Academic requirements
Floor: Often 6.5 / 65%
Degrees: B.E./B.Tech/M.Tech/MCA
Backlogs: None active
Year: Final year / recent grad
Nykaa Placement Papers 2026
Nykaa is India’s listed beauty and fashion ecommerce company, operating as FSN E-Commerce Ventures and founded in 2012. Headquartered in Mumbai, it runs online retail across cosmetics, skincare, and fashion categories. Nykaa hires engineers for ecommerce platforms, supply chain, and consumer-facing product teams.
Explore: Online Assessment · Download PDF · Placement Process · Interview Experience · Preparation Guide · Certifications & Career
Who can apply to Nykaa in 2026?
Nykaa does not publish one CGPA for every SDE and Fashion role. Campus tech JDs often print 6.5 / 65%. Recruiter-led SDE-1 loops care more about resume + DSA. Treat numbers as candidate-reported as of August 2026.
Who this hub is for
- For: Students targeting SDE intern / SDE-1 (backend, frontend, full-stack) on Nykaa / Nykaa Fashion tech teams.
- Not the same track: Category, brand, store, or operations hiring. Those may share the brand and skip this OA/LLD story.
- Lateral SDE-1/2: Use fresher sections as the DSA/LLD base; expect deeper Java/HLD.
Degree, CGPA, and “is 6.5 enough?”
6.5 CGPA / 65% meets many campus floors. It is not an offer. A 6.6 who finishes two OA mediums and can design a catalog with shade variants beats an 8.7 who only memorised “Why Nykaa is a women-first brand.”
Projects that help: catalog search, cart, recommendation, or any API with real failure modes. A UI-only tutorial with no schema rarely survives LLD.
On-campus vs off-campus
| Route | What usually changes | What stays the same |
|---|---|---|
| Campus | Batch OA, 6.5 language, 1-3 day loop | Medium DSA + some design |
| Careers / recruiter | Resume screen; OA sometimes skipped | DSA + LLD still appear |
| Referral | Faster screen | Coding bar unchanged |
| Weekend drive | Same-day technicals | Exhaustion is part of the test |
Academic snapshot
| Item | Typical expectation (reported) | Reality check |
|---|---|---|
| CGPA | 6.5+ / 65% on many campus lists | Off-campus more profile-led |
| Degree | B.E./B.Tech/M.Tech/MCA | Related computing degrees |
| Branch | CS, IT, ECE+ | Strong DSA helps adjacent |
| Year | Final year / recent grad | SDE-1 laterals are separate |
| Backlogs | None active | Clear before joining |
| Cities | Mumbai, Bengaluru, Gurugram | Ask office-days policy |
| Languages | Java, Python, JS/TS | Java common for backend |
Skills that filter
Primary: Medium DSA
Differentiator: LLD (catalog/orders)
Backend extra: Java / Spring
First filter: OA or recruiter DSA
Who usually fits and who struggles
Good fit: You enjoy product ecommerce, you can talk about SKUs with variants (shade, size), and you can write medium DSA without panic. Fashion/beauty interest is a plus in HR, not a substitute for LLD.
Harder path: You only did Easy LeetCode. Or you answer design with “we will use Kafka and microservices” and cannot write a Cart class. Nykaa panels have asked retail-outlet LLD and campaign HLD even for SDE-2; freshers should still practise the smaller version.
Branch myth: ECE can clear with DSA + one backend project. Do not assume all-branch Zoho rules.
Gaps and backlogs: explain a one-year gap with shipped work, not a speech. Active backlogs at joining still kill paperwork. Off-campus SDE-1 laterals care less about 6.5 and more about whether you can run two mediums and an LLD in one afternoon.
Documents and portal hygiene: keep careers-form marks identical to marksheets. If an internship is under NDA, prepare a public version of the story. Screenshot the OA invite (duration, languages) - “my senior’s test was 120 minutes” is useless without your mailer. Referrals skip the queue, not the editor.
