She was a cast member and writer for the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from 2014 to 2019, and hosted the ABC game show Supermarket Sweep.

In 2017 and 2018, Jones was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her work on Saturday Night Live.

Initially unsure of what she wanted to study, Jones worked as a disc jockey at the student radio station, KNAB,[7] and contemplated playing professional basketball overseas.

[1][9][10] Once at Colorado State, Jones contemplated pursuing a pre-law degree,[8] but changed her major several times, including to accounting and computer science, before settling on communications.

[8] She performed at comedy clubs while working day jobs at Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles and UPS[11] to make ends meet.

[15] In December 2013, Saturday Night Live held a casting call to add at least one African American woman to the show, and Jones auditioned.

[17] Jones appeared during the Weekend Update segment of the May 3, 2014 episode hosted by Andrew Garfield, where her jokes about her current dating problems and her potential effectiveness as a breeding slave sparked controversy.

[31] During the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Jones regularly live-tweeted events and posted videos of her reactions.

She accepted and flew to Rio de Janeiro, covering swimming, track and field, gymnastics, and beach volleyball for NBC.

[38] Jones and fellow comedian Adam DeVine appeared in a 2016 ad campaign for Allstate Insurance, created by Leo Burnett Worldwide.

[43] Jones has cited as her comedic influences: Eddie Murphy,[8] Richard Pryor,[5] Carol Burnett,[44] Lucille Ball,[44] John Ritter,[44] and Whoopi Goldberg.

[47] She appeared later in the week on Late Night with Seth Meyers, where she discussed the ordeal and her meeting with Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.

[50] Both incidents resulted in outpourings of support for Jones from fans and celebrities alike, via the hashtag #LoveForLeslieJ which trended on both Twitter and Instagram.

[51] Those who voiced support include Paul Feig,[52] Gabourey Sidibe, Ellen DeGeneres, Sara Benincasa, Ava DuVernay, Hillary Clinton, Corey Taylor,[53] Katy Perry, Octavia Spencer, Anna Kendrick, Lena Dunham,[54] and Loni Love.

[55] When Jones appeared on Late Night with Seth Meyers on May 12, 2015, she was praised as an inspirational figure by a montage of fans showing support for her.