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Nice company, nice pay, mediocre.

Senior Software Engineer
Former Employee
Worked at TikTok for 2 years
October 21, 2025
Singapore, Singapore
3.0
RecommendsNegative OutlookNo CEO Opinion
Pros

Compensation is Top-Tier: The salary, bonuses, and Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) are highly competitive, matching or exceeding most established tech companies. This is definitely the biggest draw.

Excellent Benefits & Perks: Health insurance, generous Paid Time Off (PTO), and the on-site amenities (like free, high-quality meals and snacks) are fantastic. They certainly invest heavily in keeping employees comfortable.

High Caliber of Talent: You are surrounded by incredibly smart, motivated, and highly capable people. Collaborating with engineers and product managers who operate at this scale is a massive learning opportunity.

Modern and Challenging Technology: The scale of the platform means the engineering challenges are complex and cutting-edge. It's a great place to build experience in large-scale global infrastructure and rapid growth.

Cons

Work-Life Balance is Brutal and Unsustainable:

The "nice company" facade quickly falls away due to the aggressive, "always-on" culture. Expect long hours (often 50-60+ per week) and pressure to be available, especially given the global nature of the team. Burnout is a significant risk.

Chaotic, Pivot-Heavy Strategy:

Direction can change weekly, and entire projects are often scrapped months in due to sudden shifts in leadership focus or priority changes. This leads to a lot of wasted effort and employee frustration, contributing directly to the "mediocre" feeling.

Heavy Bureaucracy and Siloing:

Despite the speed of execution, internal communication is often broken, and departments operate in silos. Getting cross-functional alignment requires excessive meetings and process, slowing down overall impact.

Lack of Personal Ownership:

Due to the constant pivoting and the massive scale, it’s difficult for individuals to feel true ownership or see the final, lasting impact of their work. You often feel like a cog in a high-speed machine rather than a builder.

Additional Ratings

Work/Life Balance
1.0
Culture and Values
3.0
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
4.0
Career Opportunities
4.0
Compensation and Benefits
5.0
Senior Management
3.0

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