Q1 2026 Interview Season — Start preparing today
System Design Interviews,
From the Interviewer's Side
25+ real interview problems from Netflix, Uber, Google, and Stripe. Complete with clarifying questions, architecture diagrams, and trade-off analysis.
The Interview That Haunts You
You've spent years building real systems. You've scaled services to millions of users. But in a 45-minute interview, none of that matters if you can't articulate why you'd choose Kafka over SQS, or when consistent hashing breaks down.
The interviewer doesn't care what you built. They care how you think.
You can explain CAP theorem perfectly, but when asked "Design Twitter's timeline," your mind goes blank
You memorized "Use Kafka for messaging" but can't answer "Why not RabbitMQ? What about ordering guarantees?"
You designed a "scalable URL shortener" but the interviewer wanted to hear about cache invalidation and hot key handling
You watched every YouTube video, but still got rejected — and the feedback was "lacked depth"
One failed interview = 6 months waiting for a re-interview.
That's $100K+ in potential income delayed.
A Framework That Actually Works
We don't teach you tricks. We teach you to think like a systems architect.
Master Fundamentals
Scalability, caching, load balancing, databases — the building blocks interviewers expect you to know
Structured Approach
Learn a repeatable framework: clarify requirements, estimate scale, design components, handle edge cases
Real Interview Problems
25+ problems actually asked at Netflix, Google, Stripe — with complete solutions
See the Difference in Depth
Here's a preview of how we approach problems differently
Design a Rate Limiter
Asked at Stripe, Cloudflare, Google
Typical candidate answer:
"Use Redis with a counter. Increment on each request, reset every minute."
Result: Rejected for lacking depth
What interviewers actually want to hear:
1Clarifying Questions
"Is this per-user or global? Do we need sliding window accuracy or is fixed window acceptable? What's the scale — 1K or 1M requests/second?"
2Algorithm Trade-offs
"Token bucket allows bursting but needs memory per user. Sliding window log is precise but expensive. Sliding window counter balances both — here's when I'd choose each..."
3Edge Cases & Failures
"What happens during Redis failover? Do we fail open (allow all) or fail closed (deny all)? How do we handle race conditions in distributed rate limiting?"
This is the depth we cover for every single problem.
Why Trust This Course?
Created by a senior engineer who has:
Taken 200+ system design interviews at top tech companies
Cracked interviews at multiple FAANG companies — been on both sides of the table
Seen exactly what separates "hire" from "no hire" — the patterns most candidates miss
"Most candidates fail not because they lack knowledge, but because they don't understand what interviewers are actually evaluating. I've sat on both sides of the table — and I built this course to show you exactly what we look for."
What's Inside
25+ real interview problems organized by category
infrastructure7 problems
- Globally Distributed SQL DatabaseAsked at Google, CockroachDB, YugabyteDB
- Multi-Region Disaster Recovery SystemAsked at Netflix, Amazon, Google
- API Rate LimiterAsked at Stripe, GitHub, Twitter
- URL ShortenerAsked at Google, Meta, Twitter
- Distributed Job SchedulerAsked at Airbnb, Uber, Netflix
- + 2 more problems
transportation1 problems
- Uber / Ride SharingAsked at Uber, Lyft, Ola
aggregation1 problems
- Top-K Rankings SystemAsked at Apple, Amazon, Google Play
messaging2 problems
- A Chat SystemAsked at WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Telegram
- Notification ServiceAsked at Facebook, Slack, Discord
streaming1 problems
- Distributed Stream Processing SystemAsked at LinkedIn, Uber, Netflix
social-media3 problems
- News FeedAsked at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
- Ads Management & Delivery SystemAsked at Facebook, Google, Twitter
- Live Comments FeatureAsked at Facebook, YouTube, Twitch
+ 8 more categories
What You Get With Each Problem
Everything you need to master system design interviews
Clarifying Questions
Know exactly what to ask the interviewer to scope the problem
Architecture Diagrams
Visual designs you can draw on a whiteboard
Trade-offs Analysis
Understand what you gain and what you sacrifice with each decision
Scale Calculations
QPS, storage, bandwidth — the numbers interviewers expect
Engineers Trust This Course
Join engineers preparing for interviews at top companies
"I failed my Meta E5 system design round twice — the feedback was always 'lacked depth.' After studying the Rate Limiter and Notification System problems here, I understood what they actually wanted. Passed Google L5 with 'strong hire' feedback specifically on system design."
