Instacart Operations Interview Questions
& Process
Real candidates share what happened, how many rounds they had,
and how the experience turned out.
Based on 7 interview experiences · FREE TO READ
Candidate interview experiences
First-hand accounts from people who interviewed at Instacart.
Instacart
Operations
Mid Average Neutral experience No offer 4 rounds
Interview process
Recruiter call Take home Phone screen Onsite Background check
Interview formats
Behavioral Technical
So, the whole hiring process for this Operations role began with a chat with a recruiter over the phone. After that, I had to do a take-home assignment that took me about 3 hours to finish. Then, I spoke with the hiring manager for the position, and they invited me for an on-site interview. The on-site part involved four separate interviews, each lasting 45 minutes. I kicked things off in early January, got called in for the on-site in early February, and then heard back with a rejection a couple of weeks after that. It's late April now, and the job is still up, which is weird since they mentioned they were only hiring one person. Makes me think they're either just scouting talent or can't make up their minds, or maybe their expectations are way too high. Honestly, I wouldn't want to join a team that struggles with hiring decisions and puts people through such a drawn-out process.
Confirmed questions1 question
- Can you tell me about your leadership style?
Instacart
People Operations
Mid Average Positive experience No offer 9 rounds
Interview process
Recruiter call Phone screen Take home Onsite
Interview formats
Behavioral Technical
So first I had a 30 minute chat with the recruiter, then a phone interview with the main hiring manager. After that, I had 7 in-person interviews, each about half an hour. Oh, and there was a challenge to complete before the interviews.
Confirmed questions3 questions
- Tell me more about your previous work experiences.
- Can you describe a difficult situation you encountered and how you managed it?
- What are your views on X?
Instacart
Operations
Entry Difficult Negative experience No offer 5 rounds
Interview process
Recruiter call Technical screen Take home Onsite Panel
Interview formats
Behavioral Technical Coding Presentation
I applied for an Operations role at Instacart. The interview process was really bad. First, I got an email from the hiring manager, but then a recruiter I hadn't talked to before called. This recruiter was disengaged and didn't know much about the job, and even gave me wrong info. Then I had to do two challenges: a data challenge where I had to analyze a spreadsheet and create a presentation with little context, and a SQL challenge. I passed those and interviewed with the hiring manager, who was super disengaged, even doing chores during the call. He seemed more interested in my current company's processes than interviewing me, asking for way too much detail. He said I'd move to a panel interview, but the recruiter just called to say they were going with other candidates. It was the worst interview experience in my 20-year career.
Confirmed questions2 questions
- Tell me about your background.
- Can you tell me about the processes and procedures at your current company?
Instacart Operations Interview Questions
Quoted word for word from Instacart interview reports.
“What are your views on X?”
Read reports →“Tell me about a time you collaborated with stakeholders from different departments.”
Read reports →“Can you tell me about your leadership style?”
Read reports →“Tell me about your background.”
Read reports →“Can you tell me about the processes and procedures at your current company?”
Read report →“Can you describe a difficult situation you encountered and how you managed it?”
Read report →“Tell me more about your previous work experiences.”
Read report →Formats, difficulty and experience
Across all 7 Instacart interview reports.