Apple interview process with top questions

Apple interview process is fairly straightforward, consisting of a multi-stage hiring process that can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months, depending on the role and team. Apple’s hiring process includes skills tests, behavorial assessments, and team-driven multi-layer interviews.

Here’s an overview of the timeline and stages involved in Apple’s recruitment process.

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Overview of Apple

Apple is one of the world’s largest technology companies, founded by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in 1976, and headquartered in California. As of 2024, the company employs between 147,000 and 164,000 full-time employees, hiring 3,000-4,000 new staff annually. 

The engineering team is the largest and fastest-growing department in the entire company. It is part of the “Big Five” American information technology companies, alongside Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft.

How long does hiring take place at Apple? The average time-to-hire at Apple is 4 to 6 weeks.

The company uses coding assessment platforms like Testlify for technical roles and tests cultural and collaboration fit for non-technical roles. 

The employee retention rate at Apple jumped from 61% to 81% as of 2023, and its median turnover rate is at 1.7 years, which is shorter than Google’s or Microsoft’s but pretty solid for a multinational company. In the retail sector, the retention rate is between 89% and 90%. 

Apple uses “stay interviews” to understand why employees stay or leave. A major retention tool is their stock grants, rewarding employees for significant contributions. 

Apple’s revenue for fiscal year 2024 reached $391 billion, a 2% increase from the previous year, with the iPhone contributing $201.2 billion, Services $96.2 billion, Wearables/ Home/ Accessories $37 billion, Mac $30 billion, and iPad $26.7 billion.

With its vast products and services, the company employs pre-employment assessments, such as skills tests, to evaluate candidates. 

Recruiters can use these skill assessments to design role-specific technical and non-technical tests that evaluate thousands of candidates at once, measuring both hard and soft skills such as cultural fit, psychometrics, and behavioral traits.

Tools like Testlify come with built-in features, such as plagiarism detection, anti-cheating tools, auto-grading, and AI-powered scoring, which help ensure fair and unbiased results.

Apple interview process step-by-step

Apple’s recruitment process is rigorous for both technical and non-technical fields, each stream having distinct interview stages and skills expectations. 

How Apple hires people is quite different from how other FAANG companies hire. 

The company doesn’t follow a single structured protocol throughout; rather, each team works autonomously, deciding which questions to ask, on what basis hiring decisions will be made, etc. Such an approach could make people feel like they’re interviewing at a startup rather than one of the FAANG companies.   

The general hiring process at Apple is decentralized and not fixed, but typically involves 4 to 6 rounds, including resume screening, a phone screen by a recruiter, technical interview (one or more), and on-site interviews with multiple rounds, like coding, behavioral, domain knowledge, etc. 

The exact number of rounds may depend on the role and level, as the process is more intensive and lengthy for managerial and leadership roles. 

Apple interview process stands out from the rest of its FAANG counterparts in a way that if a candidate doesn’t meet the standard, the recruiters either cut interviews short or cancel the rest of the process. 

Apple’s hiring managers and recruiters are not result or process-oriented. Instead, the company focuses on behavioral aspects, such as “what” and “how,” of the candidate. 

Resume screening

Apple receives an average of 53.7 resumes per job opening per day, reflecting intense competition for each role. 

To manage this volume, which can range from hundreds to thousands of applications per position, recruiters begin with an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to screen resumes for relevant keywords, experience, and qualifications aligned with the job description. 

This automated step is followed by a manual review, where recruiters focus on candidates’ quantified achievements, clarity of presentation, role-specific technical skills, and indicators of cultural fit to identify the best matches for the position.

For technical roles, recruiters prioritize resumes that highlight technical skills, past relevant projects, work experience, clear examples relevant to Apple’s technology stack, and soft skills like problem-solving. 

For non-technical roles, recruiters or hiring managers prioritize resumes with quantifiable results, communication skills, strategic initiatives, and cultural fit with Apple’s collaborative and customer-focused values. 

“You need to have a collaborative hiring process”, Steve Jobs

Recruiter phone screen (15-30 mins)

The next step in Apple’s hiring process is a recruiter phone screen, which is standard across all teams. In this stage, candidates are typically asked resume-based and behavioral questions to discuss their key experiences, accomplishments, and how their skills align with the role. 

