Revenue growth has entered a period of sustained decline, contracting by 27.2% year-over-year in 2025Q4 while gross margins compressed to 53.6% from a 63.9% peak in 2024Q3.
Zhihu Inc. (ZH) annual income statement — 7-year revenue, gross profit & net income history
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 2.69B | 2.67B | 3.65B | 4.2B | 3.67B | 2.92B | 1.28B | 668.7M |
| Revenue Growth % | -19.98% | -26.73% | -13.06% | 14.45% | 25.58% | 128.49% | 91.17% | - |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 1.11B | 1.07B | 1.44B | 1.9B | 1.83B | 1.39B | 561.95M | 357.27M |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 40.06% | 39.4% | 45.32% | 49.84% | 47.49% | 43.96% | 53.43% |
| Gross Profit | 1.58B | 1.6B | 2.21B | 2.3B | 1.84B | 1.53B | 716.43M | 311.43M |
| Gross Margin % | 58.69% | 59.94% | 60.6% | 54.68% | 50.16% | 52.51% | 56.04% | 46.57% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | -27.53% | -3.65% | 24.77% | 19.95% | 114.09% | 130.05% | - |
| Operating Expenses | 1.98B | 1.97B | 2.7B | 3.37B | 3.47B | 2.91B | 1.29B | 1.37B |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 73.8% | 73.96% | 80.21% | 94.64% | 99.5% | 100.63% | 204.43% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 1.49B | 1.46B | 1.96B | 2.47B | 2.69B | 2.29B | 974.64M | 1.02B |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | 54.7% | 53.61% | 58.74% | 73.47% | 78.57% | 76.24% | 152.08% |
| Research & Development | 488.65M | 510.69M | 742.93M | 901.33M | 776.77M | 611.56M | 311.76M | 350.06M |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | 19.1% | 20.35% | 21.47% | 21.18% | 20.94% | 24.39% | 52.35% |
| Other Operating Expenses | -306.6K | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Operating Income | -401.28M | -370.57M | -487.9M | -1.07B | -1.63B | -1.37B | -569.97M | -1.06B |
| Operating Margin % | -14.91% | -13.86% | -13.37% | -25.54% | -44.49% | -46.99% | -44.59% | -157.86% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | 24.05% | 54.49% | 34.31% | -18.88% | -140.84% | 46.01% | - |
| EBITDA | -317.76M | -345.67M | -465.64M | -1.05B | -1.61B | -1.35B | -551.44M | -1.04B |
| EBITDA Margin % | -11.8% | -12.93% | -12.76% | -24.94% | -43.79% | -46.27% | -43.14% | -154.85% |
| EBITDA Growth % | -110.72% | 25.76% | 55.53% | 34.81% | -18.85% | -145.09% | 46.74% | - |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 29.6M | 24.89M | 22.26M | 24.89M | 25.65M | 21.17M | 18.53M | 20.15M |
| EBIT | -236.79M | -168.75M | -180.89M | -827.58M | -1.59B | -1.28B | -488.28M | -1B |
| Net Interest Income | 115.98M | 295.14M | 114.96M | 158.67M | 68.1M | 31.3M | 24.75M | 28.67M |
| Interest Income | 115.9M | 295.14M | 114.96M | 158.67M | 68.1M | 31.3M | 24.75M | 28.67M |
| Interest Expense | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Income/Expense | 199.55M | 201.82M | 307.01M | 244.5M | 40.23M | 96.01M | 81.69M | 54.15M |
| Pretax Income | -201.73M | -168.75M | -180.89M | -827.58M | -1.59B | -1.28B | -488.28M | -1B |
| Pretax Margin % | -7.49% | -6.31% | -4.96% | -19.71% | -43.39% | -43.71% | -38.19% | -149.76% |
| Income Tax | 18.39M | 21.1M | -9.52M | 11.83M | 14.43M | 5.37M | 1.02M | 39.89K |
| Effective Tax Rate % | -9.12% | -12.5% | 5.27% | -1.43% | -0.91% | -0.42% | -0.21% | -0% |
| Net Income | -217.94M | -187.65M | -174.24M | -843.53M | -1.61B | -1.28B | -489.3M | -1B |
| Net Margin % | -8.1% | -7.02% | -4.77% | -20.09% | -43.86% | -43.89% | -38.27% | -149.77% |
| Net Income Growth % | -1282.58% | -7.7% | 79.34% | 47.57% | -25.5% | -162.02% | 51.14% | - |
| Net Income (Continuing) | -220.12M | -189.84M | -171.36M | -839.41M | -1.61B | -1.28B | -489.3M | -1B |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 73.89M | 70.95M | 59.56M | 101.8M | 40.57M | 7.5M | 0 | 0 |
| EPS (Diluted) | -2.85 | -2.37 | -1.89 | -8.47 | -15.68 | -18.35 | -12.85 | -10.12 |
| EPS Growth % | -1280% | -25.4% | 77.69% | 45.98% | 14.55% | -42.8% | -26.98% | - |
