Great place to learn a lot but lots of pressure at expense of life style - Software Development Engineer II Amazon Employee Review

4.0
4 Jun 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

You get to learn a whole lot of neat technology at Amazon. It is a very vibrant place and generally the people you work with are friendly. They do compensate you well but there is a reason for that as the explained in the 'Cons' section...

Cons

On-call duties are the worst--very high pressure in which you have to try to solve emergency situation often on code you have NEVER seen before (someone else's code in which that 'someone else' has probably left the company long time ago). Also, getting help from others can be tough at times since everybody is quite busy so you have to find the solution on your own via the company Wiki, etc. Also important is culture: Amazon has lots of 'young' folks and you can sense the condescension from them to older folks. In fact, quite a few of them seem very cynical when interacting with the older generation.

Explore other reviews about Amazon

5.0
20 Apr 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Very talented co workers. Access to world class mentorship, Hyper scale projects. Nice culture

Cons

Stack ranking could be stressful.

5.0
10 Jan 2016
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Really smart people, a lot of opportunity for growth, always encouraged to be innovative, think big, and create something new. Competitive salary and benefits with other major tech companies. 100% self motivating work environment. No dress code and 4 legged friends are welcome.

Cons

You have to be self motivated. NO ONE will hold your hand and tell you that you're doing a great job. If you need constant affirmations from management, this company isn't for you.

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