Selection feel by CGPA band
| CGPA range | Rough chances | Reality check |
|---|---|---|
| Below printed floor | Campus filter | Off-campus + strong GitHub |
| 6.5-7.0 | Eligible many lists | OA + LLD must carry |
| 7.0-8.0 | Common shortlisted | Still two mediums |
| 8.0+ | Helps volume | Does not skip LLD |
Nykaa previous year papers & PDFs
Download 2026 Nykaa placement papers
2026 in detail
2025 placement papers
2024 placement papers
Previous year question papers
Comments & Suggestions
What previous year papers actually train
Nykaa does not publish a permanent official paper. Packs on this site train OA DSA and interview LLD themes - not leaked live tests.
| Round | What papers train |
|---|---|
| OA | Timed 2-3 mediums |
| DSA interview | Live coding: arrays, hashing, DP, trees |
| LLD | Catalog, cart, store, delivery APIs |
| Managerial | Projects + ownership |
| HR | Why Nykaa, city, CTC |
Themes that keep repeating (2024-2026)
- 2024 SDE-2 public notes: DSA mediums (container with most water, group anagrams), LLD of a retail outlet with APIs/schema, HLD of targeted campaigns. Even if you are a fresher, that tells you design is not optional.
- 2025-2026 SDE-1: DSA round (two questions, running code expected), then LLD + Java + Spring Boot for backend, then leadership. Some loops paused on hiring freeze - process still useful to train.
- Frontend SDE-2 (2026): LLD of delivery/driver UI and multi-outlet ordering plus JS/system thinking - frontend is not “only CSS.”
- Campus 2026 prep: Keep medium DSA + one catalog LLD per week. Beauty-specific vocabulary (shade, kit, expiry for some SKUs) is a cheap differentiator.
How Nykaa papers differ from Flipkart/Meesho packs: the DSA families are the same medium set. The design flavour is variant-heavy catalog and retail/outlet more often than “design Instagram.” If you only practised newsfeed HLD, you will stall when they ask you to model shade inventory. Steal Flipkart timing drills; steal Nykaa entity names from this hub.
What a useful review looks like: after a 75-minute mock, write three lines: (1) which problem you should have skipped, (2) one LLD entity you forgot (usually Variant or Reservation), (3) one STAR metric the session reminded you of. That review is the paper. The PDF is just the prompt.
SDE-1 vs SDE-2 paper use: freshers should not chase campaign-HLD at staff depth. Use those GfG SDE-2 notes only to know that design rounds exist. Your practice object is cart + variant + one race condition, spoken in 25 minutes.
How to use one paper set
- Timed 75 minutes, 2 coding prompts.
- Untimed: rewrite + list three catalog edge cases (out of stock shade, duplicate add-to-cart, empty search).
- 20 minutes: sketch classes for
ProductVariant+Cart. - Map misses to DSA families.
- Log one STAR story.
Related problems to practice
| Theme | Drill next | Why they ask |
|---|---|---|
| Group anagrams / hashing | SKU-id grouping | Catalog dedupe |
| Two pointers / container water | Classic OA medium | Timed coding bar |
| Top-K | Trending products | Home feed |
| State machine | Order / return | Lifecycle |
| Interval merge | Delivery slots | Fashion express |
| OOPs parking-lot style | Store / outlet LLD | SDE-1/2 favourite |
Full archive: previous year question papers.
From application to offer at Nykaa
Nykaa hires via campus cells, careers, recruiters, and referrals. After screen, expect product-ecommerce: timed coding, LLD, managerial fit.
Application methods
Campus recruitment
PPT → OA → same-week or next-week interviews.
Recruiter / careers
Screen → DSA → LLD → manager → HR. OA optional.
Referrals
Visibility only. You still write running code.
1. Resume / recruiter screen
6.5 when printed, internships, GitHub. Mention a catalog/order project in one line.
2. Online Assessment - 60-90 min
| Component | Typical (reported) | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| Coding | 2-3 medium | Arrays, hashing, stacks, trees, DP |
| Duration | 60-90 min | HackerRank / similar |
| Languages | Java, Python, JS/TS, C++ | Invite list |
| Advance bar | Often ≥2 AC | Optimal preferred |
Time box: skim 4 min → bank first medium → second full → third only if safe.
Deeper: Nykaa Online Assessment.
