20 Front-End Developer Interview Questions to Practice

You’ve put in the time to learn the programming languages you need to become a Front-End Developer. You’ve completed projects in your courses and built a few websites of your own to practice your skills. Your next hurdle is applying for your new job as a Front-End Developer and preparing to ace your interview. 

The interview process can be nerve-wracking, but if you know what to expect and prepare ahead of time, you’ll exude confidence and competence to your interviewer. Our new AI-powered Interview Simulator (currently in beta) is designed to give you practice answering common interview questions for Front-End, Back-End, and Full-Stack Developer positions. You can type or speak your responses, and we’ll give you useful feedback about what you did well and identify areas for improvement.  

Codecademy Pro members can start using the interview simulator today. Don’t have Pro? Upgrade your account today to take advantage of all of our job search features, like the job-readiness checker, portfolio projects, and more.  

Ahead, we’ll go over what you can expect during your Front-End Developer interview, examples of the kind of questions you’ll face, and how to prepare beforehand. 

What to expect when you interview for a job as a Front-End Developer

Some organizations will have you take a programming test before you’re selected for an interview, so don’t be caught off-guard if you’re asked to complete one. You’ve got all the skills you need to succeed after taking online courses and practicing your development skills by building websites. 

Other organizations will ask technical questions during the interview. Or, you may be asked to complete a short skills test or debugging exercise for your technical interview. 

During your interview, you’ll face two different kinds of questions — technical and behavioral. 

Behavioral interview questions

Behavioral interview questions are focused on who you are as a developer, as a teammate, and as an individual. They’ll help them determine if you’ll be a good fit for their team and if you share some of the same values that the company looks for. Behavioral interview questions are more about your personality and your soft skills that aren’t related to coding. 

Technical interview questions

On the other hand, technical interview questions get into the weeds of the code you’ll work with day-in and day-out. Interviewers ask these questions to determine if you have the programming skills to hit the ground running. Some of the questions will ask you to define programming concepts, and others will ask how you apply your programming skills to solve a specific problem. 

What behavioral interview questions should Front-End Developers prepare for?

We’ve compiled a list of behavioral interview questions that a Front-End Developer is likely to face. Some are general tried-and-true interview questions, while others are focused on high-level development concepts but that give the interviewer insight into how you work and collaborate.  

You want to answer truthfully, but convey your strengths.  

20 behavioral Front-End Developer interview questions:

1. Why are you interested in working specifically as a Front-End Developer at our company? 
2. Aside from work, what are your hobbies? Do you participate in any front-end development communities, open-source projects, or personal projects that contribute to your growth as a front-end developer? 
3. Do you have a preference for collaborating remotely or in-person with your team? What communication tools or strategies do you find most effective for remote collaboration? 
4. Can you describe a time when you had to quickly learn a new technology or framework to meet a project deadline? How did you approach it? 
5. How do you stay updated with the latest trends and best practices in front-end development? Can you give an example of how you applied something you learned recently? 
6. Describe a time when you had to troubleshoot and debug a complex front-end issue. How did you approach the problem-solving process? 
7. Tell us about a time when you had to present your work or ideas to non-technical stakeholders. How did you tailor your communication to ensure understanding? 
8. Front-end development often involves managing multiple tasks and deadlines. Can you provide an example of a time when you felt overwhelmed with front-end responsibilities? How did you prioritize tasks and communicate effectively to ensure successful completion of the project? 
9. Can you share an experience where you had a disagreement with your team leader about a front-end-related decision? How did you navigate this disagreement while maintaining a positive working relationship and achieving project goals? 
10. Can you describe a situation where a team member failed to contribute effectively to front-end development tasks? How did you address this situation while ensuring the timely completion of front-end deliverables?  
11. In your most recent front-end project, what were some technical challenges you encountered? How did you overcome these challenges, and what did you learn from the experience?  
12. Describe a situation where you had to handle a critical production issue. How did you troubleshoot the issue and ensure minimal downtime? 
13. How would you describe “great” code in the context of front-end development? What criteria you consider when evaluating the quality of front-end code? 
14. Describe a situation where you had to convince stakeholders or team members to adopt a new technology or approach. How did you build consensus and overcome resistance? 
15. How do your technical skills and experiences align with the specific needs and objectives of our company’s front-end development projects?  
16. What is your current favorite mobile app? What aspects of the front-end design and user experience do you find particularly impressive or inspiring? How do you think these elements contribute to the app’s usability, engagement, and overall success? 
17. Can you tell us about a project that you were particularly passionate about from your past experience? What aspects of the project ignited your enthusiasm, and how did your passion contribute to the project’s success? 
18. How do you approach decision-making when introducing new features or technologies into front-end development projects? How do you mitigate risks and ensure that innovative solutions do not compromise the reliability and maintainability of the codebase? 
19. What’s your favorite website from a UI perspective? How do you think these design choices align with the website’s purpose and target audience? 
20. Based on your observations, what are some areas for improvement on our company website? How would you approach addressing these areas for improvement while aligning with our company’s objectives and branding guidelines? 

What technical skills and knowledge will be covered in the interview?

Your developer resume will give the interviewer a good place to start with their questions, so be sure that it highlights your front-end development skills. (If you’re questioning whether you have what it takes to apply for a position, review your resume against the job descripting using our job-readiness checker.) They’ll be looking for competency in HTML, CSS, JavaScript, user interface skills, and possibly other programming languages and libraries included in their tech stack. 

Be sure to read the job description carefully and flag any specific languages or frameworks that are listed. For example, if you’re going to be using Kotlin for mobile development, you’ll want to practice questions around that language.  

Don’t forget there are even courses and skill paths that will help you prepare for your technical interview, like Pass the Technical Interview with JavaScript or Pass the Technical Interview with Swift. 

How to prepare for your Front-End Developer interview

Now that you know what types of questions you’ll face in your interview, you can begin to practice your answers. The best way to prepare is to simulate the interview conditions, so you’ll want to practice giving answers verbally.  

With our AI-powered Interview Simulator, you can practice answering interview questions out loud and in writing for Front-End, Back-End, and Full-Stack roles. This tool is designed to help you improve your interviewing skills and boost your confidence. 

If you’re thrown a curveball during the interview, you’ll need to think on your feet — but that’s part of being a professional developer.  

When you work on projects, you’ll have to solve problems, debug, and research possible methods to assist you. All these skills will help you explain to the interviewer how you’d solve problems, even if you don’t know the “right” answer offhand.  

This blog was originally published in July 2021 and has been updated to include additional questions and interview prep features.   

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