Software Engineer (Backend), Growth Platforms

About the role

Lyft’s mission is centered on helping people connect and get where they need to go. The company emphasizes an environment where employees feel included, supported, and able to do their best work.

The Growth Platforms group sits at the core of Lyft’s marketplace decisioning. This team builds the systems behind Incentives and Messaging, ensuring the right message or incentive reaches the right rider or driver at the right moment. The work supports growth across the company by partnering with engineering, product, marketing, and science teams.

This backend engineering role is suited to someone who enjoys distributed systems, machine learning-adjacent problem solving, data-heavy platforms, and reliable infrastructure. The position has a meaningful impact on multiple business areas and calls for someone comfortable working in a fast-moving, collaborative setting.

What you'll do

As a Software Engineer, you will own priorities, timelines, and delivery for technical work while designing, building, testing, launching, maintaining, and improving platform services.

• Architect, build, deploy, monitor, operate, and support new or existing parts of the platform and infrastructure.
• Work closely with engineers, science teams, and product partners to take projects from idea and requirements through delivery and launch.
• Create and run large-scale distributed systems.
• Shape technical direction, including roadmap planning and system architecture decisions.
• Review internal systems and workflows to identify opportunities for automation and efficiency gains.
• Produce code that is clean, reliable, well-tested, and easy to maintain.
• Coordinate with internal stakeholders, remove blockers, and keep communication flowing so teams can deliver results.
• Share knowledge through brown-bag sessions, technical talks, and advocacy for strong engineering practices.

What we're looking for

Lyft is seeking engineers who are proactive, take initiative, and have a history of building software that solves important business problems. The ideal candidate can work through ambiguity, investigate difficult technical problems in depth, and own a feature or project from design through implementation.

• At least 3 years of professional software engineering experience.
• A bachelor’s or master’s degree in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related discipline, or equivalent practical experience.
• Background in backend development for large distributed systems and/or data infrastructure.
• Solid understanding of distributed systems principles such as consistency, availability, liveness, safety, durability, reliability, fault tolerance, and consensus.
• Hands-on experience with Kubernetes and container tools such as Docker or cri-o.
• Comfort using Python and cloud platforms such as AWS, GCP, or Azure.
• Exposure to AI/ML, such as model integration or ML frameworks, is considered an advantage.

Benefits and perks

• Extended medical and dental coverage, plus life insurance and disability coverage.
• Mental health support.
• Family planning and family-building support.
• Child care and pet-related benefits.
• Access to a company-funded health care savings account.
• RRSP plan with employer matching.
• Flexible paid time off for salaried employees, in addition to provincial statutory holidays.
• Hourly team members receive 15 paid days off, plus one extra day for each year of service.
• 18 weeks of paid parental leave top-up for biological, adoptive, and foster parents.
• Subsidized commuting support and ride credits.

Work arrangement

This position is based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and follows a hybrid schedule. Employees are expected in the office at least 3 days per week, specifically on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Being in the office three days a week is considered an essential part of the role. Hybrid team members may work from anywhere for up to 4 weeks per year.

Compensation

The base salary range for Toronto is CAD 108,000 to CAD 135,000 per year. Equity, bonus, and benefits are not included in that figure. Final compensation may vary based on qualifications, experience, and location.

Equal opportunity and accommodations

Lyft is committed to building an inclusive workplace and providing equal employment opportunities regardless of protected characteristics under applicable law or company policy. The company also maintains a safe, harassment-free work environment. Applicants who need accommodations during the hiring process due to a disability may request support through their recruiter.

Additional information

Lyft may use artificial intelligence to help screen applications, but final hiring decisions are made by people. This role fills an existing vacancy.