3. DSA interview - ~45-60 min
Two mediums with running code is a real SDE-1 pattern. Narrate brute → better → tests. They asked container-with-most-water and group-anagrams in one public SDE-2 loop - those families stay warm.
4. LLD / Java - ~45-60 min
Design a store, catalog, or delivery assignment. Backend JDs add Java internals + Spring. Freshers should still produce:
- Entities (
Product,Variant,CartItem,Order) - APIs (
addToCart,placeOrder,applyCoupon) - One race (two users, last unit of a shade)
- Schema sketch
Worked mini-outline - beauty catalog with variants:
- Product has many variants (shade/size) each with their own inventory and price.
- Search returns products; PDP loads variant stock.
- Add-to-cart is variant-id, not product-id.
- Failure: shade OOS after add → cart line invalidates cleanly.
- Do not invent 12 microservices; say what a fresher service can own.
Worked mini-outline - store pickup / outlet (from public LLD flavour):
- Outlets, inventory per outlet, pickup slots.
- Reserve stock at chosen store.
- Customer no-show → release reservation.
- APIs + tables. Follow-ups on consistency.
5. Managerial / leadership - ~45 min
Projects, OOPs, design thinking, conflict, impact. Some SDE-1 loops call this leadership. STAR with numbers.
6. HR - ~20-30 min
Why Nykaa (beauty/fashion systems), city, CTC ~₹10-18 LPA context, joining. Ask which org (Nykaa vs Fashion vs tech platform).
| # | Round | Duration | Check |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | OA | 60-90 min | Timed DSA |
| 2 | DSA | 45-60 min | Live code |
| 3 | LLD / Java | 45-60 min | Design + stack |
| 4 | Managerial | ~45 min | Ownership |
| 5 | HR | 20-30 min | City + motivation |
Some drives merge 4-5. Trust the invite.
Why campus feels faster and laterals feel longer: campus has a reserved OA window and a placement-week calendar. Recruiter loops wait on engineer availability and can stall if a freeze hits after Round 2. Ask for the next-stage SLA after every clear round so you can manage other offers. Do not ghost a Flipkart/Meesho process because Nykaa “sounded positive.”
Backend vs frontend vs full-stack on the same brand: backend SDE-1 is DSA + Java/Spring + checkout/catalog LLD. Frontend is JS + component/system LLD (listing, PDP, cart UX) + still some DSA. Full-stack campus JDs expect you to pick a primary and not lie about the other. A “full stack” resume that cannot explain either JWT or a React render path gets both grills.
Nykaa vs Nykaa Fashion vs platform teams: the legal entity may be FSN E-Commerce Ventures; the product surface (beauty app vs Fashion marketplace vs shared platform) changes the design prompt. Ask which in HR. Your Why-Nykaa answer should match the team on the req, not a 2018 brand commercial.
Timeline
| Phase | Campus | Off-campus SDE |
|---|---|---|
| Screen | Drive week | 3-10 days |
| OA / first tech | 1 day | 1 week |
| Remaining loop | 1-7 days | 1-3 weeks |
| Offer | 1-5 days | Can pause on freeze |
| End to end | ~1-3 weeks | ~2-4 weeks |
Where to practise for Nykaa
Online assessment
OA format, timing, and question types.
Coding questions
DSA patterns for OA and technical rounds.
Aptitude / mock quiz
Quant, logic, and timed mock quiz.
Interview experiences
Candidate stories and round notes.
HR interview questions
Common HR questions, sample answers, STAR tips.
Week-by-week prep
Study plan and round-by-round strategy.
Nykaa preparation strategy that works
If a Nykaa invite is 3-8 weeks out, treat this hub as the map and the linked practice pages as the drills. Do not reread eligibility ten times. Check the JD once, then spend hours on the filter that actually rejects people.
Typical fresher CTC chatter for Nykaa sits around ₹10-18 LPA (candidate-reported - confirm the letter). Languages students mention most often: Java, C++, Python, C. Pick one and stay with it in OA and interviews.
