Interview Framework
RICE
Prioritization questions - which feature, project, or bet to do first
When to reach for it
Any 'how would you prioritize' or roadmap-tradeoff question in a PM or growth interview.
The RICE Cheat Sheet
- R
Reach
How many users or events does this affect in a set period? Use a real number, not a guess.
- I
Impact
How much does it move the goal per user? Score it on a simple scale (e.g. 3 = massive, 1 = low).
- C
Confidence
How sure are you about Reach and Impact? Express as a percentage and discount hand-wavy estimates.
- E
Effort
Total person-months to ship. The denominator: score = (Reach x Impact x Confidence) / Effort.
| Step | Meaning | The Move |
|---|---|---|
| R | Reach | How many users or events does this affect in a set period? Use a real number, not a guess. |
| I | Impact | How much does it move the goal per user? Score it on a simple scale (e.g. 3 = massive, 1 = low). |
| C | Confidence | How sure are you about Reach and Impact? Express as a percentage and discount hand-wavy estimates. |
| E | Effort | Total person-months to ship. The denominator: score = (Reach x Impact x Confidence) / Effort. |
Top RICE Pitfalls
These are the moves that turn a strong framework into a flat answer.
Treating Impact as a precise number instead of a relative score.
Ignoring Confidence, so a high-reach guess outranks a sure thing.
Forgetting Effort is the denominator - a small, certain win often beats a big, risky one.
Try it on this prompt
“You have three features and one quarter of engineering time. How do you decide what to build?”
Companies that grade you on RICE
These companies actually ask RICE-shaped questions in their loop. Browse the real questions and the rubric we grade on.
We haven't flagged a company-bank entry for this framework yet.