Making locally optimal choices that guarantee global optimal outcomes
Make the locally optimal choice at each decision step with the mathematical guarantee that it leads to the globally optimal solution without backtracking.
Core Invariant: Greedy Choice Property: Can you prove by exchange argument that swapping a greedy decision with any alternative never produces a superior outcome? If yes, greedy holds.
Local decisions constrain future options in conflicting ways (e.g. 0/1 Knapsack, Coin Change with arbitrary denominations; must use DP!).
def can_jump(nums: list[int]) -> bool:
farthest = 0
for i, jump in enumerate(nums):
# If current index is beyond the farthest reach, we cannot proceed
if i > farthest:
return False
# Update maximum index we can reach
farthest = max(farthest, i + jump)
if farthest >= len(nums) - 1:
return True
return True# | Problem | Difficulty | Top Companies↓ | Frequency | Acceptance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #11 | Container With Most Water ArrayTwo PointersGreedy | Medium | 100% | 60.4% | ||
| #253 | Meeting Rooms II ArrayTwo PointersGreedySortingHeap (Priority Queue)Prefix Sum | Medium | 100% | 52.7% | ||
| #55 | Jump Game ArrayDynamic ProgrammingGreedy | Medium | 100% | 41.2% | ||
| #134 | Gas Station ArrayGreedy | Medium | 100% | 48.3% | ||
| #45 | Jump Game II ArrayDynamic ProgrammingGreedy | Medium | 100% | 0.4% | ||
| #122 | Best Time to Buy and Sell Stock II ArrayDynamic ProgrammingGreedy | Medium | 100% | 71.3% | ||
| #621 | Task Scheduler ArrayHash TableGreedySortingHeap (Priority Queue)Counting | Medium | 100% | 63.4% | ||
| #410 | Split Array Largest Sum ArrayBinary SearchDynamic ProgrammingGreedyPrefix Sum | Hard | 100% | 60.9% | ||
| #135 | Candy ArrayGreedy | Hard | 100% | 48.8% | ||
| #179 | Largest Number ArrayStringGreedySorting | Medium | 100% | 43.3% | ||
| #402 | Remove K Digits StringStackGreedyMonotonic Stack | Medium | 100% | 0.4% | ||
| #435 | Non-overlapping Intervals ArrayDynamic ProgrammingGreedySorting | Medium | 90% | 57.4% | ||
| #678 | Valid Parenthesis String StringDynamic ProgrammingStackGreedyBracket Sequences | Medium | 100% | 40.3% | ||
| #767 | Reorganize String Hash TableStringGreedySortingHeap (Priority Queue)Counting | Medium | 100% | 57.3% | ||
| #44 | Wildcard Matching StringDynamic ProgrammingGreedyRecursion | Hard | 100% | 0.3% | ||
| #605 | Can Place Flowers ArrayGreedy | Easy | 100% | 29.2% | ||
| #1353 | Maximum Number of Events That Can Be Attended ArrayGreedySortingHeap (Priority Queue) | Medium | 100% | 0.4% | ||
| #680 | Valid Palindrome II Two PointersStringGreedy | Easy | 100% | 44.5% | ||
| #1642 | Furthest Building You Can Reach ArrayGreedyHeap (Priority Queue) | Medium | 100% | 51.0% | ||
| #881 | Boats to Save People ArrayTwo PointersGreedySortingTimsort | Medium | 87% | 0.6% | ||
| #1326 | Minimum Number of Taps to Open to Water a Garden ArrayDynamic ProgrammingGreedy | Hard | 100% | 51.0% | ||
| #316 | Remove Duplicate Letters StringStackGreedyMonotonic Stack | Medium | 100% | 0.5% | ||
| #2434 | Using a Robot to Print the Lexicographically Smallest String Hash TableStringStackGreedy | Medium | 100% | 62.2% | ||
| #1963 | Minimum Number of Swaps to Make the String Balanced Two PointersStringStackGreedyBracket Sequences | Medium | 69% | 78.0% | ||
