Grind 75 vs. LeetCode patterns: Right choice for Apple interviews

Think about how fast Apple moves. New devices, new chips, new features, every year. Behind that speed is deep thinking that reimagines entire categories, from the iPod to the iPhone, from the Mac to the M1 chip. That pace sets the tone for the kind of engineers they hire: people who can adapt quickly, solve problems efficiently, and keep improving without missing a beat. In short, someone who can build the next great thing.

So, how can you be that someone?

The answer lies in focused practice on the right questions. You could follow curated lists like Blind 75, Grind 75, or NeetCode 150, or take a newer approach built around understanding the LeetCode coding patterns. All are popular, but when it comes to Apple interviews, which one actually gets you the offer?

This is what we’ll find out in this blog. I’ll compare Grind 75 and Apple top 75 questions against the 28 LeetCode patterns from Grokking the Coding Interview Patterns. You’ll see how much ground each method truly covers, where they fall short, and how an Apple-focused prep roadmap can guide you to the right problems while saving time.

Sneak peek: How we evaluated Apple interview prep strategies

When it comes to coding interview prep, reviews and recommendations are everywhere. Some recommend Blind 75, others point to Grind 75, and the list goes on. With so many popular options, it’s hard to compare their real effectiveness. That’s why we needed a clear benchmark to evaluate these resources side by side and help candidates choose what best fits their goals. For this, I created a simple 1–2–1 rubric and scoring method, explained in the first blog, “Grind 75 vs. LeetCode Patterns: Most Effective for Interviews?” of this series. Let’s quickly revisit that rubric.

To adequately cover a pattern, you need to practice one easy problem for 1 point, two medium problems for 8 points (4 each), and one hard problem for 6 points. This way, you are not just exposed to a pattern but also confident in applying it across different levels of difficulty. That makes 15 points per pattern.

With 28 patterns in total, the benchmark comes to 420 points. A strong Apple interview prep strategy should aim to get as close to 420 as possible.

With that benchmark in place, let’s now see how Grind 75 and Apple top 75 hold up.

The scores are quite interesting. They clearly challenge the idea that Grind 75 is the ultimate prep path for Apple coding interviews. You might also be wondering what this Apple-focused roadmap is and why it outperforms both Grind 75 and Apple top 75 questions. In this blog, we will explore that together and go beyond the numbers to see which patterns contributed to these results and how thoroughly they were covered.

Grind 75, Apple top 75, and LeetCode patterns: Quick overview#

What is Grind 75? It is an extended and improved version of the famous Blind 75 list of LeetCode problems. It covers a wide range of topics such as  Arrays, Trees, and Dynamic Programming.

What is Apple top 75? It is a list compiled from questions frequently asked in Apple interviews, as per LeetCode. It gives you a company-specific lens and helps you understand what Apple values most in its problem sets.

What are LeetCode coding patterns? They are recurring problem-solving techniques that appear across many coding interview questions. A few common patterns include Sliding Window, Two Pointers, Modified Binary Search, Backtracking, and Dynamic Programming. Patterns help you quickly recognize and solve new problems that share the same structure.

Is Grind 75 all you need for Apple coding interviews? #

While Grind 75 gives you a strong foundation to start coding interview prep, it is not the only resource that will help you stand out in Apple coding interviews.

Apple coding interviews are not just a technical exam; they are a discussion. Interviewers want to see how you think, how you handle ambiguity, and how you take ownership of a problem. So, when you prepare with Grind 75, ask yourself: Are you training for this kind of problem-solving mindset? Simply moving from one question to the next might lead to memorization of fixed solutions rather than building adaptability.

Additionally, the interview landscape is evolving with the latest trends in the tech industry, especially after AI has entered the picture. Relying completely on a static list of questions that was created a few years ago while preparing for interviews in 2025 is not a good idea. For example, if we look at Apple’s 10 most frequently asked questions on LeetCode, 3 of them are not present in Grind 75 (highlighted in green in the table below). And, this gap has the potential to increase even further.

How do LeetCode patterns help with Apple coding interviews?#

LeetCode patterns provide a powerful, high-leverage way to prepare for Apple coding interviews because they teach you to think about problems, not just memorize solutions. For example, when faced with a problem involving contiguous subarrays, you immediately know to explore the sliding window technique. If you are working with linked lists, you know when to apply fast and slow pointers or in-place manipulation. This ability to map a new question to a known pattern is exactly what will help you stand out in Apple interviews, as it demonstrates adaptability and structured thinking.

Most importantly, coding patterns make your interview prep efficient. Instead of solving hundreds of questions, hoping to see enough variety, you can focus on representative problems from each pattern. Imagine solving 100+ LeetCode problems vs. focusing on 28 LeetCode patterns. This way, even if Apple throws an unfamiliar variation, you have the mental toolkit to break it down.

An overview of LeetCode patterns for Apple coding interviews#

Apple’s interview problems are built on 28 core coding patterns. What helps in the interview prep is not just knowing the patterns exist, but understanding how often they appear and what role they play in the interview room. To make this easier, I group them into four categories:

• Must-know patterns: These show up most frequently in Apple interviews and make up the foundation of your coding interview prep.

