How to Crack FAANG Interviews (Part - 1)

Everything you need to prepare smarter, not harder: real patterns, real resources, and a 5-week training system.

Last month I gave the interview loop at Meta, and learnt so much while preparing for it.

FAANG interviews are tough, but they're not unpredictable.

If you understand what each company prioritizes (e.g., Meta = graphs, Amazon = behavioral), you can create a strategy that’s not just efficient but effective.

This isn’t about grinding 300+ problems randomly.

It’s about solving the right patterns, using real interview tags, and following a 5-week plan based on what companies actually ask.

In Part 1, we’ll break down my experience at Meta (Facebook)

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Meta (Facebook)

Key Question Patterns & Company Focus

• Graphs & Trees (BFS/DFS, lowest common ancestor, connectivity): Facebook’s products rely heavily on social graphs and hierarchical data.

• Hash Tables & Two-Pointers/Sliding Windows (cache/indexing, stream processing): Emphasis on real-time feed algorithms and in-place, memory-efficient solutions.

• Tries (autocomplete, prefix matching): Used in search and content suggestions.

• Production-Grade Code: Interviewers expect clear thought process, edge-case handling (e.g., null checks), and in-place optimizations.

Resource List

• Books

  • Cracking the Coding Interview

  • Elements of Programming Interviews (EPI)

• Online Platforms & Tags

  • LeetCode “Facebook” Tag

  • HackerRank Interview Preparation Kit

• Articles & Blogs

  • How Facebook Assembles Its Engineering Team – Joel Spolsky’s blog

• YouTube Channels & Playlists

  • NeetCode (@NeetCode) – search “NeetCode Facebook”

  • TechLead (@TechLead) – search “TechLead Facebook interview tips”

5-Week Training Plan

Week 1 – Fundamentals & Easy “Facebook” Problems

• Goals

  • Master Big-O notation and constant vs. amortized time

  • Review arrays, strings, and hash tables

  • Build confidence solving easy “Facebook”-tagged problems in ≤ 15 minutes

• Problems (15 Easy)

  1. Two Sum

  2. Valid Anagram

  3. Isomorphic Strings

  4. Contains Duplicate

  5. Intersection of Two Arrays II

  6. Happy Number

  7. Valid Parentheses

  8. Best Time to Buy and Sell Stock

  9. Single Number

  10. Merge Two Sorted Lists

  11. Reverse Linked List

  12. Minimum Depth of Binary Tree

  13. Symmetric Tree

  14. Path Sum

  15. Search Insert Position

• Study Actions

  1. Read/solve array & string chapters in CTCI

  2. Write code by hand; explain edge cases aloud

  3. Time yourself (≤ 15 minutes); if you exceed, re-solve after reviewing hints

Week 2 – Trees & Basic Graphs

• Goals

  • Solidify binary tree traversals (inorder/preorder/postorder)

  • Understand basic DFS/BFS with visited sets

  • Solve medium “Facebook” tree/graph problems in ≤ 25 minutes

• Problems (10 Medium)

  1. Binary Tree Inorder Traversal

  2. Maximum Depth of Binary Tree

  3. Symmetric Tree (if not done in Week 1)

  4. Lowest Common Ancestor of a Binary Tree

  5. Binary Tree Zigzag Level Order Traversal

  6. Number of Islands

  7. Graph Valid Tree

  8. Course Schedule (basic cycle detection)

  9. Number of Connected Components in an Undirected Graph

  10. Clone Graph

• Study Actions

  1. Revisit tree traversals and recursion patterns in CTCI/EPI

  2. Implement basic BFS/DFS in pseudocode, then code it

  3. For each problem, write down time/space complexity and edge-case checks

Week 3 – Advanced Graphs & Tries

• Goals

  • Master topological sort, cycle detection, and multi-source BFS

  • Implement Trie from scratch

  • Solve medium “Facebook” graph/trie problems in ≤ 30 minutes

• Problems (8 Medium/Hard)

  1. Alien Dictionary (topological sort)

  2. Word Search II (Trie + DFS)

  3. Design Add and Search Words Data Structure (Trie + wildcards)

  4. Course Schedule II (return ordering)

  5. Network Delay Time (Dijkstra/BFS variation)

  6. Minimum Height Trees (graph pruning)

  7. Cheapest Flights Within K Stops (Bellman-Ford/BFS)

  8. Redundant Connection II (Union Find + DFS)

• Study Actions

  1. Code a Trie class with insert/search/delete in ~20 minutes on paper

  2. Practice dry-running topological sort on small DAGs

  3. For each problem, write out the state transition (e.g., for BFS, define “node” and “edge”)

Week 4 – Two-Pointer, Sliding Window & Dynamic Programming Basics

• Goals

  • Master two-pointer from both ends, fixed and variable sliding windows

  • Cover foundational DP (knapsack, LIS, coin change)

  • Solve combined arrays/DP medium problems in ≤ 30 minutes

• Problems (12 Medium)

  1. Minimum Window Substring

  2. Sliding Window Maximum

  3. 3Sum

  4. Longest Substring Without Repeating Characters

  5. Longest Increasing Subsequence (DP + binary search)

  6. Coin Change (DP bottom-up)

  7. House Robber (DP)

  8. Climbing Stairs (quick DP)

  9. Partition Equal Subset Sum (subset-sum DP)

  10. Longest Palindromic Substring (DP/center expansion)

  11. Word Break (DP + trie optional)

  12. 3Sum Closest (adjacent to 3Sum)

• Study Actions

  1. Draw state-transition tables for DP problems

  2. Hand-simulate sliding window expansion/contraction

  3. Write optimized in-place code (O(N) or O(N log N) where possible)

Week 5 – Mock Interviews & Feedback Loop

• Goals

  • Simulate 3 timed sessions (45 minutes each) under “Facebook” conditions

  • Identify weak spots (syntax errors, edge cases, verbal explanation clarity)

  • Fill gaps: re-drill slow areas (e.g., tree/graph) specifically

• Actions & Platforms

  1. Peer Mock: Pair with a friend; alternate interviewer/interviewee; use a real timer

  2. Online Mock:

     • Pramp – search “Facebook”

     • Interviewing.io – search “Facebook”

  3. Self-Review:

     • Note areas where you froze or took > 15 minutes

     • Re-practice those problems immediately under timed conditions

     • Record yourself explaining the solution aloud; critique clarity

Final Thoughts

Even though they changed their “hiring needs” last second but I learnt so much about it.

The truth is that every FAANG company follows a repeatable pattern, once you study their previous interviews and product-specific needs.

Use this breakdown like a GPS: you still have to drive, but you’ll always know the fastest route.

In Part 2, we’ll tackle Amazon.

Until next week,

Jugaldb