Clera - Your AI talent agent
LoginStart
Start
D
Duolingo

Senior Software Engineer, Backend

full-time•Pittsburgh•$177k - $240k

Summary

Location

Pittsburgh

Salary

$177k - $240k

Type

full-time

Experience

5-10 years

Company links

WebsiteLinkedInLinkedIn

About this role

<p>Our mission at Duolingo is to develop the best education in the world and make it universally available. It’s a big mission, and that’s where you come in!</p> <p>At Duolingo, you’ll join a team that cares about finding <a href="https://blog.duolingo.com/tag/engineering/?utm_source=greenhouse.com&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=engblog_gh_091224">innovative solutions to complex technical problems</a>, running countless experiments (300+ at a time!) with our massive user base to make data-driven decisions, and educating our users and employees alike. You’ll have limitless learning opportunities, mentorship and collaboration with world-class minds, and a variety of projects with large scopes — while doing work that’s both fun and meaningful.&nbsp;</p> <p>Join our life-changing mission to develop education for our half a billion (and growing!) learners around the world.</p> <hr> <h4 style="text-align: left;">Below you can find more information about the teams we're hiring for:</h4> <p><strong data-stringify-type="bold">Core Service Infrastructure</strong><br>The Core Service Infrastructure team builds and maintains the foundational systems that power Duolingo’s learning app at scale. The team defines and implements best practices to ensure that these critical services remain reliable, high-performing, and easy to operate as the company grows. As a software engineer on the team, you’ll play a key role in building the next generation of these services while championing the adoption of next-generation technologies that will power Duolingo’s continued growth.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Service Delivery Team</strong></p> <p>As a Backend Engineer on the Service Delivery team, you will have a direct impact on the work of our entire engineering organization and will help ensure our platform is always available for our learners. The Service Delivery team builds and maintains the automated pipelines that power our software development lifecycle. We're responsible for ensuring the rapid, reliable, and secure delivery of our products, from code commit to production deployment. You will play a key role in optimizing and scaling these pipelines, enabling our engineers to ship features quickly and confidently while maintaining the highest quality standards.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h4><strong>:brain: You will...</strong></h4> <ul> <li>Collaborate on software projects with product design and backend aspects</li> <li>Develop, release, and maintain backend services and/or infrastructure</li> <li>Lead individual project priorities, milestones, and ensure we're always shipping</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h4><strong>:check: You have...</strong></h4> <ul> <li>A Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related technical field</li> <li>Strong competencies in data structures, algorithms, and software design</li> <li>Experience programming in Java, Python, or Kotlin</li> <li>Solid understanding of one or more database technologies</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h4><strong>:star: Exceptional candidates will have...</strong></h4> <ul> <li>Industry experience building high-traffic APIs using public cloud providers</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <hr><div class="content-pay-transparency"><div class="pay-input"><div class="description"><p><strong>We post a multi-level salary range for all of our roles.</strong></p> <p><em>This is not inclusive of the rest of our awesome portfolio that includes equity compensation and world-class benefits. Our salary ranges are the same for all US locations. Your recruiter can share more details about the range for a specific level during the hiring process. </em><em>The actual salary within the range is determined by many factors including but not limited to, skills, experience, education, and internal equity.</em></p></div><div class="title">Salary Range: </div><div class="pay-range"><span>$177,700</span><span class="divider">&mdash;</span><span>$240,400 USD</span></div></div></div><div class="content-conclusion"><p class="Z7ph2">Take a peek at how we care for our employees' holistic well-being with our benefits<a class="Z7ph2" href="https://careers.duolingo.com/#benefits">&nbsp;here</a>.</p> <p class="Z7ph2">We will do everything we can within reason to make sure that your interview takes place in an environment that fairly and accurately assesses your skills. If you need assistance or accommodation, please contact&nbsp;<a class="Z7ph2" href="mailto:[email protected]" target="_blank" data-stringify-link="mailto:[email protected]" data-sk="tooltip_parent">[email protected]</a>.</p> <p class="Z7ph2">Duolingo is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.</p> <p class="Z7ph2">By applying for this position your data will be processed as per the<a class="Z7ph2" href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTX9GKeRMOMA9Vtm0vfGibrYPYz8ysl0Dg8KSXgj_PxeT5ChsdnNZZWtpxu4t7xillTPGnngnKCjIbV/pub">&nbsp;Duolingo Applicant Privacy Notice</a>.</p> <p class="Z7ph2">Sign up for job alerts&nbsp;<a href="http://my.greenhouse.io/users/sign_in?job_board=duolingo">here</a>.</p></div>

What you'll do

  • You will collaborate on software projects with product design and backend aspects, and develop, release, and maintain backend services and/or infrastructure. Additionally, you will lead individual project priorities and milestones to ensure timely delivery.

About Duolingo

Our mission is to develop the best education in the world and make it universally available. Duolingo is the most downloaded education app in the history of the App Store and in 2019 became the top-grossing education app worldwide. We set out to do something altogether different in the learning space. Learning a new language is hard; we believe it should be fun. We use bite-sized lessons that feel like playing a game to keep our learners motivated. Learning a new language can also be expensive, and because we believe it should be free, we made it so. Duolingo has been named to: BuiltIn's Best Places to Work (2023), Fast Company Best Workplaces for Innovators (2022), Fast Company 10 Most Innovative Education Company (2022), among others.

Ready to join Duolingo?

Take the next step in your career journey

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Duolingo pay for a Senior Software Engineer, Backend?

Toggle
Duolingo offers a competitive compensation package for the Senior Software Engineer, Backend role. The salary range is USD 178k - 240k per year. Apply through Clera to learn more about the full compensation details.

What does a Senior Software Engineer, Backend do at Duolingo?

Toggle
As a Senior Software Engineer, Backend at Duolingo, you will: you will collaborate on software projects with product design and backend aspects, and develop, release, and maintain backend services and/or infrastructure. Additionally, you will lead individual project priorities and milestones to ensure timely delivery..

Is the Senior Software Engineer, Backend position at Duolingo remote?

Toggle
The Senior Software Engineer, Backend position at Duolingo is based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Contact the company through Clera for specific work arrangement details.

How do I apply for the Senior Software Engineer, Backend position at Duolingo?

Toggle
You can apply for the Senior Software Engineer, Backend position at Duolingodirectly through Clera. Click the "Apply Now" button above to start your application. Clera's AI-powered platform will help match your profile with this opportunity and guide you through the application process.
Clera - Your AI talent agent
© 2026 Clera Labs, Inc.TermsPrivacyHelp

Join Clera's Talent Pool

Get matched with similar opportunities at top startups

This role is hosted on Duolingo's careers site.
Join our talent pool first to get notified about similar roles that match your profile.