| #1838 | Frequency of the Most Frequent Element ArrayBinary SearchGreedySliding WindowSortingPrefix Sum | Medium | 100% | 45.0% | ||
| #723 | Candy Crush ArrayTwo PointersMatrixSimulation | Medium | 100% | 77.6% | ||
| #632 | Smallest Range Covering Elements from K Lists ArrayHash TableGreedySliding WindowSortingHeap (Priority Queue) | Hard | 100% | 70.2% | ||
| #763 | Partition Labels Hash TableTwo PointersStringGreedy | Medium | 67% | 82.0% | ||
| #670 | Maximum Swap MathGreedy | Medium | 100% | 0.5% | ||
| #452 | Minimum Number of Arrows to Burst Balloons ArrayGreedySorting | Medium | 100% | 0.6% | ||
| #1710 | Maximum Units on a Truck ArrayGreedySorting | Easy | 63% | 75.0% | ||
| #2551 | Put Marbles in Bags ArrayGreedySortingHeap (Priority Queue) | Hard | 50% | 0.7% | ||
| #1824 | Minimum Sideway Jumps ArrayDynamic ProgrammingGreedy | Medium | 100% | 51.8% | ||
| #581 | Shortest Unsorted Continuous Subarray ArrayTwo PointersStackGreedySortingMonotonic Stack | Medium | 100% | 38.4% | ||
| #611 | Valid Triangle Number ArrayTwo PointersBinary SearchGreedySorting | Medium | 100% | 57.0% | ||
| #1081 | Smallest Subsequence of Distinct Characters StringStackGreedyMonotonic Stack | Medium | 100% | 63.7% | ||
| #860 | Lemonade Change ArrayGreedy | Easy | 76% | 59.3% | ||
| #1526 | Minimum Number of Increments on Subarrays to Form a Target Array ArrayDynamic ProgrammingStackGreedyMonotonic Stack | Hard | 68% | 78.2% | ||
| #455 | Assign Cookies ArrayTwo PointersGreedySortingQuicksort | Easy | 63% | 55.3% | ||
| #714 | Best Time to Buy and Sell Stock with Transaction Fee ArrayDynamic ProgrammingGreedy | Medium | 55% | 72.3% | ||
| #2561 | Rearranging Fruits ArrayHash TableGreedySort | Hard | 41% | 57.3% | ||
| #781 | Rabbits in Forest ArrayHash TableMathGreedy | Medium | 100% | 58.0% | ||
| #3035 | Maximum Palindromes After Operations ArrayHash TableStringGreedySortingCounting | Medium | 100% | 47.2% | ||
| #2571 | Minimum Operations to Reduce an Integer to 0 Dynamic ProgrammingGreedyBit Manipulation | Medium | 100% | 62.8% | ||
| #1405 | Longest Happy String StringGreedyHeap (Priority Queue) | Medium | 100% | 65.5% | ||
| #1383 | Maximum Performance of a Team ArrayGreedySortingHeap (Priority Queue) | Hard | 100% | 47.8% | ||
| #1323 | Maximum 69 Number MathGreedy | Easy | 100% | 84.6% | ||
| #1386 | Cinema Seat Allocation ArrayHash TableGreedyBit Manipulation | Medium | 97% | 44.7% | ||
| #2472 | Maximum Number of Non-overlapping Palindrome Substrings Two PointersStringDynamic ProgrammingGreedy | Hard | 88% | 44.9% | ||
| #2116 | Check if a Parentheses String Can Be Valid StringStackGreedyBracket Sequences | Medium | 81% | 45.2% |
Browse company-specific interview problem lists and recency breakdowns:
Master core algorithmic patterns tested in FAANG & Big Tech coding interviews.
Making locally optimal choices that guarantee global optimal outcomes It is categorized under Advanced & DP and features 432 curated interview problems across Easy (42), Medium (295), and Hard (95) difficulties.
Companies frequently asking Greedy Algorithms questions include Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Bloomberg, Meta, Infosys.
Start by studying the algorithmic strategy and template code, then practice Easy and Medium problems before attempting Hard problems under timed conditions.