Eligibility reminder (from student reports): Campus SDE drives commonly report about 6.5+ CGPA or 65%, a B.E./B.Tech or related computing degree, no active backlogs, and final-year or recent-graduate status. Off-campus SDE-1 loops are more resume- and recruiter-screen driven. Mumbai, Bengaluru, or Gurugram joining is typical. Verify the JD.
What you are training for: Fresher/campus: resume screen → online assessment (medium DSA) → Technical (DSA) → LLD / design → managerial → HR. Experienced SDE-1/2 loops often skip a long aptitude paper and run DSA + LLD + HLD/managerial. Campus can compress into 1-3 days; off-campus often 2-4 weeks.
Short version of the prep split: Split time about 40% medium DSA (arrays, hashing, trees, DP), 25% timed OA, 25% LLD (catalog, cart, store/outlet, delivery), 10% managerial STAR and Why Nykaa. Backend Java roles add Spring and OOPs. Frontend roles add JS + UI architecture.
A four-week plan that actually gets used
Week 1 - pattern, not vibes. Language fluency: rewrite 10 old solutions in one language until you stop hunting syntax. Open the Nykaa previous-year sets on this site and mark which sections ate your time. Write the timing on a sticky note. That number is more useful than a 200-problem LeetCode streak you never timed.
Week 2 - the steep filter. Most Nykaa drives fail people on the first timed paper or OA. Do three timed sits this week. After each one, log every miss in a two-column note: topic and why (slow, wrong formula, bad edge case, panic). The next sit should only add problems from that log.
Week 3 - talk tracks. Technical interviews at Nykaa usually want a clean project story, one or two CS fundamentals, and (if the process has it) a behavioral or values round. Write STAR stories on paper, not in your head. Practise “Why Nykaa?” with one concrete product, lab, or business line - not a slogan.
Week 4 - mocks and logistics. Sleep, id photocopies, and a dry run of the oa platform if the invite names one. If you still have energy, redo only the questions you failed in week 2.
Where the hours should go
| Slice | Share of weekly hours | What “done” looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Timed papers / OA | ~40% | You finish a Nykaa-style sit without guessing the clock |
| Coding / role technical | ~30% | You can explain a solution out loud in your chosen language |
| Fundamentals / domain | ~20% | You can teach one OS/DBMS/networks (or domain) topic to a friend |
| Stories + HR | ~10% | Two STAR stories and a specific Why-this-company answer |
If you only have 10 days, keep the same ratios and cut volume, not the timed sits.
Practice pages to open this week
- OA / assessment notes
- aptitude mock quiz
- coding question bank
- interview experiences
- HR question bank
- week-by-week guide
- previous year papers
- 2026 paper page
Use this hub for the Nykaa story (eligibility, rounds, salary). Use those pages for timed reps and interview notes.
Common ways students waste a month
- Collecting 12 Nykaa PDFs and never sitting one under a timer.
- Switching languages every weekend because a senior used a different one.
- Memorising HR answers before they can finish the OA.
- Ignoring the company-specific quirk on this page (unique round, exam name, or role band) and preparing like a generic service-company drive.
If you do one thing after reading this: schedule three timed Nykaa papers on three different days, then interview prep on the leftovers.
If you are starting from a service-company prep base
A TCS/Infosys aptitude deck still helps the quant/logic slice of many Nykaa papers, but do not assume the same cutoff culture. Read the process section on this page once, then swap in Nykaa-specific coding or domain drills from the nested banks. Shared prep is fine; shared assumptions about rounds are not.
10-day crash version
Days 1-3: one timed Nykaa paper each day plus error log. Days 4-6: only the topics you missed, plus 4-6 coding problems in one language. Days 7-8: project + STAR + Why Nykaa. Day 9: one more full mock. Day 10: light review and sleep. This is worse than four weeks, but it beats rereading notes the night before.
What to carry into the interview room
Know your project at the level of what broke and what you changed, not only the tech list on the resume. For Nykaa, interviewers often poke the same hole the OA already tested - be ready to re-solve a warm question on a shared editor or whiteboard. If you used AI to draft code while practising, you still need to type it yourself on the day.
Tracking that does not become a second job
A single note with date, paper name, score/time, and three misses is enough. If you cannot name your last three Nykaa mistakes, you are collecting content, not preparing.
