time — confirm on the official careers page.
Round-by-round: exactly what's asked & how to prepare
Online Assessment
~90 minA timed coding assessment covering different DSA problem types at medium difficulty. Clean, correct solutions advance you.
- Array/string medium problems
- Tree or graph traversal
- Hash-map and sorting logic
- Two-pointer / sliding window
- Basic DP
- Drill medium DSA (NeetCode, free)
- Do timed practice sets
- Review complexity and edge cases
- Practice clean implementation
- Poor time management
- Failing hidden edge tests
- Suboptimal complexity
- Correct, efficient solutions
- Good time use
- Clean code
DSA Round
~60 minA medium DSA problem where you specify time/space complexity, often paired with a discussion on refactoring code using Java 8 features (streams, lambdas, Optional).
- Medium array/string or tree problem
- Refactor imperative code with Java 8 streams
- Hash-map based aggregation
- Sliding window / two pointers
- Complexity trade-off discussion
- Drill medium DSA and always state complexity
- Learn Java 8 streams, lambdas, Optional
- Practice refactoring loops into stream pipelines
- Do mock live-coding
- Weak on Java 8 idioms when asked
- Skipping complexity
- Messy code
- Correct code with complexity
- Fluent Java 8 refactoring
- Clean structure
System Design + LLD
~60 minA round spanning system design, database internals, API principles, and troubleshooting, plus some behavioral aspects. You may design an application (e.g., a news feed) covering requirements, HLD, and LLD, sometimes on paper.
- Design a news feed (requirements to HLD to LLD)
- API design principles
- Database internals and indexing
- Troubleshooting a system issue
- LLD of a service component
- Study system-design-primer + LLD/SOLID (free)
- Practice designing a feed/timeline end-to-end
- Learn DB internals, indexing, and API design
- Do 2 mock designs on paper
- Not clarifying requirements first
- Weak DB internals
- Skipping LLD detail
- End-to-end HLD and LLD
- Solid DB/API knowledge
- Clear troubleshooting reasoning
Bar Raiser / Deep Dive
~60 minA deep-dive round focused on improving your existing project, database design, high availability, and latency, sometimes with an additional design problem (e.g., URL scraping). Tests depth and scalability thinking.
- How you'd improve your current project
- Database schema and design choices
- High availability and latency strategies
- Design a URL scraper or similar
- Scaling a component you built
- Be ready to critique and improve your own project
- Study DB design, HA, and latency trade-offs
- Practice a small design problem end-to-end
- Prepare metrics and trade-offs from your work
- Can't propose improvements to your own work
- Weak DB design reasoning
- No HA/latency awareness
- Reflective improvement of your own work
- Strong DB/scaling reasoning
- Depth under probing
Hiring Manager / Culture Fit
~45 minA behavioral round on major contributions, collaboration, and daily work, plus motivation and team fit.
- A major contribution you're proud of
- Collaboration and feedback style
- Handling ambiguity or conflict
- A production or reliability issue
- Why Freshworks
- Prepare 4-5 STAR stories
- Ready a strong contribution narrative
- Research Freshworks' products
- Prepare questions for the manager
- Vague contribution stories
- No specific motivation
- Overclaiming impact
- Clear ownership and impact
- Mature collaboration
- Genuine interest
What to master
- Arrays, strings, trees, graphs
- Sliding window, two pointers, DP
- Java 8 (streams, lambdas, Optional) and refactoring
- System design (feed/timeline)
- LLD/SOLID
- Database internals, indexing, schema design
- API design and high availability
- STAR behavioral stories
Eligibility
Software engineer through senior/lead; design and bar-raiser depth scale with level. Chennai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru are common bases.
Freshworks salary & compensation (2026)
NASDAQ-listed SaaS; liquid RSUs make it one of the better equity payers among Indian-HQ product firms.
| Role / Level | Experience | India — total CTC | US — total comp | What to know |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SDE-1 (SWE I) | 0-2 yrs | ₹14-24 LPA | — | fixed + RSUs; RSUs are listed stock |
| SDE-2 (SWE II) | 2-5 yrs | ₹26-45 LPA | — | RSU grants add 20-30% of CTC |
| Senior SWE | 5-8 yrs | ₹48-75 LPA | — | liquid RSUs a meaningful share; annual refreshers |
| Staff Engineer | 8-12 yrs | ₹80-120 LPA | — | equity-weighted; broad technical scope |
| Principal / Architect | 12+ yrs | ₹125-180 LPA | — | comp scales with RSU value and impact |
How the package is structured
- Fixed ~65% junior, ~55% senior; RSUs vest 4 yrs and are sellable (NASDAQ-listed).
- ESPP available, adding a discounted-stock benefit.
- Joining bonuses modest (₹1-4L).
- Lever: strong ratings drive RSU refreshers; equity value tracks FRSH share price.
Indicative 2026 market ranges aggregated from public sources (levels.fyi, Glassdoor, AmbitionBox, candidate reports). Compensation varies widely by location, team, level calibration, and negotiation — use these as directional benchmarks, not guarantees.
Your prep plan
- Days 1-3: Medium DSA + Java 8 refactoring practice
- Days 4-6: System design (feed) + DB internals/indexing
- Days 7-8: LLD/SOLID practice
- Days 9-10: Prepare project-improvement + DB-design deep-dive
- Days 11-13: STAR stories + contribution narrative
- Day 14: Full mock loop
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Get my personalized planFrequently asked questions
How important is Java 8?
Notable. The DSA round often includes refactoring code with Java 8 features (streams, lambdas, Optional), so be fluent in them.
What design problems come up?
Application design like a news feed, covering requirements, HLD, and LLD, plus database internals, API design, and troubleshooting.
What is the bar-raiser round?
A deep dive on improving your own project, database design, high availability, and latency, sometimes with an added design problem like a URL scraper.
How much database knowledge is needed?
Meaningful. Expect questions on DB internals, indexing, schema design, and latency, especially in the design and bar-raiser rounds.
Is it more coding or design?
Both. Freshworks wants well-rounded engineers, so prepare DSA, system/LLD design, and behavioral equally.
Where are Freshworks engineering offices in India?
Chennai (HQ), Hyderabad, and Bengaluru are common locations.