Opportunity

Principal UX Engineer at Reddit - $344K + RSUs in Columbus

Location Columbus
Company reddit
Source jobicy
Posted 2026-11-08 10:08:41

Career & Market Insight

Career Level & Compensation: At $245,800–$344,100 USD, this Principal-level role sits at the top of individual contributor tracks. For context, Principal UX Engineer or equivalent roles at top-tier tech companies typically range from $220K–$320K total base — Reddit's range is competitive and skews high. Add RSU equity and this package is firmly in FAANG-adjacent territory.

Skills You'll Develop: This role is a rare opportunity to deepen a high-demand hybrid skillset:

  • AI-native prototyping and agent-based tooling — one of the fastest-growing areas in product development.
  • Frontend systems thinking at scale (React, TypeScript, design systems).
  • Cross-functional influence at the Principal level, working alongside senior leaders across Product, Engineering, and Data Science.
  • UX Engineering as an organizational capability — establishing a practice, not just executing within one.

Green Flags: Reddit explicitly values staying hands-on while growing others — a healthy signal for ICs who don't want to be forced into pure management. The role spans multiple product areas, reducing the risk of career stagnation on a single narrow project.

Watch For: The posting spans "more than one career level," which can mean flexibility in leveling, but also ambiguity about scope. Clarify expectations around IC autonomy vs. managerial responsibility early. The advertising domain can be niche — ensure the skills built here (AI tooling, design systems, prototyping infrastructure) remain transferable.

Overall: An excellent role for a senior design-engineer hybrid ready to define a practice and work at a prominent public company.

Reddit is a community of communities. It's built on shared interests, passion, and trust, and is home to the most open and authentic conversations on the internet. Every day, Reddit users submit, vote, and comment on the topics they care most about. With 100,000+ active communities and approximately 130 million daily active unique visitors, Reddit is one of the internet's largest sources of information. For more information, visit www.redditinc.com.

Reddit's Ads Design & Research team shapes the end-to-end advertising experience across advertiser tools, consumer ad experiences, measurement, and the systems that connect them.

We're looking for a Principal UX Engineer who sees code as a product-design medium: a way to make ideas tangible, connect prototypes to real systems and data, and help teams move from exploration to engineering-ready product direction faster.

This is a strategic, hands-on role at the intersection of design and engineering. You'll work across Reddit Ads to shape product direction, build production-adjacent prototypes and tools, and help establish UX Engineering as a capability for the Ads Design team.

You'll partner closely with Design, Research, Product, Engineering, and Data Science while staying deeply involved in the craft.

What You'll Do
  • Define and lead the UX Engineering strategy across multiple areas of Reddit Ads.
  • Build high-quality functional prototypes, workflow tools, agents, and PR-ready product experiences that help teams explore ideas, test assumptions, and move faster from design intent to engineering review.
  • Partner with senior cross-functional leaders to shape product direction and bring clarity to complex, ambiguous opportunities.
  • Create reusable tools, systems, components, and workflows that make it easier to move from design and research into production.
  • Raise the bar for interaction quality, accessibility, performance, and technical craft across the Ads experience.
  • Build AI-native workflows, skills, agents, and tools that improve how Ads Design explores, prototypes, collaborates, and ships.
  • Mentor other practitioners and help grow UX Engineering as a capability across Reddit.
What We're Looking For
  • Deep experience at the intersection of product design and engineering, with a track record of building sophisticated interactive products.
  • Strong hands-on expertise with modern frontend technologies such as React and TypeScript.
  • Experience building production-adjacent prototypes, internal tools, systems, or frontend infrastructure that other designers and engineers can use.
  • Excellent product and interaction judgment, with the ability to turn complex ideas into intuitive, high-quality experiences.
  • Experience working across multiple teams or product areas and influencing product direction beyond a single project.
  • Strong systems thinking, with experience creating reusable patterns, platforms, or tools that help other teams move faster.
  • Fluency with AI-assisted coding, agents, and advanced prototyping workflows.
  • The ability to navigate ambiguity, make thoughtful tradeoffs, and bring design, engineering, product, and research perspectives together.
  • Strong communication and collaboration skills, particularly with senior cross-functional partners.
  • A portfolio or body of work that shows use cases, technical architecture, systems thinking, organizational complexity, and collaboration with engineering teams — not only polished UI outcomes.
  • A passion for staying hands-on while helping others do their best work.

