Demo

Software Engineer

KAYAK
Cambridge, MA Full Time
POSTED ON 10/15/2025 CLOSED ON 10/23/2025

What are the responsibilities and job description for the Software Engineer position at KAYAK?

KAYAK, part of Booking Holdings (NASDAQ: BKNG), is the world’s leading travel search engine. With billions of queries across our platforms, we help people find their perfect flight, stay, rental car and vacation package. We’re also transforming business travel with a new corporate travel solution, KAYAK for Business.

As an employee of KAYAK, you will be part of a travel company that operates a portfolio of global metasearch brands including momondo, Cheapflights and HotelsCombined, among others. From start-up to industry leader, innovation is in our DNA and every employee has an opportunity to make their mark. Our focus is on building the best travel search engine to make it easier for everyone to experience the world.

We are seeking a motivated backend software engineer to join our AdTech team! In this role, you will help develop KAYAK’s advertising platform using modern technologies and contribute to building tools that our ad partners rely on to create, manage, and optimize their ad content. You’ll work on APIs, data systems, dashboards, and reporting tools that support our company’s and partners’ success.

Note, this role will be required to work from our Cambridge, MA office at least 3 days per week.

In This Role, You Will

  • Design, develop, and maintain efficient solutions for our AdTech applications, including ad targeting and content management
  • Collaborate with colleagues from engineering, product, data science, and design to create software that meets the needs of our users
  • Work with various data storage systems like MySQL, Memcache, Aerospike, Trino, Redis, and more
  • Build and improve algorithms to enhance ad targeting and increase value for our partners
  • Write tests at multiple levels (unit, integration, API, end-to-end) to ensure quality and reliability
  • Share knowledge with teammates through code reviews and collaborative learning
  • Identify and solve complex technical challenges related to software performance and scalability.

Please Apply If You Have

  • 4 years of experience with Java programming
  • Strong understanding of programming fundamentals, data structures, algorithms, and software design
  • Ability to work independently and with a team
  • Good communication skills for sharing ideas clearly with both technical and non-technical colleagues
  • Familiarity with relational databases like MySQL or Oracle
  • Experience or interest in working with Aerospike, Trino or Redis is a plus

Benefits and Perks

  • Work from (almost) anywhere for up to 20 days per year
  • Focus on mental health and well-being:
    • Company-paid therapy sessions through SpringHealth
    • Company-paid subscription to HeadSpace
    • Company-wide week off a year - the whole team fully recharges (and returns without a pile-up of work!)
    • No meeting Fridays
  • Paid parental leave
  • Generous paid vacation time off for your birthday
  • Paid volunteer time
  • Focus on your career growth:
    • Development Dollars
    • Leadership development
    • Access to thousand of on-demand e-learnings
  • Travel Discounts
  • Employee Resource Groups
  • Competitive retirement and health plans
  • Free lunch 2 days per week
  • Fun quarterly events such as boat trips, arcades, ski trips, Thursday socials, and more
Inclusion

At KAYAK, we want everyone to have the space to grow, share ideas and do great work. That’s why we’re focused on hiring the best talent from all walks of life and experiences, supporting them well and making sure no one feels like they have to fit a mold to belong here.

Need any adjustments for the interview, application or on the job? No problem - just give us a heads-up. We’ve got you.

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Salary.com Estimation for Software Engineer in Cambridge, MA
$111,723 to $136,214
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