or apply directly on Elastic's site. We never take the application ourselves.
Is this posting real?
- This role has been open
- 29 days Elastic's roles stay open a median of 32 days
- Reposted
- No
- Salary listed
- No 0% of Elastic's roles list one
- Ghost-job risk at Elastic
- low 0 stale, 5 reposted of 372 open
- Hiring momentum
- 495 roles opened in the last 90 days ↑ up vs. the prior 90 days
- Last confirmed on the employer's board
- 2026-09-17
Measured from postings appearing on and disappearing from Elastic's own greenhouse board since 2026-08-03. Full hiring picture for Elastic.
About this role
As a Principal Software Engineer on the Elasticsearch Performance team, you will lead initiatives focused on optimizing the performance of Elasticsearch. Your responsibilities will include developing performance models, driving optimization strategies, profiling system behavior, and mentoring other engineers. You will collaborate across teams to embed performance considerations into new features and automate benchmarking workflows.
- benefits
- 4/5
- freshness
- 4/5
- career value
- 5/5
- role clarity
- 5/5
- pay transparency
- 0/5
Scored from the posting itself — how clearly the role is described, how much it says about pay and benefits, and how recently it was listed. Not a judgement of Elastic as an employer.
What you need
- Deep knowledge of Java internals and JVM memory management
- Proven experience in profiling and optimizing distributed systems
- Solid comprehension of distributed systems architecture
- Proven track record of using AI or advanced tooling for optimization
- Ability to collaborate across functions and teams
- Ability to work autonomously and drive decisions in a distributed team
Nice to have
- Experience integrating high-performance native libraries (C++, Rust, SIMD-accelerated code) into Java applications
- Deep knowledge of modern storage engine performance, index modes, or vector search optimizations
- Experience defining and managing Performance SLAs and success criteria for distributed systems
- Experience working on the internals of a large-scale data store or search engine
What you get
- Competitive pay based on the work you do
- Health coverage for you and your family
- Flexible locations and schedules
- Generous number of vacation days
- Financial donation matching up to $2000
- Up to 40 hours each year for volunteer projects
Worth weighing
- No variable compensation component mentioned
- Salary range provided but may vary based on experience and skills
- Role involves significant collaboration and mentoring, which may require strong interpersonal skills
Summarised from Elastic's posting. Read the full original.
Listed by Elastic on their greenhouse job board, last confirmed open on 2026-09-17. PitchMeAI is not the employer.
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