Experience in advertising is helpful, but it isn't required. We're also interested in people who have worked on complex products such as marketplaces, enterprise tools, analytics, commerce, developer platforms, AI-powered experiences, or other multi-sided ecosystems.

Benefits:

  • Comprehensive Healthcare Benefits and Income Replacement Programs
  • 401k with Employer Match
  • Global Benefit programs that fit your lifestyle, from workspace to professional development to caregiving support
  • Family Planning Support
  • Gender-Affirming Care
  • Mental Health & Coaching Benefits
  • Flexible Vacation & Paid Volunteer Time Off
  • Generous Paid Parental Leave

Pay Transparency:

This job posting may span more than one career level.

In addition to base salary, this job is eligible to receive equity in the form of restricted stock units, and depending on the position offered, it may also be eligible to receive a commission. Additionally, Reddit offers a wide range of benefits to U.S.-based employees, including medical, dental, and vision insurance, 401(k) program with employer match, generous time off for vacation, and parental leave. To learn more, please visit https://www.redditinc.com/careers/.

To provide greater transparency to candidates, we share base salary ranges for all US-based job postings regardless of state. We set standard base pay ranges for all roles based on function, level, and country location, benchmarked against similar stage growth companies. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors including skills, depth of work experience, and relevant licenses/credentials, and may vary from the amounts listed below.

The base salary range for this position is: $245,800 — $344,100 USD

In select roles and locations, interviews will be recorded, transcribed, and summarized by artificial intelligence (AI). You will have the opportunity to opt out of recording, transcription, and summarization prior to any scheduled interviews.

During the interview, we will collect the following categories of personal information: Identifiers, Professional and Employment-Related Information, Sensory Information (audio/video recording), and any other categories of personal information you choose to share with us. We will use this information to evaluate your application for employment or an independent contractor role, as applicable. We will not sell your personal information or disclose it to any third party for their marketing purposes. We will delete any recording of your interview promptly after making a hiring decision. For more information about how we will handle your personal information, including our retention of it, please refer to our Candidate Privacy Policy for Potential Employees and Contractors.

Reddit is proud to be an equal opportunity employer, and is committed to building a workforce representative of the diverse communities we serve. Reddit is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in our job application procedures. If, due to a disability, you need an accommodation during the interview process, please let your recruiter know.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this Principal UX Engineer role at Reddit fully remote?
The job posting does not specify a required office location, suggesting remote work is possible for US-based candidates. However, the role involves close collaboration with senior cross-functional partners, so some synchronous availability during US business hours is likely expected.
What is the salary range for this role at Reddit?
The base salary range is $245,800–$344,100 USD. In addition, the role is eligible for restricted stock units (RSUs) and may also qualify for commission depending on the specific position offered.
Do I need advertising experience to apply for this role?
No — Reddit explicitly states that advertising experience is helpful but not required. They welcome candidates with backgrounds in complex products like marketplaces, enterprise tools, analytics, developer platforms, or AI-powered experiences.
What technologies does this role use day-to-day?
The role centers on modern frontend technologies including React and TypeScript, along with AI-assisted coding tools, agents, and advanced prototyping workflows. Experience building reusable design systems and production-adjacent tooling is also key.
Will my job interview be recorded by AI at Reddit?
In select roles and locations, Reddit may record, transcribe, and summarize interviews using AI. Candidates will be given the opportunity to opt out of this process before any scheduled interview.
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