Carrer Advise needed | Amazon SDE vs Akamai SE II | 2 YOE | Bangalore

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​Hi everyone,

​I have 2 YOE in software development and am currently choosing between two offers in Bangalore. I would love some perspective from folks at both companies regarding tech stack, learning, and long-term career growth.

​Offer 1: Amazon

• ​Role: SDE 1 (Prime Video Live Events)

• ​Location: Bengaluru (5 days RTO)

• ​Base Salary: ₹19.17L

• ​Sign-on Bonus: ₹6.47L (Y1) / ₹5.18L (Y2)

• ​RSUs: ₹15.56L (4 years: 5% / 15% / 20% / 20%)

• ​Year 1 TC: \~₹26.4L

​Offer 2: Akamai

• ​Role: Software Engineer II

• ​Location: Bengaluru (Flex / Remote options)

• ​Base Salary: ₹26.85L

• ​Target Bonus: 10% (\~₹2.68L)

• ​RSUs: None

• ​Year 1 TC: \~₹29.54L

• ​Key Dilemma & Priorities:

​Career & Learning: My primary goal is high technical growth, learning distributed systems at scale, and building a strong foundation for future switches (planning next move in \~2 years).

​Culture & Work Environment: Akamai have better culture but Amazon have brand value.

​TC Structure: Akamai has a significantly higher base (₹26.85L vs ₹19.17L), leading to much higher guaranteed cash in Y3/Y4 and better compounding for future hikes. Amazon relies heavily on initial sign-on bonuses.

​For anyone who has worked in Prime Video or Akamai:

1. ​How is the engineering scope and WLB in PV Live Events?

2. ​How does Akamai SE2 compare in terms of exit opportunities and resume brand value vs Amazon SDE?