American Express (AMEX) OA Experience (2026) | 3 Coding Questions
Summary
I completed the American Express online assessment, which consisted of three implementation‑heavy coding questions covering simulation, greedy, and computational geometry.
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American Express (AMEX) OA Experience (2026) | 3 Coding Questions
Today I appeared for the American Express Online Assessment. The coding round had 3 questions, and I found it quite implementation-heavy.
Question 1
We were given a 3×3 grid containing stones. Some cells could have multiple stones while others were empty.
Task: Move stones between adjacent cells so that every cell ends up with exactly one stone. Return the minimum number of moves required.
Closest LeetCode: 2850. Minimum Moves to Spread Stones Over Grid
Question 2
We were given:
- A set of coordinate points
(x, y) - A rectangle perimeter
P
The task was to place an axis-aligned rectangle (subject to the perimeter constraint) such that it contains the maximum number of given points, and return that maximum count.
This felt like a computational geometry + sliding window / two pointers problem. I couldn't find an exact LeetCode equivalent.
Question 3
A pizza ordering problem with 4 different discount schemes.
The implementation involved creating separate discount functions and using structs/classes to represent pizzas and apply discounts correctly. The logic itself wasn't extremely difficult, but the amount of implementation made it time‑consuming.
Overall, this OA tested:
- Implementation skills
- Greedy thinking
- Geometry
- Simulation
- Clean C++ coding with structs/classes
If anyone knows the exact LeetCode equivalents (especially for Question 2 and Question 3), please share them in the comments. It would really help everyone preparing for future AMEX OAs.
Good luck to everyone preparing for placements!
Interview Questions (3)
Minimum Moves to Spread Stones Over Grid
We are given a 3×3 grid that may contain multiple stones in a cell or be empty. The task is to move stones between adjacent cells (up, down, left, right) so that each of the nine cells ends up with exactly one stone. Return the minimum number of moves required to achieve this configuration.
Maximum Points Inside Axis‑Aligned Rectangle with Perimeter Constraint
Given a set of coordinate points (x, y) and a rectangle perimeter P, place an axis‑aligned rectangle whose perimeter does not exceed P such that the rectangle contains the maximum possible number of the given points. Return that maximum count.
Pizza Ordering with Multiple Discount Schemes
Implement a pizza ordering system that supports four different discount schemes. Create appropriate structs/classes to represent pizzas and discounts, and write separate discount functions that apply the correct reduction to the order total. The focus is on clean C++ implementation and correct handling of the various discount rules.