Principal Software Development Engineer

Role overview

The International team is seeking a talented and driven Principal Software Development Engineer to join CarGurus' new Dublin office and lead exciting product initiatives for our Canadian and UK markets and play a key role in establishing the office's culture. In this role, you'll be responsible for leading the full software development lifecycle - across both the frontend and backend - collaborating with Engineering and Product peers to design innovative solutions and tackle complex challenges for our dealer-facing products.

We are looking for candidates who are able to learn and adapt quickly, and collaborate with other engineers to deliver solutions. Some examples of potential project opportunities:

• Building new, full-stack features for dealer products from the ground up
• Integrating with existing services and expanding functionality using React, TypeScript, and Java
• Designing and implementing integrations with third-party APIs and partners, building applications with Remix.
• Modernizing and rearchitecting current systems to leverage cloud technologies like AWS

As a principal engineer on this team, you will own projects from conception to completion, working closely with other engineers and product partners, in Dublin and in the US, to deliver impactful solutions for the international business.

Success in this role requires a balance of deep technical expertise and strong business judgement to guide teams in making strategic technology decisions that align with both immediate and future product needs. You must quickly learn and adapt to new challenges, working closely with engineers and stakeholders to translate requirements into scalable solutions. Car expertise is welcome but isn't required; what matters most is your passion for technology, your commitment to engineering excellence, and your drive to have a real impact.

What you'll do

• Work closely with engineers, product managers, and stakeholders across the company to refine new product requirements and transform them into effective technical solutions.
• Own the full development lifecycle from refining initial concepts and architecting advanced features as robust microservices and modern web applications (Java/React/TypeScript), to implementing and delivering practical, high-quality systems.
• Contribute to high standards of quality by ensuring code is reliable, performant, and well-tested, with automated tests across the testing pyramid that ensure strong production health of our systems.
• Promote a culture of observability and operation excellence by helping teams leverage metrics to diagnose, mitigate, and resolve challenging production issues across multiple services and boost operational excellence.
• Use AI technologies, optimizing the software development process and driving greater efficiency across teams.
• Mentor engineers by offering guidance, actionable feedback, and insightful recommendations to support sound technical decision-making in the new Dublin hub.

What you'll bring

• 8+ years of experience as a professional Software Engineer, including 3+ years serving as a technical lead or principal engineer.
• Deep full-stack expertise working with Java and TypeScript (or similar languages) and frameworks such as Spring Boot, Hibernate, and React.
• 5+ years of experience designing, building, deploying, scaling, testing, and evolving distributed systems using service-oriented architecture in 24/7 production environments.
• 2+ years of experience using cloud infrastructure technologies such as AWS, Terraform or similar cloud services.
• Hands-on experience working with both relational and NoSQL databases, applying the right data models to diverse needs.
• Experience in operating and troubleshooting production systems.
• Outstanding written and verbal communication abilities, with a demonstrated talent for translating technical concepts for both engineering and business audiences.
• Consistent record of being self-motivated, resourceful, and proactive in driving projects and business goals.
• An aptitude for leveraging AI tools such as Claude Code, Cursor, or similar to enhance software development and operational efficiency. Additional hands-on experience with LLMs is a huge plus.
• Bonus: Deep experience with server-side TypeScript and modern isomorphic frameworks (especially Remix, though Next.js or Express are also highly valued).