SharePoint Developer mock interview questions
19 questions a SharePoint Developer panel actually asks, with what each one tests and what a strong answer contains, then practice any of them live. SPFx, Graph and information architecture rounds for SharePoint developer interviews.
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A question a SharePoint Developer panel actually asks, answered out loud, scored on what you said and how you said it. Under two minutes, and nothing to sign up for.
“A department wants a dashboard web part showing items from several lists across sites, filtered to what each user can see. How would you build it in SharePoint Online?”
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19 sharepoint developer mock interview questions
The questions a SharePoint Developer panel actually asks, with what each one is testing and what a strong answer contains. Click any question to run it in a live session: your AI interviewer will cover it and score how you answer.
- 1.
A department wants a dashboard web part showing items from several lists across sites, filtered to what each user can see. How would you build it in SharePoint Online?
Why they ask it: Tests modern SharePoint development end to end: SPFx, data access and security trimming.
A strong answer: Build an SPFx web part in TypeScript, often with React, and fetch data with Microsoft Graph or the SharePoint REST API using the user's delegated permissions so results are security trimmed automatically. For many sites, consider search queries rather than querying each list, knowing search has an indexing delay. Handle throttling with retries that respect the retry-after header, and cache where freshness allows.
- 2.
Explain the SharePoint permission model and what goes wrong when permissions are broken at the item level.
Why they ask it: Permissions are where SharePoint environments become unmanageable.
A strong answer: Permissions inherit from site to library to folder to item, assigned to groups with permission levels. Breaking inheritance at scale creates many unique scopes that are hard to audit, can hurt performance, and confuse users. Better designs use separate sites or libraries for different audiences and Microsoft 365 or security groups rather than individuals.
- 3.
A list has grown past the list view threshold and views are failing. What do you do?
Why they ask it: A classic SharePoint problem that tests practical platform knowledge.
A strong answer: Understand that the threshold limits how many items a single query can scan, not how many items the list can hold. Add indexes on columns used for filtering and sorting, design views that filter on indexed columns first, use folders or metadata to partition, and page results in code. Mention that the threshold cannot be raised in SharePoint Online.
- 4.
When would you use Power Automate or Power Apps instead of custom SPFx code?
Why they ask it: SharePoint developers need to know when low-code is the better answer.
A strong answer: Power Platform suits approval workflows, simple forms and processes business users may maintain, and it speeds delivery. Custom code suits complex UI, performance-sensitive features, reusable components across many sites, or logic that becomes unwieldy in low-code. Consider licensing, governance, who supports it and how it is moved between environments.
- 5.
How would you plan a migration from on-premises SharePoint with custom solutions to SharePoint Online?
Why they ask it: Many SharePoint roles exist because of migrations.
A strong answer: Inventory content, customisations and workflows. Full-trust server-side code and legacy workflows do not move as they are, so decide what to rebuild in SPFx or Power Platform and what to retire. Clean up content and permissions before moving, use a migration tool, run pilot migrations, plan user communication and training, and map URLs to reduce broken links.
- 6.
Your web part works for you but users report it is slow and sometimes errors. How do you investigate?
Why they ask it: A debugging question with SharePoint specifics.
A strong answer: Check the browser network panel for slow or failing calls, look for 429 throttling responses, too many sequential requests, or large payloads. Test with a normal user account since admins may see different data and permissions. Fix with batched requests, selecting only needed fields, caching, and proper error handling with retry.
- 7.
Tell me about a time business users wanted something that would have hurt the long-term health of the SharePoint environment.
Why they ask it: Governance is a big part of the job, and the interviewer wants tact.
A strong answer: A specific request, such as a site per project with unique permissions everywhere, the concern explained in their terms, an alternative that met the actual need, and how it was agreed. Showing you delivered value rather than just saying no is key.
How the SharePoint Developer interview runs
Usually a screen with an IT or Microsoft 365 lead, then a technical interview on SharePoint Online development: SPFx web parts, the permission model, Microsoft Graph and the Power Platform. Many roles still touch on-premises SharePoint or migrations, so expect questions about that too. There may be a practical exercise building a simple web part or designing a site structure, and a conversation with business stakeholders about requirements and governance.
What the panel scores
Modern SharePoint development
Whether you build well with SPFx and Microsoft Graph.
- Uses SPFx and TypeScript fluently
- Relies on delegated permissions for trimming
- Handles throttling correctly
Platform knowledge
Whether you understand SharePoint's constraints.
