Questions to ask in an interview

It’s hard to know what questions to ask in an interview. You want to know about the company, the job role and the team. But where do you start?

So, to help you stand out as a top candidate, we’ve put together this guide on the things to ask.

We’ll take you through:

• Why it’s important to ask questions at the end of a job interview
• What is a good interview question?
• Smart questions to ask at a job interview
  • Questions about the company
  • Questions about the position
• What not to ask

It’s best practice to ask questions at the end of an interview to show interest and engage with the interviewer.

Wanting to know more tells them that you’re seriously considering the role. Good questions also show that you’ve done your research and are looking for answers to things that aren’t easily available.

Plus, asking questions helps you see if the job’s a good match for you. By finding out if the job will suit you, you make sure you’re not wasting the interviewer’s time – or your own.

Ideally, prepare at least five questions ready to go. You’ll naturally cover some of your questions during the interview, so preparing extras means you’ll still have something to ask at the end. Plus, feel free to ask for clarifications on anything that came up during the interview too. You can’t prep for those questions.

A good interview question gets you the information you need and shows that you’re interested in the company and position you’ve applied for. It should also help you judge whether the position’s right for you. Remember that an interview is for you to work out whether you want the job, as much as it’s for the interviewer to see if you’re right for them.

Good questions should also make the interviewer think. Avoid asking about things that are easy to research online, such as company history. Instead, use this opportunity to find out what matters to you.

Want more advice? Read our top tips for face-to-face interviews. Need to record a video interview? Take a practice assessment so you're ready for the real thing.

So, now you know that you need to ask “good questions”. But what does this mean?

Here's our list of some good questions to ask in an interview.

Ask questions about the company that you can't find out online, such as:

Finding out about the company structure will help you get a good idea of the kind of working environment you'll be in. Asking about it also shows that you’re interested in what kind of day-to-day organisation you'll be dealing with.

While a company will often list its overall aims on their website, asking about current goals shows that you care about what’s happening at this moment in time. It also makes it clear that you want to know what goals you’ll be working towards.

Again, this’ll help you work out where the company is going and if that fits with your goals. Plus, it’ll help you work out how likely it is that you’ll be able to grow in the company.

It’s good to know what the company cares about the most. Are they driven by profit and numbers? Do they want to see growth in the teams working for them? The answer you get here will tell you a lot about the interactions between managers and team members.

While looking at the company's future is important, finding out about its past will tell you how successful the company’s been at implementing change and what they value. It also gives you a good idea of whether the company will grow.

It's natural to want to work for a company where your colleagues share similar values to you. So, find out what the business’s values are in your interview.

Asking this question will help you see the opportunity for improvement in the role. It also helps show the employer that you’re keen to stick with them and develop your skills.

The day-to-day environment makes or breaks a job. It's important to find out if the work environment is one you’ll thrive in. Is the office busy? Or do most people work from home?

Starting a new job is hard, so it's important to know what to expect in your first few days and weeks. Asking about the onboarding process will also help you know how much support you’ll get.

Every company has a different interview process, so finding out the details here means you’ll know what to expect and prepare for.

Here are some more questions to ask specifically about the role you’re interviewing for:

Your potential starting date is a big practicality to keep in mind. Knowing a specific date means you know to avoid making other plans on that day. Plus, you’ll be able to work out if it’s doable with your current notice period (if you’ve got one).

It helps to know whether you’re jumping right into someone else's projects or if your duties will be less firmly decided. It’s also normal to want to find out why someone else left this position – but be sensitive here. If they’ve left because they’ve been internally promoted though, it’s a good sign that you’ll have a chance to grow.

It's important to find out what the hardest and most stressful parts of the job will be. Asking about challenges will help you find this information out.

It’s hard to picture exactly what you’ll be doing in a job role, so this question will help you get a better idea. It’s not always clear what you’ll be doing from a job title or an advert, so ask for more details.

Knowing what the team’s currently doing tells you what the company’s focusing on, and helps you know what to expect if you get the job. It’s also a clue on what to read up on before your next interview.

Plenty of people find the probation period stressful. Knowing what’s expected of you will help make you more confident heading towards this job.

Asking a question like this tells you a lot about what kind of feedback to expect and how often you’ll communicate with your manager.

Knowing the structure around you will help you understand more about your daily duties and how much autonomy you’ll have.

Find out what the company needs. Why are they hiring for this role? Is it because they’ve got a skill gap? Once you know what they’re missing, think about how you’ll help them fill those gaps – and show your potential employer that you’ve got what they need.

Companies like people who want to stay with them and improve their skills, so asking about progression shows keenness. It’ll also help you know whether the job will help your career in the long run.

There are some questions that it's best not to ask at the interview, but they’ll vary depending on the role and the company.

A couple of basic questions to avoid are:

You can absolutely ask about benefits as part of your hiring process, but this is usually best directed to the hiring manager or HR representative that you might be in touch with, rather than an interviewer.

Talking about benefits in the interview could make it seem like you're more interested in the perks than the role itself – and interviews should be all about the role. While company benefits like annual leave policies and additional pension contributions sometimes influence whether you accept a job, save going over these details for later negotiations – not your first interview.

Asking if you’ve got the job is presumptuous. Instead, politely ask about when you’ll hear from them again.

Whether your upcoming interview is face-to-face, online or over the phone, ask questions to show you’re interested.

Good questions will help you see what the company is like and tell you what to expect.

Avoid asking anything that’s common knowledge and tread carefully when it comes to benefits.