Next Greater Element II
A medium-tier problem at 66% community acceptance, tagged with Array, Stack, Monotonic Stack. Reported in interviews at Zeta and 2 others.
Next Greater Element II is a medium-difficulty array problem that trips up candidates at Amazon, Intuit, and Zeta. The twist: the array is circular, so the "next" greater element wraps around to the beginning. Most people reach for a brute-force nested loop and hit time limits. The monotonic stack pattern solves it in linear time, but you need to see the trick fast during a live OA. If this problem hits your screen and you blank on how to handle the wraparound, StealthCoder surfaces a working solution invisibly while you stay calm.
Companies that ask "Next Greater Element II"
Next Greater Element II is the kind of problem that decides whether you pass. StealthCoder reads the problem on screen and surfaces a working solution in under 2 seconds. Invisible to screen share. The proctor sees nothing. Built by an engineer who got tired of watching his cohort grind for six months and still get filtered at the OA stage.
Get StealthCoderThe core issue is that a standard monotonic stack works left-to-right on a linear array, but here you need to iterate twice (simulating the circular nature) and use the stack to track indices and compare values efficiently. Many candidates either attempt a naive O(n^2) solution or get stuck thinking through how to implement the double-pass without redundant comparisons. The stack maintains indices in decreasing order of their corresponding values. As you move through the array, you pop elements smaller than the current one (those are your answers) and push the current index. The second pass processes remaining unmatched elements. Common pitfalls: forgetting to iterate the array twice, popping incorrectly, or using a brute-force approach that times out. StealthCoder is the hedge for the live OA if the monotonic stack pattern doesn't click in your first read of the problem.
Pattern tags
You know the problem.
Make sure you actually pass it.
Next Greater Element II recycles across companies for a reason. It's medium-tier, and most candidates blank under the timer. StealthCoder is the hedge: an AI overlay invisible during screen share. It reads the problem and surfaces a working solution in under 2 seconds. Built by an engineer who got tired of watching his cohort grind for six months and still get filtered at the OA stage. Works on HackerRank, CodeSignal, CoderPad, and Karat.
Next Greater Element II interview FAQ
Is Next Greater Element II really asked at Amazon and Intuit?+
Yes. It appears in OA reports from Amazon, Intuit, and Zeta. Acceptance rate is 66%, so it's not rare but not automatic either. The circular twist makes it harder than the linear variant, so expect it in mid-to-senior leveled rounds.
What's the trick I'm missing if I time out?+
You're likely iterating the array twice with nested loops (O(n^2)). The monotonic stack pattern reduces it to O(n) by storing indices and popping only once per element across both passes. Stack is the data structure that makes the circular case efficient.
How does Next Greater Element II relate to monotonic stack problems?+
It's a canonical monotonic stack application. The stack maintains indices in decreasing order of values. When you encounter a larger value, you pop smaller ones and record the answer. The circular array is the only twist; the core pattern is identical to the linear version.
Do I need to know this for my OA tomorrow?+
If you're interviewing at Amazon, Intuit, or Zeta, it's a realistic scenario. Even if it doesn't appear, the monotonic stack pattern shows up in multiple array and stack problems. Knowing the trick saves 10+ minutes.
What languages is this problem asked in?+
The input data doesn't specify language restrictions. It's typically asked in Python, Java, C++, or JavaScript on most online assessment platforms, and the monotonic stack pattern is the same regardless of language.
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