Senior Data Scientist applicants have rated the interview process at Instacart with 3.1 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 30% positive. To compare, the company-average is 46% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Senior Data Scientist roles take an average of 14 days to get hired, when considering 10 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Instacart overall takes an average of 16 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Instacart as a Senior Data Scientist according to 10 Glassdoor interviews include:
Phone interview: 32%
Presentation: 23%
One on one interview: 18%
Group panel interview: 9%
Background check: 9%
Drug test: 5%
Skills test: 5%
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I applied through an employee referral. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Instacart (San Francisco, CA) in Jan 2019
Interview
There were two phone calls, then a fairly involved 48 hour data analysis project and a 2 hour online coding test, then a full day of on-site interviews. Most of the interview questions seemed more geared toward a business analyst role than a data scientist role.
I applied through other source. The process took 5 weeks. I interviewed at Instacart in Oct 2025
Interview
First there was Tech screening followed by a Take home Assessment where we had to review an experiment and make a recommendation. The Virtual on-site (4 rounds) included one round to review the assessment from before, and other standard rounds (stats, bar raiser, hiring manager).
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Talk me through a project you've done in the past.
Some ab test and casual ml
Lots of cases, sometimes the interviewer does not seem prepared
SQL as well
Requires solid framing of problems especially in the relevant space
Practical ml and ab testing questions
Don’t have a track for metrics versus modeling for DS
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Instacart check out experience with 4 screens, purpose
I applied online. I interviewed at Instacart (California City, CA) in May 2025
Interview
Straightforward even though the process is pretty lengthy. It requires a lot time including a take home that is expected to take 5 hours but you know it usually requires 2 times as much.