Adyen
Large (~4,770)
Pylon
Small (~70)
Best For
Adyen
Best for: Payments and backend engineers who value a no-nonsense engineering-first culture with above-average WLB and the challenge of processing global financial transactions at massive scale
Pylon
Best for: Early-career engineers who want YC-style startup intensity and direct product ownership at a small, fast-moving team
Ratings
AdyenPylon
3.8
3.0
Overall
4.1
3.5
Work-Life Balance
3.9
3.1
Culture & Values
3.8
3.0
Comp & Benefits
3.6
2.8
Senior Mgmt
3.6
2.8
Career Opps
👍 76% Recommend
👤 80% CEO Approval (Ingo Uytdehaage)
👍 60% Recommend
👤 63% CEO Approval (Marty Kausas)
Culture Values
Adyen only
⚙️ Engineering-Driven⚖️ Work-Life Balance🌱 Learning & Growth
Pylon only
🧩 Wears Many Hats
Shared
🚀 Ship Fast & Iterate🎯 Direct Product Impact
Pros & Cons
Adyen
- Smart, humble colleagues with high standards and a market-leading payments product
- Good work-life balance with trust-based culture, free lunch, and international team trips
- Below-market compensation (~20% less than peers) with poor stock options
- Middle management quality issues as company scaled — inexperienced managers and internal politics
Pylon
- YC + a16z backed with strong product-market fit in B2B customer support
- Small team with outsized ownership — every engineer directly shapes the product
- Polarized reviews — aggressive culture reported by some employees
- Very early-stage with minimal processes — only 4 Glassdoor reviews
Bottom Line
Adyen
Adyen's engineering culture is well-regarded in fintech — principled, WLB-conscious (4.1/5), and technically rigorous — but expect a methodical Amsterdam-centric culture rather than a high-growth startup vibe.
Pylon
Small YC + a16z-backed team with strong product-market fit in B2B support — but polarized Glassdoor reviews flag an aggressive culture and minimal processes.
Open Roles
Adyen — 279 jobs
💻 Engineering
80
💼 Sales / GTM
65
⚖️ Legal
19
💰 Finance
14
⚙️ Operations
12
📋 Product
12
👤 HR / People
11
📊 Data
10
🎨 Design
5
📣 Marketing
2
🧠 ML / AI
2
Pylon — 31 jobs
💼 Sales / GTM
11
💻 Engineering
10
🎨 Design
3
📣 Marketing
2
👤 HR / People
1
📋 Product
1
Summary
Adyen scores 3.8/5.0 on Glassdoor with a 4.1 work-life balance rating. Pylon scores 3.0/5.0 overall with a 3.5 WLB. That’s a 0.8-point gap on overall satisfaction.
Both companies share these culture values: Ship Fast & Iterate, Direct Product Impact. Adyen also emphasizes Engineering-Driven, Work-Life Balance, Learning & Growth. Pylon also emphasizes Wears Many Hats.
On the hiring front, Adyen has 279 open roles and Pylon has 31 open roles.