Google Cloud Platform is a major cloud, strong in data and ML, and its interviews test core services (compute, storage, data, identity) and how you architect with them. Essential for cloud, data, and DevOps roles. Here are the GCP interview questions that actually get asked, completing the trio with our AWS and Azure guides.
Core services
- Compute Engine (VMs), App Engine, Cloud Run, and Cloud Functions — when to use each.
- Cloud Storage (GCS) — buckets and storage classes.
- BigQuery — serverless data warehouse (a GCP highlight).
- Cloud SQL vs Firestore vs Bigtable vs Spanner.
- Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE).
Identity & networking
- IAM — roles, service accounts, least privilege.
- The resource hierarchy — organization, folders, projects.
- VPC, subnets, and firewall rules.
- Load balancing and Cloud CDN.
Architecture & data
- How do you design for high availability across zones and regions?
- Pub/Sub for messaging; Dataflow for pipelines.
- Cost optimization on GCP.
- How does GCP compare to AWS (services map roughly across)?
How to prepare
GCP rounds mix services with architecture scenarios. Practise explaining service choices and HA design out loud. Greenroom runs spoken technical interviews that follow up on your reasoning. Pair it with our AWS and cloud engineer guides.
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common GCP interview questions?
Common GCP questions cover compute (Compute Engine, App Engine, Cloud Run, Cloud Functions), storage (Cloud Storage and classes), data (BigQuery, Cloud SQL, Firestore, Bigtable, Spanner), GKE, identity (IAM, service accounts, least privilege), the resource hierarchy (organization, folders, projects), networking (VPC, subnets, firewall rules, load balancing), high-availability architecture, Pub/Sub, Dataflow and cost optimization.
What is BigQuery in GCP?
BigQuery is Google Cloud's fully managed, serverless data warehouse designed for fast SQL analytics over very large datasets. It separates storage and compute, scales automatically, and lets you query terabytes to petabytes without managing infrastructure. It's a signature GCP service, so interviewers often ask about it for data and analytics roles, including how it differs from a traditional database.
How is GCP's resource hierarchy structured?
GCP organizes resources in a hierarchy: an Organization at the top, then Folders (optional groupings like departments or environments), then Projects, which contain the actual resources like VMs and buckets. IAM policies can be applied at each level and inherit downward. Understanding this hierarchy is important because it governs access control, billing and resource organization across GCP.
How should I prepare for a GCP interview?
Learn the core compute, storage, data and identity services, the project-based resource hierarchy, and GCP's strengths like BigQuery and serverless options, while focusing on architectural reasoning — choosing the right service and designing for high availability and cost. Practise explaining service choices and HA designs out loud with a voice-based mock interview that follows up.