You should read the following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this annual report on Form 20-F. This discussion may contain forward-looking statements based upon current expectations that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those set forth under “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors” or in other parts of this annual report. A.Operating Results Since we launched our business in 2010, we have been dedicated to expanding our content and service offerings to meet the diverse needs of our users, content creators, and business partners. We have grown from a Q&A community into one of the largest comprehensive online content communities in China. Our average monthly subscribing members were 15.0 million in 2024 and 13.5 million in 2025. As of December 31, 2025, Zhihu had 80.3 million cumulative content creators, who had contributed 953.9 million cumulative pieces of content covering over 1,000 verticals. We continue to launch new monetization channels such as offering vocational training. We believe that we are still in an early stage of monetization with significant potential for growth across multiple monetization channels. Our revenues decreased from RMB4.2 billion in 2023 to RMB3.6 billion in 2024 and decreased to RMB2.7 billion (US$393.1 million) in 2025. Our gross profit decreased from RMB2.3 billion in 2023 to RMB2.2 billion in 2024 and decreased to RMB1.6 billion (US$235.6 million) in 2025. Our net loss was RMB839.5 million in 2023, RMB169.0 million in 2024, and RMB195.2 million (US$27.9 million) in 2025. We had net operating cash outflows of RMB415.5 million, RMB280.2 million, and RMB363.6 million (US$52.0 million) in 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively. Key Factors Affecting Our Results of Operations Our results of operations are affected by the following factors. Our content offerings As an online content community, the overall scale of our user base, level of user engagement, and content creation all depend on the breadth, depth, richness, and quality of our content offerings. As of December 31, 2025, our community had 953.9 million cumulative pieces of content. The ever-growing Zhihu content has expanded to include timely content covering trending events to satisfy the needs and improve the experience of our increasingly diverse user base. In addition, our constantly broadening content coverage and diverse content formats cater to our users’ continually evolving preferences. We have been deepening our content and adding new product categories to cover a wider spectrum of content consumption scenarios in our users’ daily lives. We will continue to motivate and support content creators to create more high-quality content. Furthermore, we have developed and will continue to develop utilities and incentives to facilitate the content creation process. Our user base Our business and revenue growth are supported by our ability to maintain a consistent and active user base. Our vibrant community helps us motivate content creators to produce more high-quality content, which further stimulates user interactions and spending. With the larger and more engaged user base, more content creators have emerged on Zhihu. We provide multiple channels for content creators to monetize their contributions in our community. Benefiting from our large user base and comprehensive content offerings, we have created a vibrant community of subscribing members and other customers. Our average monthly subscribing members increased significantly from 14.5 million in 2023 to 15.0 million in 2024, and decreased to 13.5 million in 2025. In addition, our large and engaged user base has attracted merchants and brands to our community and to pursue more effective branding and advertising. Our content-centric monetization Our revenue and business scale depend on our ability to further enhance our monetization by optimizing the effectiveness of our diversified monetization model for each revenue stream and expanding our revenue streams. 103 Table of Contents We have been expanding our service offerings to meet the diverse needs of our users, content creators and business partners. We have been enhancing our content-centric monetization in each of our revenue streams, including marketing services, paid membership, vocational training and other services. The willingness of our users to pay for premium content largely depends on the breadth, depth, and quality of our premium content, and thus better premium content could result in higher value for our paid membership services. Our rich content offerings and user base attract more merchants and brands to promote their products and services and achieve other commercial goals through our marketing services. In addition to continuously expanding our customer base via our diversified service offerings, we plan to further improve the effectiveness of our monetization channels and increase the spending of our existing merchants and brands as well as paying users. We have consistently explored additional content-centric monetization