Got through the full SpaceX SWE loop earlier this year targeting a backend role in the Starlink ground software org. Documenting this because the process felt different from other big-tech loops and the info online is scattered.
Timeline was about 6 weeks start to finish. Faster than I expected for a company this size.
Recruiter screen (week 1): Standard call, 30 min. Focused on background and why SpaceX specifically. The "why SpaceX" question is not throwaway. They push on it. The recruiter was direct: they want people who actually care about the mission, not people who just want a resume line. I had a real answer (grew up watching shuttle launches) and it landed.
Online assessment (week 2): Two coding problems, 90 minutes. Medium-level LC difficulty. One was a graph problem, one was more array/string manipulation. Time was fine if you don't overthink.
Phone interview (week 3): 45 minutes, one engineer. Live coding in a shared editor. Single medium-hard problem, graphs again. The engineer was conversational. Wanted to see how I talked through edge cases. No system design at this stage.
Onsite (week 5): 5 rounds in one day. Remote via Zoom for me. 2x coding (medium-hard, one LC-style, one more open-ended) 1x system design (distributed system, not rocket-software, just backend infra) 1x behavioral 1x hiring manager chat, half technical half culture
Total interview time was about 5 hours. Long day.
Offer (week 6): One week after onsite. Comp came in below Google/Meta for the equivalent level but they were clear it's not a comp-first company. Equity is options in a private company, which is a different bet entirely.
Overall the process was well-run. Interviewers were sharp and seemed to actually like working there. That's rarer than it should be.
Happy to answer questions about any specific round.