Google L3 vs Doordash E4
Google has been a dream company of mine for a while and I would have instant accepted it over my other offers had Doordash not given a promotion + way more money. I'm not sure if I'm over thinking this and if it's a no brainer... Will update specific TC breakdowns when I get them, YOE 2 Google L3: - told at most around 230k first year - still waiting for host matching which may take a couple weeks - love the culture and can see myself staying here long term - stable company in turbulent times - great WLB - more perks? - resume boost? - slower growth + not transferrable internal tech learned? Doordash E4: - promotion - can hit around 300k - more growth opportunities - no internal tech - blind sentiment seems to be that WLB is really bad - some concern with a potential recession looming that it will impact doordash hard, layoffs may happen? #engineering #software #swe #google #doordash #fang
I can't comment on door dash but I started at Google last month and I'm loving it so far. Google's culture is good enough that I'd pick them over a somewhat higher paying job. I'd recommend having frank conversations with potential managers in your fit meetings regarding what they think your likelihood of promotion is - you may be able to catch up to that door dash offer within a year and end up with the best of both worlds.
somewhat higher like 75k higher? because it seems like that may be the gap right now
75k would be a tough decision. It would probably depend on the results of those conversations - if the manager for the team I preferred seemed to think it was likely I'd get promoted in a year or so, I'd pick Google given that you described it as a dream to work there. Otherwise...idk you have to do what's right for you financially, but consider that happiness and stress don't have price tags but *should* be considered in your decision.
go Google, fulfill your dream, then 2 years later get out of that as you learned your dream is silly, but its just 2 years so you dont lose much anyway
haha frankly very fair, I think it's mostly because of how hyped up Google has been that I had that set in my mind during college
Go for Google, your WLB will be great at L3 and the lifetime value of having worked at Google is probably gonna be higher for you than the comp difference you'll have in the next 2-3 years. You can angle for a Senior or Staff type role at a smaller company once you're ready to leave.
Do you think I'd be setting myself back by not taking a promotion? Like doing a year or two at E4 and then hopping to Google L4?
I'm pretty certain you could easily get Senior interviews at medium-large companies as a Google L4. Source: current Google L4, former senior eng at a medium-sized company. I can get Staff interviews easily but that's possibly due to my work experience.
I am having the same dilemma… $85k comp gap between Google L3 and a company similar to Doordash. Google has also been my dream company but out of 4 offers I just received, it is by far the lowest and I’m struggling to justify the hype
Same... If the comp was comparable it'd be a different story but it's so much lowee
Pick DD, Google is not what it used to be 10 years ago. Don’t understand the hype around it. They gave me an L4 offer and I had an E5 from DD. Comp difference was 100K. I picked DD. My friend was in a similar situation and picked Google. It’s been a month and they still haven’t worked on a proper code while I have already shipped a feature (small one but still…)
Is it good that you shipped a feature in your first month?
Personally I think the time spent ramping up in a low pressure environment at Google is a selling feature. Your first month will be spent on learning the lay of the land and trying out new skills? Yes please.
I was in the same situation a couple of weeks ago. Except the gap between google and DD was > 100k due to other competing offers. Picked DD. Higher risk higher reward
How are you liking it so far? What does the WLB seem like? Any regrets?
Haven’t started yet
Keep in mind that Google's comp is front loaded now, so if you look at your TC over 4 years, it could be even more significant of a gap than 300k vs 230k first year.
How many years of experience do you have? If it’s less than 2, I’d choose Google for sure. 2-3 , you decide on what fits better, 3+ DoorDash might be the better fit.
oh whoops will update that, I'm just a wee bit under 2
Yeah, in that case I’d pick Google. You really aren’t setting yourself “back”. IMO, it’s more important to learn how to think of engineering challenges. I’d optimize for learning right now.