channels and added new revenue streams. For example, we have launched our intellectual property development initiatives. We plan to further expand the monetization of our content community and seek to further diversify our revenue streams. Our operating efficiency Our efficiency and margin depend on our ability to strategically increase our scale and manage our costs and expenses. As the majority of our content is generated by users, we benefit from our organically generated, diverse content that stimulates interactions among users and content creators, as well as efficient content acquisition. We also deploy resources to strategically acquire high-quality content to enrich our premium content library. As we continue to expand our revenue streams, our revenue mix and ability to manage the level of revenue sharing with content providers might also affect our gross profit margin. We seek to continually optimize our expense structure. Our operating efficiency is significantly affected by our user acquisition strategy. In 2025. we took a disciplined and strategic approach in user acquisition and shifted to prioritizing user experience and adopting a more organic approach to drive user growth. Moving forward, we will continue to enhance our brand recognition to achieve organic user acquisition and retention. Our people and technology We focus on investing in our people and technology, which are crucial for us to enrich our content offerings, further grow our user base, incentivize content creators, and attract merchants and brands. We recruit, retain, and motivate talented employees to support our growth. Our technology infrastructure supports our business model in various respects, including understanding our users, optimizing our content offerings, promoting interaction and engagement between our users and content creators, nurturing our community, and enhancing our service offerings. We will continue to develop and apply artificial intelligence technologies to keep pace with the growth of our business, scale our content offerings, and improve operating efficiency. We will continue to invest in people and technology to facilitate our future growth. 104 Table of Contents Key Components of Results of Operations Revenue We generate revenue primarily through (i) marketing services, (ii) paid membership, and (iii) other services. The following table sets forth a breakdown of revenue by type both in absolute amount and as a percentage of our revenue for the periods indicated. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ 2023 ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ (in thousands, except percentages) Revenue ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Marketing services ​ 1,652,992 39.4 1,247,092 34.7 843,933 120,681 30.7 Paid membership ​ 1,826,557 43.5 1,761,978 49.0 1,538,942 220,066 56.0 Others(1) ​ 719,340 ​ 17.1 ​ 589,835 ​ 16.3 ​ 366,129 ​ 52,356 ​ 13.3 Total 4,198,889 100.0 3,598,905 100.0 2,749,004 393,103 100.0 Note: (1) We simplified our revenue stream by reclassifying vocational training into “others” to align with our overall strategy during the year ended December 31, 2025, and the revenue of others for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2024 has been retrospectively reclassified. Marketing services. We generate revenue from marketing services, which primarily consist of advertising revenue and revenue from content-commerce solutions. We experienced a decline in our marketing services revenue in 2023, 2024 and 2025 primarily due to our proactive and ongoing refinement of service offerings. Our customers are generally attracted by the consistent and active user base, high-quality user profiles, and the content generated in our community. They typically select target audience based on user profiles and review performance indices instead of specifying target content category or monitoring other similar metrics. We do not believe that we have concentration in terms of user profiles. The pricing of our advertising is determined based on our internally-set price guidelines that are updated from time to time. The guidelines generally take into consideration factors including, among other things, nature and type of customers, products and services to be marketed, prior relationships, level of comparable demands, and scale of orders, and are implemented based on the marked price for our advertising services. Paid Membership. We generate substantially all of our paid membership revenue from Yan Selection membership fees. We officially launched our Yan Selection membership program in March 2019, and since then have continued to enhance the volume and quality of our premium content. Our average monthly subscribing members increased from 14.5 million in 2023 to 15.0 million in 2024, and decreased to 13.5 million in 2025. Others. Other revenues are mainly generated from vocational training businesses, sales of our private label products and book series, intellectual property derivatives business and other activities. The decrease was primarily due to the strategic refinement of our vocational training business. 