- Explains the list view threshold correctly
- Designs permissions around groups and sites
- Knows what does not migrate to Online
Solution judgment
Whether you choose between code, low-code and configuration well.
- Considers who maintains the solution
- Accounts for governance and licensing
- Keeps customisation proportional
Stakeholder management
Whether you balance business requests with a healthy environment.
- Explains constraints in business terms
- Offers alternatives
- Plans training and communication
Common questions in every interview
These come up in almost every SharePoint Developer interview regardless of the company or the round.
- 8.
Tell me about yourself.
Why they ask it: Opens the interview and sets the frame. The interviewer is checking whether you can select what matters for this job rather than narrate your whole history.
A strong answer: A 60-90 second arc: where you are now, one or two proof points that match the posting, and why this role is the logical next step. Present, past, then future.
- 9.
Why do you want this role?
Why they ask it: Tests whether you read the job description or mass-applied. Weak answers are about what the candidate gets; strong answers connect to the work itself.
A strong answer: Two specifics from the posting or the company's actual work, plus an honest line about what you want to get better at here.
- 10.
Walk me through your resume.
Why they ask it: Checks that your story holds together and that the transitions were deliberate rather than accidental.
A strong answer: Chronological but fast, with a reason attached to each move and more time on the roles closest to this one.
- 11.
Tell me about a time you failed.
Why they ask it: Tests self-awareness and whether you own outcomes. Interviewers are listening for a real failure, not a disguised strength.
A strong answer: A genuine miss, what you specifically got wrong, the cost, and the concrete thing you changed afterwards that has since held up.
- 12.
Tell me about a conflict with a coworker or manager.
Why they ask it: Predicts how you behave when the team disagrees. The trap is blaming the other person.
A strong answer: The substance of the disagreement, what you did to understand their position, how it resolved, and what the working relationship looked like after.
- 13.
What's your greatest strength?
Why they ask it: Checks whether you know what you're actually good at and can prove it.
A strong answer: One strength that maps to the posting, plus a short example where it produced a measurable result.
- 14.
What's your greatest weakness?
Why they ask it: Tests honesty and whether you're actively working on something. Rehearsed non-answers ('I work too hard') read as evasive.
A strong answer: A real limitation that isn't core to the job, the system you built to manage it, and evidence it's improving.
- 15.
Tell me about a time you had to influence someone without authority.
Why they ask it: Almost every role depends on getting people who don't report to you to change course.
A strong answer: What you wanted, why they resisted, the evidence or framing that moved them, and what actually shipped as a result.
- 16.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
Why they ask it: Tests whether this job fits your trajectory, which is a retention question in disguise.
A strong answer: A direction rather than a title, and a line about the skills this role would build toward it. Vague ambition and rigid title-chasing both land badly.
- 17.
Why are you leaving your current job?
Why they ask it: Screens for red flags. Interviewers listen for how you talk about people you no longer work with.
A strong answer: Forward-looking and specific about what you're moving toward. Criticism of a former employer costs you more than it gains, even when it's deserved.
- 18.
What are your salary expectations?
Why they ask it: Checks whether you've done market research and whether you're in range before anyone spends more time.
A strong answer: A researched range with your target near the bottom of it, framed against the scope of the role. Deflect once if the posting has no band, then answer.
- 19.
Do you have any questions for us?
Why they ask it: The most under-prepared question in the interview, and the one that most changes the final impression.
A strong answer: Two or three questions about how the team actually works: what the first 90 days look like, how success is measured, what the hardest part of the job is.
Every round ends in a scorecard like this
Your SharePoint Developer answers, quoted back, scored on what this role is judged on, with the line to say instead.
Real screen from the app. Sample from a product design round.
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Questions & answers
- Is the SharePoint Developer mock interview free?
- Yes. 30 voice minutes and unlimited typed SharePoint Developer interviews, no card. You get the complete rubric scorecard every time, with the evidence quoted from your own answers. Nothing is blurred.
- Can I use my own job description instead?
- Yes. Predefined roles are starting points. Paste any JD in the setup form and your AI interviewer will tailor questions to that posting.
- How is scoring tailored to this role?
- We pre-fill a realistic SharePoint Developer job description and interview format so questions and the scorecard match how this role is actually interviewed.
- Should I tailor my resume before practicing?
- Run a resume fit check against a SharePoint Developer job description first, then practice the interview with the same JD for a tighter loop.