interviews vs Tech Interview Handbook
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
A free collection of notes, links and practice resources for technical coding interviews.
Open source · MIT
Free, curated coding interview prep materials for busy software engineers.
Our verdict
Both are free, MIT-licensed study resources for software engineering interviews, so the choice comes down to what you need. interviews is a short reference: data structure explanations with complexity notes, plus a long list of links to outside practice sites and videos. Tech Interview Handbook is a condensed guide to the whole process, with curated questions, cheatsheets, resume and behavioral prep, and offer negotiation, though it does not yet cover System Design.
Pick interviews if you want a quick refresher on core data structures and a single list of coding practice platforms and video channels.
Pick Tech Interview Handbook if you have limited study time and want guidance beyond algorithms, such as resume, behavioral, and negotiation prep.
| Key difference | interviews | Tech Interview Handbook |
|---|---|---|
| Main focus | Data structure explanations and links to practice sites | Condensed prep covering the full interview process |
| Non-algorithm content | Not described in the README | Includes resume guidance, behavioral questions, and offer negotiation |
| Gaps to note | README is truncated; some linked sites may be outdated | System Design not yet included; front end content moved to a separate site |
| Commercial links | Promotes a paid service, The Daily Byte, throughout | Mentions affiliate and paid course links throughout |
| Language and format | Primary language Java; read online, no code samples visible | Primary language TypeScript; read on a Docusaurus website |
Written with AI from both products' catalogue entries · updated 2026-10-29
Who each one is for
Choose interviews if you need…
- Students preparing for their first software engineering interviews
- Developers refreshing data structure basics before a technical screen
- People who want a list of online judges and practice platforms in one place
- Learners who prefer short written explanations alongside video content
Choose Tech Interview Handbook if you need…
- Engineers preparing for technical interviews who have limited study time
- Developers new to technical interviews
- Experienced engineers returning to interviewing after a long break
- Candidates who want non-algorithm content such as resume and behavioral prep
Side-by-side
| interviews | Tech Interview Handbook | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Learning resource | Learning resource |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 65.5k | 143k |
| Setup difficulty | Beginner | Beginner |
| How you get it | Read it online | Read it online |
| Main language | Java | TypeScript |
| Last code update | 18 months ago | 3 months ago |
What each one is
interviews
This is a GitHub repository that gathers study material for software engineering job interviews. The README lists links to coding practice sites, video channels, and short explanations of common data structures such as linked lists, stacks, queues, trees, heaps, hash maps, and graphs, along with their time complexity. It is maintained by Kevin Naughton Jr. and is promoted alongside a paid service, The Daily Byte.
Tech Interview Handbook
This is a collection of free interview preparation material for software engineering jobs, including curated practice questions, cheatsheets, resume guidance, and behavioral interview questions. It is mainly read on the project's website, which is built with Docusaurus. It is aimed at people who do not have time to work through hundreds of LeetCode problems.
Best for
interviews
- Students preparing for their first software engineering interviews
- Developers refreshing data structure basics before a technical screen
- People who want a list of online judges and practice platforms in one place
- Learners who prefer short written explanations alongside video content
Tech Interview Handbook
- Engineers preparing for technical interviews who have limited study time
- Developers new to technical interviews
- Experienced engineers returning to interviewing after a long break
- Candidates who want non-algorithm content such as resume and behavioral prep
Strengths
interviews
- Free and open source under the MIT license
- Covers a broad set of basic data structures with complexity summaries
- Points to many well-known practice platforms in one list
Tech Interview Handbook
- Free and openly licensed under MIT, with content readable on the website
- Condensed and focused, which suits people short on time
- Covers the whole interview process, including offer negotiation, not only algorithms
Not ideal for
interviews
- Readers who need a complete course with exercises and worked solutions, since the README mainly links out to other sites
- Anyone expecting the repository to contain runnable code or a software tool, because the README describes reference material only
- Readers who want non-Java examples, since the primary language listed is Java and the visible README text contains no code samples
Tech Interview Handbook
- People looking for front end interview content, which the README says has moved to a separate site (frontendinterviewhandbook.com)
- Anyone wanting System Design material, since the README says that content is still in progress and points to other courses
- Readers who want a full interactive practice platform, since the README describes condensed written materials and links to paid courses
Trade-offs
interviews
- The README is truncated, so the full set of topics could not be verified
- Much of the content is links to external sites, and some link targets may be outdated
- Promotional links to a paid service appear throughout the README
Tech Interview Handbook
- The README mentions affiliate and paid course links throughout, so some recommendations are commercial
- The README says there are no formal contributing guidelines yet and the structure is still changing
- System Design content is not yet included in this repository according to the README
Getting started
interviews
Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/kdn251/interviewsTech Interview Handbook
Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/yangshun/tech-interview-handbookFrequently asked questions
Should I use interviews or Tech Interview Handbook?
Both are free, MIT-licensed study resources for software engineering interviews, so the choice comes down to what you need. interviews is a short reference: data structure explanations with complexity notes, plus a long list of links to outside practice sites and videos. Tech Interview Handbook is a condensed guide to the whole process, with curated questions, cheatsheets, resume and behavioral prep, and offer negotiation, though it does not yet cover System Design. Pick interviews if you want a quick refresher on core data structures and a single list of coding practice platforms and video channels. Pick Tech Interview Handbook if you have limited study time and want guidance beyond algorithms, such as resume, behavioral, and negotiation prep.
What is the difference between interviews and Tech Interview Handbook?
interviews: A free collection of notes, links and practice resources for technical coding interviews. Tech Interview Handbook: Free, curated coding interview prep materials for busy software engineers. interviews suits students preparing for their first software engineering interviews, while Tech Interview Handbook suits engineers preparing for technical interviews who have limited study time.
Are interviews and Tech Interview Handbook free?
interviews: Free and open source. Tech Interview Handbook: Free and open source.
Is interviews or Tech Interview Handbook more popular?
Tech Interview Handbook has more GitHub stars (143k) than interviews (65.5k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to interviews and Tech Interview Handbook?
Other options people compare them with include Front End Interview Handbook.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.