Capital One vs PayPal Interview Questions
Capital One lists 47 LeetCode interview questions while PayPal lists 105. They share 11 problems — 23% of Capital One's bank and 10% of PayPal's. Focus on the overlap first, then drill into 36 Capital One-only and 94 PayPal-only questions.
Overview
Preparation Strategy
Step 1 — Shared core: Solve the 11 overlapping problems first. These are the highest-yield questions for candidates interviewing at both Capital One and PayPal.
Step 2 — Company-specific depth: Add Capital One-specific problems like Simple Bank System, Block Placement Queries, Minimum Operations to Write the Letter Y on a Grid and PayPal-specific problems from the exclusive lists below.
Step 3 — Difficulty tuning: Capital One skews harder in our data. Budget extra time for Hard problems if you are targeting that company.
Difficulty Comparison
Top Shared Topics
11 Shared Questions
High-priority problems to practice for both Capital One and PayPal.
| Problem | Difficulty |
|---|---|
| Spiral Matrix | Medium |
| Text Justification | Hard |
| Rotate Image | Medium |
| Best Time to Buy and Sell Stock | Easy |
| Word Search | Medium |
| Coin Change | Medium |
| Merge Intervals | Medium |
| Non-overlapping Intervals | Medium |
| Number of Islands | Medium |
| LRU Cache | Medium |
| Valid Parentheses | Easy |
Unique to Capital One (36)
Problems in Capital One's list that do not appear at PayPal.
| Problem | Difficulty |
|---|---|
| Simple Bank System | Medium |
| Block Placement Queries | Hard |
| Minimum Operations to Write the Letter Y on a Grid | Medium |
| Candy Crush | Medium |
| Count Alternating Subarrays | Medium |
| Four Divisors | Medium |
| Simplify Path | Medium |
| Count Operations to Obtain Zero | Easy |
| Longest Continuous Subarray With Absolute Diff Less Than or Equal to Limit | Medium |
| Split Message Based on Limit | Hard |
| Rotating the Box | Medium |
| Number of Black Blocks | Medium |
Unique to PayPal (94)
Problems in PayPal's list that do not appear at Capital One.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many LeetCode questions do Capital One and PayPal share?
Capital One and PayPal share 11 LeetCode interview questions. 36 problems appear only in Capital One's list and 94 appear only in PayPal's list.
What topics overlap most between Capital One and PayPal?
The most common shared topics between Capital One and PayPal are Array (9 shared questions), Matrix (4 shared questions), String (3 shared questions), Dynamic Programming (3 shared questions), Simulation (2 shared questions). Mastering these areas prepares you for both companies.
Which company asks harder LeetCode questions: Capital One or PayPal?
Capital One has 9 Easy, 28 Medium, and 10 Hard questions. PayPal has 19 Easy, 69 Medium, and 17 Hard questions. Capital One has a higher proportion of Hard problems in its interview set.
How should I prepare if interviewing at both Capital One and PayPal?
Start with the 11 shared problems since they cover what both companies ask most often. Then add 20 Capital One-specific and 20 PayPal-specific questions to round out your prep.