Engineering Internships 2026

Category-defining tech. Career-defining work.

Lots of tech companies disrupt. But, many fail when they try to scale. We're different. CockroachDB makes it easier for companies to build and scale apps. This is how and why we're helping some of the most innovative companies on the planet. We tackle problems head-on and focus on solutions that create lasting impact.

Because when our customers win, we all win.

Cockroach Labs has a hybrid work model, with Roachers that are local to one of our offices coming in on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays and working flexibly the rest of the week. While we've learned valuable lessons working remotely, nothing can replace the connection, creativity, and fun that occurs when Roachers get together and we are committed to fostering a workplace that encourages collaboration and allows us all to do our best work.

The Role

We are looking for extraordinary Backend Engineering Interns to join our team. During your internship you will:

• Design, code, and test the backend of our distributed, open source database CockroachDB.
• Be matched to a team based on your interests, and complete a project related to your focus area that is shared with the entire Engineering organization.
• Work closely with other engineers and product managers across our the cloud and database teams.
• Take part in a collaborative culture and exchange knowledge with a highly experienced technical organization.
• Ensure that CockroachDB remains scalable, survivable, and consistent as we continue to grow as a company.
• Meet regularly with your Mentor and Manager to get feedback and continue refining your skills.

A huge bonus is that even after your experience at Cockroach Labs ends, your code will live on in our open source GitHub repo, CockroachDB.

The Expectations

In your first 30 days, you will become an integrated member of our engineering team. During this time, you will work on a starter project that allows you to gain confidence in navigating the code base and begin to understand our engineering environment. We believe that it's important for you to take this first month to become familiar with our technology and our company.

For the next 8-12 weeks, you will make meaningful contributions to our codebase. After wrapping up your starter project, you will work with your manager to focus your efforts on a project that aligns with your interests and the product roadmap.

The cohort will close out with our Intern Presentations, where each intern has the opportunity to showcase the work they've done to the entire Engineering organization.

You

• Are pursuing studies in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related technical field graduating between Winter 2026 -Spring 2027.
• Have had exposure to coursework on subjects like distributed systems, concurrency control, data replication, file systems, or SQL processing.
• Are comfortable using programming languages like Go, C/C++, Java, and Python. We primarily use Go but if you're not familiar with it, you'll learn them while you're here.
• Love building relationships with your colleagues and enjoy being part of the code review process and partnering with your teammates on challenging problems.
• Have past experience working on production-level code.
• Are genuinely interested in Cockroach Labs's mission and are excited to use CockroachDB in your projects.

Our interview process consists largely of programming in a real environment, and we'll be evaluating you on the skills listed above.

Cockroach Labs is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer building a diverse and inclusive workforce. If you need additional accommodations to feel comfortable during your interview process, please email us at accessibility@cockroachlabs.com.

The anticipated base salary range for U.S. candidates for this role is USD $8,250 to $8,750 per month. We set standard ranges for all U.S.-based roles based on function, level, and geographic location, benchmarked against similar stage growth companies. Actual salaries may vary and fall outside of this range depending on factors such as a candidate's qualifications, geographic location, skills, experience, and competencies. In addition, we are often open to a wide variety of profiles, and recognize that the person we hire may be less experienced (or more senior) than this job description as posted.

Benefits

• Contribute to production-level code
• Intern socials and Cockroach Labs swag
• Free office lunches and snacks
• Engage with executive and senior engineering leaders