Why do you want to work here? How to answer
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Interviewers ask this question to find out two things: whether you chose them on purpose, and whether you understand what the job really is. A vague answer such as "you are a great company" tells them you sent the same application to fifty places. A specific answer takes about twenty minutes of research and sets you apart from most candidates.
What the interviewer is listening for
They want evidence that you have read about the company and the role, that your reasons are about the work and not only about pay or a short commute, and that you are likely to stay and do well. The question is also a quiet test of your honesty: a reason that is true for you sounds different from one learned by heart.
Do the research that makes the answer easy
Spend twenty minutes on three things: what the company makes or does and who it serves, one recent thing you can name (a product, a project, a post by the team), and the exact wording of the job advertisement. Write down two or three things that genuinely interest you. If nothing does, that is useful to know before you apply.
- The company's own website, product pages and blog.
- The job description: underline the repeated skills and responsibilities.
- One or two people or teams you could work with, if their work is public.
- The size and stage of the company, which tells you what the day-to-day is likely to be like.
A simple structure: they, you, together
Start with what attracts you about the company or the work (they), connect it to something you have done or learned (you), and finish with what you hope to contribute or learn (together). Keep it to about a minute.
Example: a junior developer applying to a product company
I use your product's reporting feature in a class project, and I was impressed by how simple it makes a hard problem. In my final project I built a small dashboard and spent most of my time making it easy to read, so I would like to work on a team that cares about that. I also want to learn how a team tests and ships every week, and the job description says juniors pair with senior developers.
Example: a graduate applying to a large employer
Your graduate programme rotates through three teams in two years, and I want to understand how a large organisation makes decisions before I choose a specialty. I have already worked with data for two projects, so the analytics rotation is where I could help first. I also noticed that your team publishes its methods, which tells me I would learn properly.
Answers to avoid
Avoid answers that could be said about any company ("great culture, great people"), answers that are only about what you get ("good salary, close to home"), and flattery that you cannot back up. You can mention practical reasons such as location or hours, but put the work first.
Practise it until it sounds like you
Say the answer aloud three or four times with a timer, then change the words that feel unnatural. A mock interview where the questions come from the real job advertisement is a good way to hear yourself and get specific feedback on length and clarity.
Practise this out loud, free
Take a live AI mock interview with questions built from your resume and the job description, then read a feedback report on what you said and how you said it.
Start a free mock interviewFrequently asked questions
- What if I applied to many companies?
- That is normal. Do the research for each one anyway. Two true, specific sentences about this company are enough to stand out.
- Can I say the pay is part of the reason?
- You can say that stability or growth matters to you, but lead with the work, the team or what you will learn. Interviewers want to hear that you care about the job itself.
- How long should the answer be?
- About one minute. Long enough to be specific, short enough that the interviewer can ask a follow-up.