The recruiter uses this conversation to evaluate cultural fit, overall qualifications, and the likelihood of success in subsequent interview rounds. At the end of the call, candidates are usually given an overview of the next steps in the process. 

Because Apple’s interview structure is less standardized than that of other FAANG companies, the exact steps may vary depending on the team.

Take-home assignment

In some cases, mostly for technical roles, recruiters might ask candidates to complete a take-home assignment, which may or may not be a part of the above initial interview stage. 

This stage assesses candidates’ problem-solving skills and on-the-job task completion.  The hiring manager decides whether to assign a take-home project.

Technical interviews (30-60 mins)

The first round of interviews takes 30-60 minutes via either video or phone calls. A hiring manager or team member will conduct these interviews. These sessions focus on role-related knowledge (RRK) as well as deeper dives into the candidate’s experience. 

This technical screening round may involve a single or multiple recruiter panels. It could also involve a hiring manager screening with a combination of technical and behavioral questions.

The general pattern for this round follows a shared coding environment where interviews evaluate candidates’ basic data structures and algorithm concepts (for technical roles). This round heavily emphasizes candidates’ ability to analyze the complexity of solutions quickly. 

Apple’s technical interview rounds are mostly dependent on the time, but the company primarily uses technical assessment platforms like Testlify. 

Apple does use Leetcode problems to assess technical candidates. 

On-site interviews with assessments (up to 10 rounds)

There is no set number of on-site interviews since this stage depends on the role and the hiring team. However, on average, there would be a loop of up to 10 separate interviews (mostly 6-8 rounds), conducted either in person or virtually. 

Apple has group and role-specific tests as part of the assessment. These simulations are employed to test candidates’ skills like teamwork, problem-solving, customer service, and real on-the-job situations. 

Though the interviewees might vary by role, mostly it will be 1 or 2 interviewers who will be the candidates’ future teammates instead of recruiters or hiring managers. 

For in-person interviews, one of these rounds may even take the form of a lunch interview on Apple’s campus. Also, in certain cases, recruiters might schedule a full cross-functional interview panel as well, depending on the position. 

Technical roles focus on evaluating specialized knowledge and problem-solving skills, while non-technical roles focus on behavioral, strategic thinking, adaptability, and alignment with Apple’s culture and brand. 

Behavioral interview

In some cases, candidates who complete Apple interviews process are invited to a final session with a senior team member. This interview is shorter but highly focused, aiming to address any gaps from earlier rounds and evaluate overall culture fit.

This stage, or the onsite loop itself, is usually the last step before an offer. Unlike Amazon or Google, Apple doesn’t use a centralized hiring committee like Netflix does. The hiring manager makes the final decision based on feedback, interview notes, and team recommendations.

This is the final stage, arranged within one week after completing on-site interviews. After this stage, the next process is offer negotiation, which lasts for 1-2 weeks. 

Here are some behavorial questions asked during Apple’s interview process:

• Tell me about a time you had to work with someone difficult. What did you do to make it work?
  Share a time you came up with a creative solution to a tough problem.
• Describe when you had to quickly learn or adjust to a new tool or process. How did you handle it?
• Talk about a project that didn’t go as planned. What went wrong, and what did you learn from it?
• Give an example of when you had to make an important decision without having all the information. What was your approach?

How does Apple screen for technical roles?

Recruiters screen resumes for relevant programming languages, experience, frameworks, and core technical skills that align with the job description. 

Online assessments, such as coding tests or technical quizzes, are conducted using platforms like Testlify or Apple’s proprietary system to analyze coding and problem-solving skills.

The next step involves a detailed technical interview, including whiteboard coding, system or design discussion, all related to on-the-job skills specific to Apple teams. 

How does Apple screen for non-technical roles?

Apple’s recruiting process for non-technical roles depends on the operational achievements, quantifiable business outputs, leadership experience, communication skills, and cultural alignment with the company. 

Non-technical roles are also assessed using assessments like situational judgment tests, behavioral questions, and detailed discussions around past relevant experiences, such as product release, marketing campaign, etc. 

