Yes. Sessions, the shared editor, code execution and the task bank cost nothing. A free account adds interview mode, scoring, notes, the whiteboard, history and interview recording, plus activity monitoring for 3 sessions a month.

Does the candidate need to sign up?

No. The candidate opens the link, enters a name and lands in the editor. The interviewer does not need an account either, unless they want to keep the interview history.

Does CodeShare have video calls?

No. Hold the call in the tool you already use, such as Zoom or Google Meet, and open CodeShare in the next tab for the live coding.

What are the limits of code execution?

One run lasts at most 3 seconds. There is no keyboard input during a run, so put the input data in the code. That is enough for interview tasks.

Can I review the live coding after the interview?

Yes, if the interviewer is signed in. The code, notes, scores and the session recording are kept in the interview history.

Live coding interviews online, with one link

CodeShare is a free editor for live coding in technical interviews. Create a session, send the link to the candidate and write code together: you both see edits, cursors and run output in real time. Nothing to install, and you can start without signing up.

Free, no sign-up

What a live coding interview is

Live coding is the stage of a technical interview where the candidate solves a task and writes code while the interviewer watches. The interviewer looks at more than the answer: how the candidate clarifies the task, where they start, how they test the solution and how they fix mistakes.

Live coding used to happen at a whiteboard or at one shared computer. Interviews are remote now, so live coding happens online in a shared code editor in the browser. The interviewer and the candidate open one link, see the same code and run it without setting anything up.

A good live coding editor stays out of the way of the conversation: it opens in a second, never asks the candidate to sign up, highlights the syntax of the language and shows the program output to everyone at once.

How to run a live coding interview in three steps

Click "Start live coding". The session is created at once; pick the language in the editor. You can write the task in Markdown right in the session.
Send the link to the candidate in a chat or in the call invitation. The link is short enough to read out. The candidate enters a name and lands in the editor without signing up.
Write and run code together. Ask the candidate to think aloud and to run the solution as they go: everyone in the session sees the output and the errors.

What the interviewer gets

A real-time shared editor: up to 5 people in a session, edits and cursors visible at once.
Code execution in 11 languages: JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, Java, C++, Go, Rust, C#, Pascal, BASIC and SQL. Code runs in an isolated sandbox on the server.
A bank of 120 tasks with tests: open any task in a session without an account.
With a free account, interview mode: a playlist of timed tasks that you can change during the interview.
Also with an account: candidate scoring with your own criteria, stars and a verdict, and private notes only you can see.
With an account: interview history and recording, to replay how the code was written after the interview.
With an account: a whiteboard for diagrams and optional activity monitoring, 3 sessions a month. The candidate sees a notice and gives consent.

How to evaluate live coding

Understanding: does the candidate ask clarifying questions and notice empty input, duplicates and large data?
Approach: can they explain the idea before coding, offer a simple solution and then improve it?
Code quality: clear names, small functions, no dead code.
Testing: do they run the code on examples and find and fix bugs on their own?
Complexity: can they name the time and memory cost and explain where the bottleneck is?
Communication: do they think aloud, take hints and stay calm after a mistake?

How a candidate can prepare for live coding

Live coding tests your reasoning, not your memory. Clarify the task and the edge cases before you start. Write a simple working solution first, then improve it. Name the complexity of your algorithm and test the code on small examples.

The best preparation for live coding is to solve tasks in the same format: in a browser editor, with code execution and tests. The Practice tab has tasks by topic with hints, and the task bank has tasks interviewers actually give.

Practice with hints Task bank

Common live coding mistakes

Writing code before clarifying the task. Ten minutes later it turns out a different task was being solved.
Staying silent. The interviewer cannot see the reasoning and cannot help when the solution drifts.
Going straight for the optimal solution. A simple working solution beats an unfinished fast one.
Not running the code. In a shared editor a run takes a second, and a bug the candidate finds alone is a plus.
Forgetting edge cases: an empty array, one element, negative numbers, duplicates.

Typical live coding tasks

Find a pair of numbers with a given sum (Two Sum) and discuss moving from a double loop to a hash map.
Check that a bracket sequence is balanced with a stack.
Reverse a linked list or detect a cycle in it with two pointers.
Group anagrams and discuss the choice of key.
Write a SQL query with a JOIN, a GROUP BY and a window function.
Find the bug in given code and explain why it fails.

Live coding in your language

Popular languages have their own pages: a code sample, typical tasks and limitations.

Live coding FAQ

Is it free?: Yes. Sessions, the shared editor, code execution and the task bank cost nothing. A free account adds interview mode, scoring, notes, the whiteboard, history and interview recording, plus activity monitoring for 3 sessions a month.
Does the candidate need to sign up?: No. The candidate opens the link, enters a name and lands in the editor. The interviewer does not need an account either, unless they want to keep the interview history.
Does CodeShare have video calls?: No. Hold the call in the tool you already use, such as Zoom or Google Meet, and open CodeShare in the next tab for the live coding.
What are the limits of code execution?: One run lasts at most 3 seconds. There is no keyboard input during a run, so put the input data in the code. That is enough for interview tasks.
Can I review the live coding after the interview?: Yes, if the interviewer is signed in. The code, notes, scores and the session recording are kept in the interview history.

Everything CodeShare does