• High-value patterns: They appear regularly enough that skipping them leaves clear gaps. Practicing them gives you confidence across a wide range of variations.

• Situational patterns: These are less common, but when they appear, they often decide whether you can handle the unexpected.

• Finishing-line helpers: These are some rarely seen patterns, but still worth a quick review to ensure there are no gaps in your prep.

Apple may emphasize some categories more than others, but you should focus on all the 28 patterns. That way you are prepared not just for the common questions, but also for the surprises.

Apple coding interview roadmap#

Preparing for Apple interviews is not about picking one resource over another. Grind 75, Apple top 75, and LeetCode Patterns each bring something valuable, but none of them alone is enough. The key is to connect them into a single roadmap that gives you both structure and adaptability. Here’s how you can cover 28 patterns with a single coding interview prep roadmap:

1. Start with the overlap between Grind 75 and Apple’s Top 75: This gives you a strong foundation with problems that are both widely recognized and Apple-specific.

2. Add the Apple-only questions: These introduce Apple’s unique style and problem variations you won’t find in Grind 75.

3. Finish the remaining Grind 75: While not all problems overlap with Apple’s focus, completing the set ensures breadth and exposes you to patterns that Apple might still test.

4. Fill in the remaining gaps with pattern-based practice: Use the 28 coding patterns to identify gaps, especially those not covered by either list, and close them with targeted problems.

By following this sequence with the 1–2–1 rubric, you avoid the inefficiency of grinding through hundreds of random problems. What you get instead is a roadmap that is structured, company-specific, and complete across all patterns.

Start your Apple interview prep with the overlap#

The overlap between Grind 75 and Apple Top 75 is the smartest way to begin your prep. These problems give you double value: they reinforce the core topics covered in Grind 75 while also aligning directly with Apple’s interview history. Starting here saves time, reduces redundancy, and ensures your early practice builds both strong fundamentals and Apple-specific readiness.

Let’s see how many coding problems overlap between Grind 75 and Apple top 75.

The list above shows that 32 out of 75 problems are common to Grind 75 and Apple Top 75, which is about 43%. It is a very good start because every coding problem you practice here is valuable.

Now, let’s see which patterns are covered by these overlapping coding problems, and how well they hold up against the 1–2–1 rubric. In the bar chart below, each bar represents a pattern. The length of the bar shows what percent of the full 15 points you’ve earned for that pattern, while the label highlights how many easy, medium, and hard problems went into that score.

Note: For this calculation, I have only considered the counts that satisfy our 1–2–1 rubric. If a pattern has more questions than required by the rubric, I count only 1 easy, 2 medium, and 1 hard problem. For example, if Dynamic Programming has 10 medium questions, I have included just 2 in this calculation.

The bar chart above shows that the overlapping coding problems between Grind 75 and Apple Top 75 introduce 20 out of 28 coding patterns, which is about 70%. This is a huge milestone that sets a solid foundation for the roadmap.

As per the coverage, only one pattern, Two Pointers, is well covered, while a couple of others, Tree Depth-First Search and Knowing What to Track, are partially covered. A large number of patterns remain underrepresented. This stage gives you a good starting point, but it also makes clear that many key patterns still need attention. The good news is that once a pattern is identified, it can be fully covered using the 1–2–1 rubric.

Next: Focus on Apple-specific coding interview questions#

Once you finish the overlap, the next step is to tackle Apple-only questions. These problems capture Apple’s unique style, with variations that may not appear in Grind 75 but show up consistently in Apple interviews. Solving them gives you direct exposure to how Apple frames problems, the twists they add, and the level of depth they expect. By focusing here early, you adapt your thinking to Apple’s patterns and close gaps that a generic list might leave behind.

Let’s see which patterns the Apple-specific coding problems cover.

The list above shows that the Apple-specific coding problems surface 4 new coding patterns, taking the total to 24 out of 28 patterns (about 86%). This is a good jump and an indication that the Apple-focused prep roadmap is moving in the right direction.

Now, let’s see how well the patterns in this set are covered according to the 1–2–1 rubric. The bar chart below highlights the newly covered patterns in green on the y-axis.

The bar chart above shows that moving to the Apple-specific list significantly improves the coding pattern coverage. The number of well-covered patterns increases from one to two, with Dynamic Programming and Two Pointers. Heaps and Stacks also move up from underrepresented to partially covered. However, many patterns still remain underrepresented and will need targeted practice.

Should you complete all of Grind 75 for Apple interviews?#

After solving the overlap and Apple-only problems, the question is whether you should complete the rest of Grind 75. The answer is yes. The full list covers a wide range of topics and introduces you to additional patterns that may not appear in Apple’s top 75. Working through them can strengthen your breadth and give you more practice with problem-solving under different constraints.

Let’s take a look at the patterns covered by the remaining Grind 75 coding problems.

The list above shows that the remaining Grind 75 coding problems unlock 1 new coding pattern. Every pattern counts, and this takes the total number of known coding patterns to 25 out of 28. That is about 90%, leaving just 10% to cover all 28 patterns.

