Amazon Solutions Architect Interview Guide
Updated by Amazon candidates
Amazon’s solutions architect interviews focus on technical depth, system design thinking, and your ability to communicate clearly with both engineers and customers. The loop is structured, multi-stage, and grounded in real-world architecture and decision-making.
This guide breaks down the Amazon Solutions Architect interview process step by step, including what each stage tests, the types of questions candidates report, and how to prepare effectively for system design, technical, and behavioral rounds.
Amazon Solutions Architect interview process
The Amazon Solutions Architect interview process typically includes 3 main stages, designed to assess your technical fundamentals, system design judgment, communication skills, and alignment with Amazon’s Leadership Principles.
Across all rounds, interviewers focus on how well you can design cloud architectures, explain trade-offs clearly, and work backward from customer needs.
Interview stages typically include:
- Online or initial screen: Technical fundamentals and baseline cloud knowledge (sometimes skipped depending on background)
- Technical phone screen: Deeper technical discussion plus behavioral questions tied to Amazon’s Leadership Principles
- Onsite interview loop: Multiple interviews covering system design, technical concepts, Leadership Principles, and a technical presentation
The role sits at the intersection of cloud technology and customer engagement. Amazon Solutions Architects work closely with customers to design systems on Amazon Web Services (AWS)—Amazon’s cloud computing platform—so the interview loop emphasizes practical architecture decisions, trade-offs, and clear customer communication alongside technical fundamentals, rather than algorithm-heavy coding.
Online screening
The online screening is an initial technical assessment that some candidates may complete depending on how they apply and their prior experience. This stage focuses on baseline technical knowledge, not deep AWS-specific expertise.
Questions typically cover general technical concepts like data structures, internet infrastructure, and foundational software and systems knowledge. The goal is to confirm that you have the technical fundamentals needed to move forward in the process.
To get a sense of the topics that may appear, review Amazon’s list of software development topics.
This stage is primarily evaluative rather than behavioral. Answering clearly and accurately aligns indirectly with Leadership Principles emphasized later in the process, particularly “Are Right, A Lot” (sound technical judgment) and “Learn and Be Curious” (comfort with core concepts across systems).
Phone screening
If you move forward, the phone screening is conducted by an Amazon Solutions Architect and focuses on both technical understanding and behavioral signals.
This interview is typically split into 2 parts:
- First, you’ll be asked to explain and reason through technical concepts relevant to the role, such as APIs, CDNs, and load balancers. These questions test whether you can clearly articulate how common systems work and why specific architectural choices matter.
- The second part of the conversation focuses on behavioral questions tied to Amazon’s Leadership Principles. These questions usually follow a “tell me about a time when…” format and are mapped to a small set of principles rather than the full list.
Leadership Principles that commonly align with this stage, based on their emphasis later in the interview loop, include “Customer Obsession,” “Ownership,” and “Earn Trust.” Interviewers look for clear examples that show how you’ve made technical decisions, worked with stakeholders, and handled responsibility in real situations.
Onsite interview loop
The onsite interview includes 4–6 interviews with Amazon employees, followed by a technical presentation at the end of the interview loop.
During the onsite, you’ll complete a mix of interviews that typically include:
- At least one round focused on technical concepts
- At least one system design interview
- A 30-minute technical presentation
- 2+ rounds centered on Amazon’s Leadership Principles
Specific examples of interview questions and guidance on how to answer them are covered in the sections below.
Technical knowledge interview
The technical questions in the Amazon Solutions Architect interview aren’t focused on algorithms or data structures in the way software engineering interviews often are. Instead, interviewers assess whether you can reason about real-world systems and explain how cloud infrastructure works in practice.
You may be asked about topics such as:
- Data encryption
- Load balancing
- MapReduce
- Other core concepts in cloud computing and technical infrastructure
These questions are designed to test how well you understand the building blocks behind scalable systems and how those pieces fit together.
To prepare, review the technical concepts covered in Exponent’s System Design Fundamentals course, which focuses on the types of infrastructure and architecture questions that commonly come up in this role.
Familiarity with AWS is helpful, but deep memorization of AWS services is less important than understanding core infrastructure fundamentals. A review of AWS-specific architecture using Amazon’s online courses and certifications can help you refresh terminology and common patterns before the interview.
System design interview
In the system design portion of the onsite, you’ll be asked to design a complex system and work through the solution collaboratively with your interviewer. The focus is on how you break down an open-ended problem and reason through design decisions in real time.
During these interviews, Amazon evaluates:
- Structure: whether you take a systematic, organized approach to the problem
- Comprehensiveness: whether your design accounts for the full set of requirements
- Feasibility: whether your proposed solution is practical and could realistically be implemented
To prepare, review example system design interviews, such as Exponent’s walkthrough on how to design TikTok, and practice with system design prompts from the interview question database.
These interviews are often conducted in a virtual whiteboarding format, so you should be comfortable explaining your design clearly while sketching components and trade-offs as you go.
Technical presentation preparation
As part of the on-site interview loop, you’ll be asked to deliver a technical presentation on a problem you’ve solved previously. Your audience will include both technical and non-technical interviewers, so the goal is to clearly and coherently explain the problem, your approach, and the relevant system design considerations.
If you’re unsure how to structure the presentation, focus on telling a clear, linear story:
- The problem you were solving
- The constraints you were working within
- The decisions you made
- The outcome
Organizing your explanation this way helps interviewers follow your reasoning while giving you space to highlight technical trade-offs and system design choices.
Interviewers use this presentation to assess both your technical judgment and your ability to communicate complex ideas clearly. Because solutions architects are a customer-facing role, you’ll also be evaluated on how you handle questions and objections. Interviewers may role-play as customers and ask questions that push beyond the original scope of your presentation to see how you adapt in real time.
Leadership Principle interview questions
Leadership Principle questions are a core part of the onsite interview loop. These interviews focus on how you’ve made decisions, handled trade-offs, worked with customers, and taken ownership in real-world situations—often alongside technical or system design discussions.
Interviewers typically evaluate a subset of Leadership Principles rather than the full list. For Amazon Solutions Architect candidates, the principles below align most directly with the responsibilities and scenarios tested during the on-site interviews.
Leadership Principle: Customer Obsession
Leaders start with the customer and work backwards. They work vigorously to earn and keep customer trust.
Leadership Principle: Ownership
Leaders are owners. They think long term, act on behalf of the entire company, and take responsibility beyond their immediate role.
Leadership Principle: Invent and Simplify
Leaders expect innovation and consistently look for ways to simplify complex problems.
Leadership Principle: Are Right, A Lot
Leaders demonstrate strong judgment, seek diverse perspectives, and make sound decisions even with incomplete information.
Leadership Principle: Earn Trust
Leaders listen attentively, communicate candidly, and build credibility through their actions.
Leadership Principle: Dive Deep
Leaders stay connected to details, investigate root causes, and are willing to dig into complex problems when needed.
How to prepare for the Amazon Solutions Architect interview
The Amazon Solutions Architect interview is designed to test how you think about real systems, communicate technical decisions, and work backward from customer needs. Strong candidates focus less on memorizing services and more on explaining trade-offs, constraints, and reasoning clearly.
As you prepare, spend time practicing system design conversations, reviewing core cloud infrastructure concepts, and organizing examples that demonstrate ownership, judgment, and customer focus. Be ready to explain not just what you built, but why you made specific decisions and how you handled ambiguity or pushback along the way.
Across every stage, clarity matters. Interviewers are looking for solutions architects who can navigate complex technical discussions while staying grounded in customer impact and practical implementation.
Learn everything you need to ace your Solutions Architect interviews.
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