Communication, cross-functional teamwork, passion for Apple’s mission and values, and customer orientation are key evaluation criteria specifically for non-technical roles. 

How does Apple make final hiring decisions?

Apple’s hiring decisions are driven largely by live, post-interview discussions rather than written feedback or a formal hiring committee, making the process more informal than at other FAANG companies. 

After the on-site interview, the interviewers usually meet the same day to share feedback, vote, and discuss until they reach a decision.

This emphasis on real-time discussion means interviewers are more likely to actively fight for or against borderline candidates than at most other tech giants. 

While consensus is valued, the ultimate authority rests with the hiring manager for that role, making their impression of the candidate especially important.

The software company heavily focuses on both technical and cultural fit, and emphasizes collaboration and expertise. This approach enables Apple to cultivate a workforce that is not only highly skilled but also deeply aligned with its mission to create exceptional products and services.

How does Apple assess culture fit and leadership principles during hiring?

Apple assesses cultural and leadership fit through multi-stage behavioral interviews rather than standalone culture fit tests. Recruiters evaluate candidates using structured conversations and the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to assess whether they possess core values. 

How does the Apple interview process assess culture fit?

Behavioral interviews: Apple’s interviews are designed to understand how candidates align with the company’s values, visions, and missions, such as teamwork, innovation, commitment, user-centric thinking, etc. 

Soft skill evaluation: Attributes like communication, problem-solving, collaboration, and passion for product quality are assessed through targeted questions.

Scenario and Storytelling: Candidates must describe how they handled challenges, worked in diverse teams, and solved real-world problems, usually structured via the STAR framework to ensure answers are specific and outcome-oriented.

How is Apple’s hiring process different from other FAANG companies?

Apple’s recruitment process stands out from other FAANG companies through its decentralization, behavioral focus, and real-time, consensus-driven decisions. 

Rather than running a uniform, centralized interview pipeline, Apple lets each team act almost like its own startup, designing its own question sets, interview formats, and evaluation criteria. 

This flexibility allows candidates to interview with multiple teams simultaneously, experience various interview styles, and face a heavier emphasis on open-ended, behavioral questions designed to understand their thought process, collaboration style, and alignment with Apple’s values. 

While technical assessments still matter, Apple places notable weight on passion for its products and brand ethos, which is less common among its peers.

After onsite rounds, Apple typically gathers all interviewers for live discussions, where they “vote” and debate impressions until they reach a same-day consensus. This informal, impression-driven approach contrasts with the written feedback, rubrics, bar-raiser processes, and hiring committees used at companies like Google or Amazon. 

Because of this, interviewer impressions and group dynamics carry more influence over outcomes, making the process both more flexible and more variable, but also faster and more human than the highly standardized systems at other FAANG firms.

Ready to hire like Apple with Testlify?

Apple’s hiring process is fairly simple, relying heavily on skills assessments. It’s a practice any recruiter from any company can adopt.

Whether it’s checking for cultural alignment or technical roles, Testlify can help you build your dream team with a ready-to-use library with 3000+ solid assessments. 

Try our technical and cultural skills test for free.

Or book a free demo with us to discover how Testlify can help you hire better. 

Key takeaway for recruiters

How Apple hires people is quite simple, and recruiters can easily learn from their hiring strategy. 

Start by using similar channels like social media, blogs, podcasts, and webinars to showcase your brand and culture, while tailoring your outreach and criteria to your target audience. 

Prioritize skills assessment to evaluate technical roles. Assessing hundreds of candidates in one go allows recruiters to eliminate any bias and automate the screening process. 

Culture fit is critical: Behavioral interviews and scenario-based questions ensure candidates align with Apple’s mission. Recruiters should make culture-fit a formal part of screening.

Decentralize your process: Apple lets teams run their own hiring loops. This speeds up decisions and makes interviews more role-relevant.

Real-time decisions matter: Apple interviewers debate and decide the same day. Recruiters can cut delays by replacing multiple review layers with faster consensus calls.

So, there you have it, the secret to Apple interview process. Ready to start with the skills test? Contact Testlify.