Nykaa compensation & benefits
Candidate-reported as of August 2026.
| Band | Typical reported | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Campus / early SDE-1 | ₹10-18 LPA | Wide by team and year |
| Intern stipend | Varies | Confirm PPO language |
| Upper product chatter | Can exceed 18 | Not the campus default |
Read base, bonus, ESOPs. Business/Fashion non-tech roles are a different band. Hiring-freeze stories mean verbal ≠ offer.
How the ₹10-18 band breaks in student chatter: campus intern stipends sit far below; conversion CTC, if it exists, should be written. SDE-1 FTE offers cluster inside the band with equity as the swing factor. A LinkedIn “23 LPA” screenshot may be a later-level or a different year - do not walk into HR quoting it as the fresher floor. Ask joining bonus, probation, and ESOP cliff. If the loop pauses on a freeze, a competing Flipkart/Meesho letter is leverage; a Telegram screenshot is not.
Benefits vs Blinkit/Flipkart: Nykaa is listed-company process - slower than a 20-person startup, usually less “10-minute delivery” intensity than Blinkit, more catalog/brand complexity than a grocery dark store. Pick it if you want beauty/fashion systems; pick Blinkit/Swiggy if you want logistics latency stories. Pay is not the only axis.
Benefits students ask about
- Office hubs Mumbai / Bengaluru / Gurugram
- Hybrid on some teams, office days still real
- Listed-company process (slower HR than a 10-person startup)
- Product work on beauty/fashion catalog - the actual reason to join if you care
What’s changed in Nykaa hiring lately
Process shape is stable (DSA + LLD). What changed is how often laterals mention Java/Spring and hiring pauses. Prep the loop; keep a backup company warm.
LLD is mainstream
SDE-1/2 write-ups keep a dedicated design round. Prep it.
Java + Spring on backend
Not only DSA. Internals and request flow show up.
Freezes happen
Strong interviews can pause. Keep other processes warm.
Three cities
Mumbai HQ plus BLR/Gurgaon engineering. Confirm the req.
Net for 2026: medium DSA is still the door; LLD is the room you actually get hired from. Practise a variant-aware catalog every week, keep Java/JS matching the JD, and do not freeze a competing process on a verbal. Beauty/fashion systems are the reason to pick Nykaa over another generic ecommerce logo. If you only want logistics latency, Blinkit/Swiggy fit better; if you want Bharat social commerce, Meesho; if you want giant catalog scale, Flipkart. Keep DSA shared; change the LLD object to match the company you are actually interviewing. A lipstick-variant cart sketch will not impress a Blinkit panel; a 10-minute dark-store design will not impress Nykaa. Practise both only if you are sitting both loops this month. Otherwise pick one design object and repeat it until you can speak it in 25 minutes without notes. That repetition is the actual prep.
Nykaa placement FAQs
Process & papers
What is the Nykaa placement process?
Typical SDE: screen → OA (campus) → DSA → LLD/Java → managerial → HR. Campus 1-3 weeks; off-campus 2-4 weeks. Laterals may skip OA.
How many rounds are there in Nykaa interview?
Usually 3-5 after shortlisting. Weekend drives stack them. Count the mailer.
Can I download Nykaa placement papers PDF?
Yes. Free PDFs on this site (2026 PDF). Pattern trainers, not leaks. No registration.
What does the Nykaa OA look like?
Often 2-3 medium coding problems, 60-90 minutes. Focus arrays, hashing, trees, DP. Some SDE-1 loops start with interview DSA instead.
Eligibility & offer
What is Nykaa eligibility criteria for freshers 2026?
Commonly 6.5+ CGPA / 65%, computing degree, no active backlogs, city joining. Your JD wins.
What is Nykaa salary for freshers?
Reported SDE-1 often ₹10-18 LPA. Confirm the written split. Not every Nykaa job is SDE pay.
Which city will I join?
Mumbai, Bengaluru, or Gurugram for most engineering stories. Ask office-days. Be honest in HR.
Prep & Nykaa-specific
How to prepare for Nykaa?