Senior Engineer
Now at Google (previously rejected at Meta)
"The difference between this and YouTube videos is night and day. YouTube tells you WHAT to design. This teaches you HOW to think. The trade-off sections alone are worth 10x the price."
Staff Engineer
8 YOE, Series B Startup
Problems sourced from interviews at
Who This Is For
Perfect For
- Senior engineers (3-10 YOE) targeting L5+ at FAANG
- Engineers who've failed system design rounds before
- Backend developers who want to think architecturally
- Anyone with 4-8 weeks to prepare seriously
Not For
- Beginners without production backend experience
- People looking for quick tricks or memorization
- Those not willing to do deep work
How We Compare
Not all interview prep is created equal
| Free YouTube | Other Courses | SystemExperts | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depth of Coverage | Surface-level | Moderate | Production-grade |
| Follow-up Questions | Some | ||
| Trade-off Analysis | Brief | Detailed + Alternatives | |
| Real Interview Problems | Generic | Generic | From actual interviews |
| Scale Calculations | Basic | Complete with formulas |
Your 4-Week Interview Prep Plan
A structured path to interview confidence
Week 1: Master the Fundamentals
Scalability, databases, caching, load balancing — build your foundation. ~3-4 hours
Week 2-3: Deep Dive on Problems
Work through 2-3 problems per category. Focus on understanding trade-offs, not memorizing solutions. ~1-2 hours/day
Week 4: Practice Articulation
Review weak areas, practice explaining designs out loud, and test your understanding. ~1 hour/day
Most engineers complete 80% of content in 20-30 total hours
Choose Your Plan
One-time payment. Lifetime access. 7-day money-back guarantee.
Compare the cost:
$150-300
1 hour mock interview
$100K+
Income delayed by failed interview
This course
Less than 2 mock sessions
3-Month Access
Perfect for focused interview prep. Full access to everything for 3 months.
- All 25+ Interview Problems
- System Design Fundamentals
- Research Papers & Deep Dives
- 3 months access
Lifetime Access
One payment. Forever access. Including everything we add in the future.
- All 25+ Interview Problems
- System Design Fundamentals
- Research Papers & Deep Dives
- Lifetime access - never pay again
- All future content included
7-day money-back guarantee. No questions asked.
Frequently Asked Questions
I have an interview in 2 weeks. Is this enough time?
Yes. Focus on the fundamentals section first (3-4 hours), then work through 2-3 problems in each category most relevant to your target company. Many engineers have successfully prepared in 2-3 weeks using our structured approach. The key is understanding trade-offs, not memorizing solutions.
How is this different from Grokking the System Design Interview?
Grokking covers fundamentals well but lacks depth on trade-offs and follow-up questions. We go deeper: each problem includes the clarifying questions interviewers expect, multiple design alternatives with pros/cons, and the edge cases that separate 'hire' from 'strong hire' feedback.
How long will I have access?
Lifetime access. Once you purchase, the content is yours forever. This includes all future updates and new problems we add quarterly.
Is this for frontend or backend engineers?
This course is specifically designed for backend engineers. The problems focus on distributed systems, databases, caching, messaging systems, and other backend infrastructure. Frontend engineers may find some value, but the content assumes backend experience.
What if I'm not preparing for interviews?
The course is valuable even outside interview prep. Senior engineers use it to deepen their understanding of distributed systems, learn from production-grade architectures, and think more architecturally about their own systems.
Do you have video content?
Currently the course is text-based with architecture diagrams. We've found that text allows engineers to learn at their own pace and easily reference specific sections. Videos are planned for future updates.
Can I get this reimbursed by my employer?
Yes, we provide invoices that work with most corporate learning budgets. Many engineers successfully expense this as professional development. Email us if you need a custom invoice format.
What if it doesn't help me?
We offer a 7-day money-back guarantee, no questions asked. If the course doesn't meet your expectations, email us and we'll refund you in full.
Do I need to know distributed systems already?
You should have some backend development experience (2+ years recommended). We cover fundamentals, but the masterclass problems assume you're familiar with basic concepts like APIs, databases, and caching. If you're completely new to backend development, start with our free fundamentals section first.
Your Next Interview Is Coming
The difference between a rejection and a $400K offer often comes down to one system design round.
Don't leave it to chance.
Start Preparing Now7-day money-back guarantee • Lifetime access • New problems added quarterly