Now let’s see how well the patterns in this set are covered according to the 1–2–1 rubric.

The bar chart above shows that adding the remaining Grind 75 problems brings further progress. The number of well-covered patterns increases to six, with Stacks and Tree Depth-First Search moving into the green. Several others, such as Graphs and Knowing What to Track, strengthen their coverage as well.

This stage effectively addresses many of the patterns that were previously underrepresented, demonstrating how a targeted approach can complete the coverage. While some patterns still remain underrepresented, they can be covered by tackling a few more problems with the rubric in hand.

Is your Apple coding interview prep complete now?#

You might be wondering if these steps are enough to call your Apple prep complete. The answer lies in the overall coverage. The bar chart below shows how much ground this roadmap covers across all patterns and highlights what still needs your attention.

The Apple-focused prep roadmap so far has pushed six patterns into the green zone, i.e., they are now well-covered. This includes Two Pointers, Dynamic Programming, Stacks, Tree Depth-First Search, Sliding Window, and Tree Breadth-First Search. Several patterns are in the yellow zone, i.e., partially covered, such as Heaps, Modified Binary Search, Hash Maps, and Knowing What to Track. These are close to completion, and just one hard problem each can push them into the green zone.

The remaining are still in the red zone, including patterns like Top K Elements, Union Find, Graphs, and Subsets. Most of these require just 2 carefully chosen problems to reach full coverage under the 1–2–1 rubric.

The most important highlight is that three patterns were not covered by any of the sets: Cyclic Sort, Sort and Search, and Bitwise Manipulation. Here are some recommended coding problems to practice for Cyclic Sort, Sort and Search, and Bitwise Manipulation.

Patterns recap for Apple coding interview prep #

Let’s recap the progress of your Apple-focused roadmap from a pattern perspective. The pie chart below shows the percentage of coding patterns covered across the different stages. This gives you a clear, high-level view of how close you are to complete coverage and which parts of the roadmap contributed most.

The chart above shows that the largest share of coding patterns, over 70%, comes from the overlap between Grind 75 and Apple top 75. Apple-only questions add another meaningful chunk at around 14%, showing their role in expanding coverage. The remaining Grind 75 contributes a smaller slice, while about 11% of patterns were uncovered (have now been identified) and need targeted practice.

Score breakdown for the Apple coding interview prep #

Patterns tell one side of the story, but scores reveal how much progress you have actually made toward the 420-point benchmark. The chart below breaks down the contribution of each stage in the Apple prep roadmap, showing where most of the points come from and how much is still left to earn.

The roadmap so far adds up to 210 points out of the 420-point benchmark, which is exactly half of the ideal coverage. The overlap between Grind 75 and Apple top 75 contributes the most with 109 points, showing the efficiency of starting there. Apple-only questions add 66 points, while the remaining Grind 75 contributes 35 points to broaden coverage.

That leaves 210 points still on the table. These remaining points come from underrepresented patterns that have not yet reached full coverage. With the 1–2–1 rubric in hand, you can close these gaps easily by practicing a handful of targeted problems across easy, medium, and hard levels, ensuring all 28 patterns are fully represented.

Wrapping up: How to prepare smartly for Apple coding interviews#

Apple interviews are not about how many questions you have solved; they are about how well you can think. Lists like Grind 75 and Apple top 75 give you structure and direction, but they cannot replace the deeper skill of recognizing patterns. That ability is what allows you to adapt when a familiar problem is framed in a new way.

Smart preparation means going beyond memorization. Instead of spending months grinding hundreds of random questions, you can cover all 28 coding patterns with a structured roadmap.

• Start with the overlap between Grind 75 and Apple top 75 for maximum efficiency. Every solved problem counts twice, building fundamentals and matching Apple’s interview history.

• Next, tackle the Apple-only questions to cover Apple’s unique twists and variations.

• Then work through the rest of Grind 75 to broaden your problem-solving foundation and exposure.

• Finally, use the 28 coding patterns to close any remaining gaps.

In the end, the engineers who succeed are the ones who prepare with purpose. Focus on patterns, practice them across different levels of difficulty, and use curated lists to stay efficient. That balance of depth and efficiency is what turns preparation into performance.

Recommended resources to level up your coding interview prep#

While this blog offers you a data-driven way to measure and close your prep gaps, the right learning tools can accelerate your progress even further. Here are two highly effective resources to complement your study plan:

• Educative’s Personalized Interview Prep: It’s your tailored prep companion that adapts to your skill level and focuses on the 28 essential LeetCode patterns we’ve been discussing. You can work on the patterns that need the most attention, track progress with clear metrics, and know exactly what to tackle next. Whether it’s adding an easy problem to build confidence or a hard one to push for mastery, you’ll always be working on the right problems at the right time.

• Educative’s Mock Interviews: Practicing is not just about solving problems. It is also about handling real interview pressure. Educative’s AI mock interviews let you simulate actual interview conditions, get actionable feedback, and improve in areas like problem-solving speed. This way, you are not only technically prepared but also confident and ready to perform under time constraints.