~40% DSA, 25% timed OA, 25% LLD, 10% STAR/Why Nykaa. Guide: preparation guide.
What languages can I use?
OA: Java, Python, JS/TS, sometimes C++. Backend interviews often assume Java. Frontend assumes JS/TS.
Will freshers get LLD?
Plan for it. Public SDE-1/2 loops include retail/delivery design. Practise APIs + schema even for campus.
Nykaa vs Flipkart vs Meesho?
Nykaa = beauty/fashion catalog + LLD. Flipkart = larger e-commerce scale. Meesho = social commerce. Compare Flipkart · Meesho · BigBasket.
Any pro tip?
Two full OA ACs + one weekly catalog/outlet LLD spoken aloud. If Java JD: collections + Spring request path. Why Nykaa needs a systems sentence, not a brand essay.
Where can I read experiences?
Nykaa interview experience and public GfG/LinkedIn SDE-1/2 notes. Maps, not scripts.
What if hiring is on hold after I clear?
It has happened. Keep other offers moving. Do not stop prep on a verbal.
Does Nykaa Fashion use a different process than Nykaa tech?
Fashion/business funnels can be OA + case + HR without LLD. This hub is the SDE path. Read the requisition title before you spend a month on Spring.
Are returns and variants really asked?
Variant inventory is the natural LLD object for beauty/fashion. Returns/refunds show up as follow-ups on order state machines. You do not need a full OMS certification - you need a state diagram you can draw.
Real Nykaa interview notes from candidates
SDE-2 DSA + retail LLD + campaign HLD
One public loop: 1 hour DSA (container with most water, group anagrams), 1 hour McDonald’s-style outlet LLD with APIs/schema, 1 hour HLD for targeted campaigns plus project talk. Steal: even if you are SDE-1 campus, practise outlet/cart LLD so Round 2 is not your first design conversation.
SDE-1 2026 - DSA, then LLD + Java/Spring, then leadership
A LinkedIn SDE-1 note: two running DSA solutions, then a detailed Java/Spring/LLD round, then leadership. Role later went on hold. Steal: prepare the loop fully and keep a backup process.
Frontend SDE-2 2026 - LLD-heavy
Delivery-driver UI and multi-outlet ordering LLD plus managerial. Frontend candidates who only practised CSS puzzles underperform. Steal: state management + API contracts.
48 hours after OA: two mediums, one LLD sketch, two STAR stories, city answer, sleep.
Campus SDE colour: OA still decides who enters the room. Students who only practised untimed Easy problems hit TLE on the second medium. After OA, the surprise is LLD, not another graph theory quiz.
What selected profiles show: two running DSA solutions, a catalog/cart design with variants, one project metric, and a Why Nykaa that mentions checkout or catalog - not a brand essay. Java JDs add collections + a controller flow.
What hurt other candidates: Kafka-name LLD with no Variant table; frontend candidates who could not discuss API contracts; arguing CTC midpoints from Telegram; treating a verbal “we liked you” as an offer during a freeze.
Experience story bank
| Story type | Prompt | Metric |
|---|---|---|
| Ownership | Feature end-to-end | Latency, conversion, bugs |
| Ambiguity | Unclear internship spec | How you scoped |
| Conflict | Approach disagreement | What changed |
| Failure | Broken demo / prod | What you changed next |
| Design | Why this schema | Trade-off you picked |
Mini OA drill
Prompt: Group anagrams (or SKU strings that are permutations). Then, if time: container with most water.
Those two families appeared in a public Nykaa DSA hour. Practise them until they are boring, then invent a catalog cousin (group products by normalised title tokens).
- Clarify empty input and Unicode.
- Hash sorted signature → list of groups.
- Complexity.
- Speak edge cases.
After you clear OA
- Two timed mediums every other day.
- One 25-minute lipstick-variant LLD.
- Java/JS recap matching the JD.
- Two STAR stories.
- City/office-days answer. Sleep.
Do not binge 40 new LeetCode tags. Deepen patterns you already miss.
More: Nykaa interview experience.
Similar companies
Flipkart · Meesho · Amazon · BigBasket · Urban Company · Swiggy