Software Engineer, Backend, Level 5 – Ads Delivery

Snap Inc.; Bellevue (WA); On-site; USD 178,000 - 313,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid parental leave

Medical coverage

Mental health support

Equity RSUs

Job summary

Snap Inc. is seeking a Backend Engineer for the Ads Delivery Platform team in Bellevue, WA. You will design and operate the ads delivery infrastructure, partnering with product, data science, ML, and infrastructure teams to deliver end-to-end solutions.

You will build robust, scalable services with emphasis on reliability, observability, and security, while embracing AI-assisted development and modern workflows. Equity in RSUs is available.

Qualifications

• Experience with distributed systems and backend services.
• Proven ability to operate highly available systems at scale.
• Proficiency in Java, C++, or Python.
• Experience with NoSQL, Redis, and container orchestration.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and operate ads delivery infrastructure and services.
• Collaborate with Product, Data Science, ML, and Infra teams to deliver scalable solutions.
• Design, test, and maintain production systems with observability and automation.
• Promote best practices for availability, security, and architecture evolution.
• Leverage AI tools while ensuring code correctness and security.

Skills

Distributed systems

Large-scale microservices

Cloud & storage systems

Security & networking

Java/C++/Python

Kubernetes

NoSQL/Redis

AI-assisted development

Incident response ability

Collaborative teamwork

Education

Bachelor’s in CS or related field

Master’s or PhD in technical field (optional)

Tools

Kubernetes

AWS/Google Cloud

Memcached/Redis

NoSQL databases

Job description

We’re looking for a Backend Engineer to join Snap Inc. within our Ads Delivery Platform team.

What you’ll do:

• Design, implement, and operate our ads delivery infrastructure and services. Own critical serving‑time systems and business logic that enable reliable, scalable, and efficient ad delivery.
• Partner closely with Product, Data Science, ML, and Infrastructure teams to translate product vision into scalable technical solutions, driving end‑to‑end execution from concept to launch and ongoing optimization.
• Design, test, debug, and maintain high‑quality production systems, leveraging observability, experimentation, and automation to ensure robust and resilient services.
• Champion best practices in distributed systems, availability, scalability, operational excellence, security, and infrastructure efficiency while helping evolve the long‑term architecture of the ads delivery platform.
• Utilize AI tools and high‑velocity engineering workflows to design and ship scalable services while upholding rigorous standards for code correctness, security, and production‑ready quality code.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Experience with backend services or distributed systems.
• Experience in at least one of the following areas: large‑scale microservices and distributed systems, cloud computing and storage systems, infrastructure and large‑scale system design, security, networking and data storage, machine learning and natural language processing.
• Proven track record of operating highly‑available systems at significant scale.
• Experience with Java, C++, and/or Python.
• Experience with NoSQL solutions, Memcache/Redis, Kubernetes, or Google/AWS services.
• You can independently execute on medium‑sized features, taking a few weeks and multiple PRs to complete.
• You understand the operational aspects of your system and may participate in incident or hotfix investigation and resolution.
• Ability to collaborate and work well with others.
• Proficiency in, or a strong aptitude for, leveraging AI tools to streamline development, paired with the critical judgment to audit generated output for architectural integrity, performance bottlenecks, and security risks.
• Adaptability in learning and applying evolving AI systems and tools to remain at the forefront of engineering trends and modern development practices.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant technical field such as computer science or equivalent years of practical work experience.
• 6+ years of post‑Bachelor’s software development experience; or Master’s degree in a technical field + 5+ years of post‑grad software development experience; or PhD in a relevant technical field + 2+ years of post‑grad software development experience.
• Experience with distributed systems.
• Experience with Java, C++, and/or Python.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience building ad delivery, recommendation, marketplace auction, search, retrieval, or other high‑throughput online serving systems.
• Experience supporting multiple product surfaces through shared backend platforms and frameworks.
• Familiarity with ads concepts, including ad serving, targeting, frequency capping, auctions, bidding systems, pacing, or campaign optimization.
• Experience improving system efficiency, infrastructure utilization, and cost‑performance tradeoffs at scale.
• Experience leveraging AI‑assisted development tools and modern engineering workflows to improve engineering productivity and software quality.

If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.

Equal Opportunity

Snap is proud to be an equal opportunity employer, committed to providing employment opportunities regardless of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding, age, sexual orientation, military or veteran status, or any other protected classification, in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws. EOE, including disability/vets.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable law.

Benefits

Snap Inc. offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes paid parental leave, medical coverage, mental health support, and compensation packages that let you share in Snap’s long‑term success.

Compensation

In the United States, work locations are assigned a pay zone which determines the salary range for the position. The starting pay will be determined based on job‑related skills, experience, qualifications, work location, and market conditions.

Zone A (CA, WA, NYC): The base salary range is $209,000–$313,000 annually.

Zone B: The base salary range is $199,000–$297,000 annually.

Zone C: The base salary range is $178,000–$266,000 annually.

This position is eligible for equity in the form of RSUs.