careers in test

Performance Test Engineer

“Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a job where you push systems to their limits and beyond? That’s the role of a Performance Test Engineer.”

A Performance Test Engineer focuses on evaluating software applications under varying load conditions to ensure optimal performance. They conduct load, stress, and scalability testing to identify performance bottlenecks and provide recommendations for improvement.

The engineer works to create scripts and scenarios that mimic real-world usage, collaborating with developers to optimize code and infrastructure for high availability and responsiveness.

Knowledge Required
  • Load and stress testing techniques
  • Performance testing tools (e.g., JMeter, LoadRunner)
  • System resource monitoring and analysis
  • Scripting for performance test scenarios
  • Network protocols and architecture
Skills Required
  • Load and Stress Testing Expertise
  • Bottleneck Analysis
  • Performance Monitoring Tools (e.g., JMeter, LoadRunner)
  • Scalability Testing
  • Response Time Analysis
Typical Responsibilities
  • Creating performance reports and dashboards
  • Designing and executing performance test scripts and scenarios
  • Identifying performance issues and providing detailed analysis
  • Collaborating with development and infrastructure teams to address performance bottlenecks
  • Monitoring and analyzing system metrics under load conditions
Common Tools

JMeter, LoadRunner, NeoLoad, Gatling, BlazeMeter

Connect & Facilitate

This role often overlaps with Technical Test Analysts and DevOps Testers in areas of performance optimization and system reliability.

Rate Table (National Average)

Please note that rate averages will change slightly by state, and precision of practice can also influence rates (testing for avionics, medical, or safety equipment can require compliance with particularly rigorous government standards etc)

RemunerationValue
Daily Rate (contract)$900 – $1100
FTE Salary (Permanent)$130,000 – $160,000

Project Hiring Cost (average)

These percentages are derived from an annualized amount. Given the costs involved in sourcing, vetting, and correspondence for a role of this type, a recruiter would expect a minimum fixed fee of 15K, although most recruiters operate on percentages nowadays.

Project Hiring CostValue
Internal HR15-20%
Recruiters25%

Interview Questions

Here are some interview questions you will most likely encounter for this role. While we don’t provide answers, we do clarify the intent behind the questions, which makes them a great resource when researching the role in readiness for an interview.

To gauge familiarity with performance testing tools and rationale for choosing them.

To assess ability to establish and monitor performance metrics.

To understand methodologies for assessing system limits.

To evaluate experience with identifying and resolving performance issues.

To assess strategies for simulating increasing user loads.

ATS Keyphrases

These keywords are commonly used by recruiter Application Tracking Systems to determine the relevance of a CV or cover letter to a specific position description. By ensuring at least a few of these key phrases appear throughout your CV and cover letter, you increase your relevance where an ATS is being used.

Performance Testing, Load Testing, Stress Testing, Scalability Testing, JMeter, LoadRunner, Bottleneck Analysis, Performance Monitoring, Test Scripts Creation, Test Data Management, Response Time Analysis, Throughput Measurement, Soak Testing, Spike Testing, Resource Utilization Analysis, Test Automation for Performance, Performance Benchmarking, Test Environment Configuration, Application Tuning, Performance Metrics Reporting, End-to-End Performance Testing, API Performance Testing, Real-User Simulation, Cloud Performance Testing, Network Latency Testing