| EPS (Basic) | - | -2.37 | -1.89 | -8.47 | -15.68 | -18.35 | -12.85 | -10.12 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 76.48M | 80.01M | 91.42M | 99.61M | 100.5M | 79.18M | 92.14M | 99.06M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 76.48M | 80.01M | 91.42M | 99.61M | 100.5M | 79.18M | 92.14M | 99.06M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying ZH stock.
For fiscal year 2025, Zhihu Inc. (ZH) reported total revenue of $2.67B. This represents a 299.9% increase compared to $668.7M in 2019.
Zhihu Inc. (ZH) reported a net loss of $187.6M for the fiscal year ending 2025.
Zhihu Inc. (ZH) reported an operating income of $-370.6M, resulting in an operating profit margin of -13.9%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
Zhihu Inc. (ZH) generated $1.60B in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 59.9%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Persistent Revenue Contraction
Persistent Revenue Contraction Trends
As reported in recent financial filings, Zhihu's revenue has experienced a sustained decline, culminating in a 27.2% year-over-year contraction by 2025Q4, which suggests that the company's core advertising and membership segments are struggling to maintain market relevance amidst a broader macroeconomic slowdown in the Chinese internet sector.
The consistent double-digit revenue decay over the last ten quarters indicates that the platform's monetization engines are failing to offset the loss of cyclical advertising demand. Investors should monitor whether this trend reflects a permanent loss of market share to short-video competitors or a deliberate, yet painful, rationalization of low-margin business lines.
Structural Margin Volatility Persists
Based on the company's reported figures, gross margins have fluctuated significantly, dropping to 53.6% in 2025Q4 from a peak of 63.9% in 2024Q3, which highlights the platform's inability to achieve consistent operating leverage despite its focus on high-intent, long-form intellectual capital and community-driven content.
The compression in gross margins suggests that the costs associated with cloud infrastructure and content moderation are not scaling efficiently with revenue. This volatility implies that the company lacks the pricing power necessary to pass through rising operational costs to its user base, leaving the bottom line highly sensitive to volume fluctuations.
Earnings Obscured by Compensation Volatility
According to recent SEC filings, Zhihu's net income has been heavily impacted by significant share-based compensation, which reached $111.7 million in 2025Q4, effectively masking the underlying cash burn and complicating the assessment of the company's true operational profitability for long-term equity holders.
The reliance on stock-based compensation to retain talent during periods of revenue contraction suggests that the company is prioritizing human capital retention at the expense of shareholder dilution. Analysts should scrutinize these non-cash charges, as they frequently obscure the actual cash-flow requirements needed to sustain the platform's current operating model.
Valuation Disconnect Warrants Caution
Based on the provided data, Zhihu's market valuation appears to be heavily supported by its $3.37 billion cash position, yet the persistent operating losses, as seen in the 2025Q4 net loss of $205.8 million, suggest that the market may be overestimating the company's ability to pivot toward sustainable profitability.
Short-sellers would likely focus on the widening gap between cash reserves and operational performance, arguing that the company is essentially a cash-burning entity with a declining core business. The lack of a clear path to positive operating margins suggests that the current valuation may be vulnerable if the cash pile is depleted without a successful strategic inflection.