Senior Software Development Engineer - Big Data

Zillow Group; United States; Remote; USD 156,000 - 263,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity awards

Remote work

Job summary

Zillow Group is seeking a Senior Software Development Engineer, Big Data, to design, build, and optimize scalable data pipelines and infrastructure powering analytics, ML, and AI-driven experiences across Zillow. You will apply advanced software engineering and big data expertise to deliver reliable data products for teams to make data-informed decisions.

Lead design reviews, mentor engineers on data quality and reliability, collaborate with product, analytics, data science, and platform teams,

Qualifications

• Architect scalable data pipelines and services for analytics, ML and product use cases.
• Design data models and processing frameworks for real-time and batch workloads.
• Lead design reviews and mentor engineers on data quality, resiliency, and reliability.
• Collaborate with product, analytics, data science, and platform teams to translate requirements.

Responsibilities

• Architect and implement scalable, secure, and observable data pipelines and services that collect, process, and store large, diverse data sets to support analytics, machine learning, and product use cases.
• Design and optimize data models, storage patterns, and processing frameworks to meet performance, reliability, and cost objectives for high-volume, real-time, and batch workloads.
• Lead technical design reviews, code reviews, and best-practice guidance for Big Data solutions, mentoring engineers on topics such as data quality, resiliency, and operational excellence.
• Collaborate with product, analytics, data science, and platform engineering teams, and company stakeholders, to translate business and modeling requirements into robust, production-grade data solutions and APIs.
• Implement and maintain automated testing, monitoring, and alerting for data services, proactively improving reliability, data quality, and incident response.
• Evaluate and introduce new big data technologies, tools, and patterns to improve developer productivity, platform scalability, and end-to-end data lifecycle management.
• Document data flows, interfaces, and operational runbooks, and contribute to shared standards and patterns for Big Data engineering across the organization.
• Build the company context layer and agentic platform tools, authentication, and APIs that teams across Zillow use at scale.

Skills

Big Data

Distributed Systems

Software Engineering

Data Pipelines

Cloud-native

AI Tools

Databricks

Cross-functional Collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or related field

Tools

Databricks

Job description

About the team

The Big Data Engineering team builds the scalable data platforms, pipelines, and infrastructure that power analytics, machine learning, and AI-driven experiences across Zillow. Our newest effort is a shared AI context and agent platform. Working at the intersection of software engineering and data, this team creates reliable, high-quality data products that help teams make informed decisions and deliver great customer experiences. We value collaboration, craftsmanship, and continuous improvement, and we’re excited by the opportunity to solve complex data challenges at scale.

About the role

The Senior Software Development Engineer, Big Data designs, builds, and optimizes scalable data pipelines and infrastructure that power analytics and AI-driven capabilities across Zillow. This role applies advanced software engineering and big data expertise to create reliable, high-quality data products that enable teams to deliver innovative customer experiences and data-informed decisions. You will get to:

• Architect and implement scalable, secure, and observable data pipelines and services that collect, process, and store large, diverse data sets to support analytics, machine learning, and product use cases.
• Design and optimize data models, storage patterns, and processing frameworks to meet performance, reliability, and cost objectives for high-volume, real-time, and batch workloads.
• Lead technical design reviews, code reviews, and best-practice guidance for Big Data solutions, mentoring engineers on topics such as data quality, resiliency, and operational excellence.
• Collaborate with product, analytics, data science, and platform engineering teams, and company stakeholders, to translate business and modeling requirements into robust, production-grade data solutions and APIs.
• Implement and maintain automated testing, monitoring, and alerting for data services, proactively improving reliability, data quality, and incident response.
• Evaluate and introduce new big data technologies, tools, and patterns to improve developer productivity, platform scalability, and end-to-end data lifecycle management.
• Document data flows, interfaces, and operational runbooks, and contribute to shared standards and patterns for Big Data engineering across the organization.
• Build the company context layer and agentic platform tools, authentication, and APIs that teams across Zillow use at scale.

This role has been categorized as a Remote position. “Remote” employees do not have a permanent corporate office workplace and, instead, work from a physical location of their choice, which must be identified to the Company. U.S. employees may live in any of the 50 United States, with limited exceptions. In California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Washington state, and Washington DC the standard base pay range for this role is $164,400.00 - $262,600.00 annually. This base pay range is specific to these locations and may not be applicable to other locations. In Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Virginia the standard base pay range for this role is $156,200.00 - $249,400.00 annually. The base pay range is specific to these locations and may not be applicable to other locations. In addition to a competitive base salary this position is also eligible for equity awards based on factors such as experience, performance and location. Actual amounts will vary depending on experience, performance and location. Employees in this role will not be paid below the salary threshold for exempt employees in the state where they reside.

Who you are

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
• 8+ years of experience in software engineering with a focus on building and operating data-intensive or distributed systems.
• Experience designing, implementing, and supporting production data pipelines and platforms using modern big data, streaming, and/or cloud-native technologies.
• Experience collaborating with cross-functional partners (e.g., product, analytics, and data science) to deliver scalable data solutions that support business, analytics, and AI needs.
• Hands‑on experience building agentic solutions or skills with major AI tools and internal platform tools used by many teams; Databricks is a plus.
• Or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Get to know us

At Zillow, we’re reimagining how people move—through the real estate market and through their careers. As the most-visited real estate platform in the U.S., we help people navigate buying, selling, financing and renting with greater ease and confidence. Whether you're working in tech, sales, operations, or design, you’ll be part of a company reshaping an industry and helping more people make home a reality. Through Cloud HQ, our strategic approach to distributed work, most employees have the flexibility to work from wherever they’re most productive—enabling us to move fast, stay connected and deliver on our people promise. Zillow is honored to be recognized among the best workplaces in the U.S. Zillow was named one of FORTUNE 100 Best Companies to Work For® in 2026, and included on TIME’s America’s Best Companies 2026 list, reflecting our commitment to creating an innovative, inclusive, and engaging culture where employees are empowered to grow. No matter where you sit in the organization, your work will help drive innovation, support our customers, and move the industry—and your career—forward, together.

Zillow Group is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an inclusive, innovative environment with the best employees. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please contact your recruiter directly. Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with applicable state and local law.

Los Angeles County applicants: Job duties for this position include: work safely and cooperatively with other employees, supervisors, and staff; adhere to standards of excellence despite stressful conditions; communicate effectively and respectfully with employees, supervisors, and staff to ensure exceptional customer service; and follow all federal, state, and local laws and Company policies. Criminal history may have a direct, adverse, and negative relationship with some of the material job duties of this position. These include the duties and responsibilities listed above, as well as the abilities to adhere to company policies, exercise sound judgment, effectively manage stress and work safely and respectfully with others, exhibit trustworthiness and professionalism, and safeguard business operations and the Company’s reputation. Pursuant to the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

It’s not about where you work. It’s about moving forward - together.