Toast Inc Product Designer Interview Questions
& Process

I interviewed for an Associate Product Designer role at Toast, and honestly, the process was kind of exhausting. The final round was 4.5 hours of 1:1 interviews with different team members and for an associate level role, that felt like overkill. What made it worse was that after all that time and energy, I got a rejection with zero feedback. No explanation, just a “we chose someone else.” It felt pretty disappointing, especially since the interviews themselves actually went well and my experience aligned with the role. If you're early in your design career, I'd say think twice before going through a process like this, and join a company like this. There's a line between being thorough and just being overly demanding of candidates’ time.

I interviewed with Toast and only made it to the Hiring Manager round (2nd). The whole thing took about 3 weeks, and it was pretty straightforward. But honestly, in this market, you've gotta be a perfect fit. I got a referral from a friend there, and just 2 days after they submitted it, I got an email to finish my application. Then, a 30-minute recruiter call was scheduled for the next week to chat about my past experience, career goals, and if I'd fit the culture. It was super smooth and easy; I heard back from the recruiter just 2 hours later and got moved to the hiring manager call, which was about a week after that. The HM call was also 30 minutes, similar to the recruiter call but with more in-depth behavioral questions to get a better understanding of my design process and cultural fit. The HM call went well overall; there wasn't a set script, and we just went with the flow. I didn't quite nail two of the questions (didn't use STAR format). Three days later, the recruiter let me know they decided to move forward with other candidates, but didn't give any specific feedback.

The interview experience was great and really quick. I applied online and a recruiter reached out for a phone screen to chat about my background and if I was a fit. Then I talked to the hiring manager about my experience and the role. After that, I did a panel review where I presented a case study to show my design thinking and how I make decisions. Then I had a few more 1-on-1 chats with people on the panel. It was all really organized, and the recruiter kept me in the loop with clear directions and fast replies, which helped me get ready. Everyone I met was really nice and professional.