How would you choose between server rendering, static generation and client-side rendering for a new product? What trade-offs matter most?

What the interviewer is looking for

• This question tests web performance. Measures with real tools such as browser profilers and Core Web Vitals including Interaction to Next Paint, and names concrete fixes like code splitting, image optimisation and reducing re-renders.
• Strong answers: Matching approach to content freshness, search visibility, interactivity and infrastructure cost, mixing approaches per route, and considering caching.
• Likely follow-up: What would make you change that decision a year later?

Another way it may be asked: You're starting a new site with a marketing section and a logged-in dashboard. How would you decide how each part gets rendered?

A structure to follow: Answer, explain, example, limits

1. Step 1

   Answer

   Give your direct answer in the first sentence so the interviewer knows where you are going.

2. Step 2

   Explain

   Say how it works or why you would do it that way, in plain words before jargon.

3. Step 3

   Example

   Anchor it in something you have actually done or seen, with the detail that shows hands-on experience.

4. Step 4

   Limits

   Say when your approach would not be the right one. It shows judgement.

This is guidance on shape, not a script. Use your own real experience and facts; never invent details to fill a gap. See the STAR guide and answer frameworks.

Common slips

• Reciting a definition without showing you have applied it.
• Using terms you cannot explain if asked a level deeper.
• Claiming experience beyond what you can discuss in detail.

How to practise it

Say the answer in 90 seconds, then answer the follow-up as if it were a new question.

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