105 Table of Contents Cost of Revenues Our cost of revenues primarily consists of: (i) content and operational costs, (ii) cloud service and bandwidth costs, (iii) staff costs, and (iv) payment processing costs. Content and operational costs primarily include payments for content creators with respect to content included in our premium content library, other content-related costs and other business-related execution costs. The following table sets forth a breakdown of our cost of revenues by nature both in absolute amount and as a percentage of our revenue for the periods indicated. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ 2023 ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ (in thousands, except percentages) Cost of revenues ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Content and operational costs 1,033,878 24.6 707,710 19.7 573,947 82,073 20.9 Cloud service and bandwidth costs 280,045 6.7 195,248 5.4 161,473 23,090 5.9 Staff costs 248,678 5.9 218,873 6.1 142,162 20,329 5.2 Payment processing costs 198,199 4.7 168,151 4.7 132,248 18,911 4.8 Others 142,241 3.4 128,094 3.5 91,429 13,075 3.3 Total 1,903,041 45.3 1,418,076 39.4 1,101,259 157,478 40.1 ​ Gross Profit and Gross Profit Margin Our gross profit decreased from RMB2.3 billion in 2023 to RMB2.2 billion in 2024, and further to RMB1.6 billion (US$235.6 million) in 2025. Our gross profit margin was 54.7% in 2023, 60.6% in 2024, and 59.9% in 2025. Operating Expenses Our operating expenses consist of (i) selling and marketing expenses, (ii) research and development expenses, (iii) general and administrative expenses, and (iv) impairment of goodwill. The following table sets forth a breakdown of our operating expenses both in absolute amount and as a percentage of our revenue for the periods indicated. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ 2023 ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ (in thousands, except percentages) Operating expenses ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Selling and marketing expenses 2,048,090 48.8 1,599,186 44.4 1,252,274 179,073 45.6 Research and development expenses 901,452 21.5 732,553 20.4 524,996 75,073 19.1 General and administrative expenses ​ 418,531 ​ 9.9 ​ 330,173 ​ 9.2 ​ 251,419 ​ 35,952 ​ 9.1 Impairment of goodwill — — — — 126,344 18,067 4.6 Total 3,368,073 80.2 2,661,912 74.0 2,155,033 308,165 78.4 ​ Selling and Marketing Expenses. Our selling and marketing expenses primarily consist of expenses associated with promotion and advertising and staff costs. Research and Development Expenses. Our research and development expenses primarily consist of research and development related staff costs and expenses related to new technology and product development and product enhancements. General and Administrative Expenses. General and administrative expenses primarily consist of staff costs, traveling and general expenses, and professional service fees. Impairment of goodwill. The impairment was primarily attributable to goodwill associated with our prior acquisitions. 106 Table of Contents Taxation Cayman Islands We are incorporated as an exempted company in the Cayman Islands. The Cayman Islands currently have no income, corporation or capital gains tax. Hong Kong Under the two-tiered profits tax rate regime in Hong Kong, the first HK$2 million of profits of the qualifying group entity will be taxed at 8.25%, and profits above HK$2 million will be taxed at 16.5%. The profits of group entities not qualifying for the two-tiered profits tax rate regime will continue to be taxed at a flat rate of 16.5%. Accordingly, the Hong Kong profits tax of the qualifying group entity is calculated at 8.25% on the first HK$2 million of the estimated assessable profits and at 16.5% on the estimated assessable profits above HK$2 million. In addition, payments of dividends from our subsidiary in Hong Kong to us are not subject to any Hong Kong withholding tax. PRC Under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law effective from January 1, 2008, our PRC subsidiaries, and consolidated affiliated entities and their subsidiaries are subject to the statutory rate of 25%, subject to preferential tax treatments available to qualified enterprises in certain encouraged sectors of the economy. Enterprises that qualify as “high and new technology enterprises (“HNTEs”)” are entitled to a preferential rate of 15% for three years. Enterprises that qualify as “small low-profit enterprises” are entitled to a preferential rate of 20%. Specifically, during the period from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2027, the portion of annual taxable income amount of a small low-profit enterprise not exceeding RMB1 million is computed at a reduced rate of 25% as taxable income amount, subject to an enterprise income tax rate of 20%. During the period from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2027, the portion of annual taxable income amount of a small low-profit enterprise exceeding RMB1 million and not exceeding RMB3 million is computed at a reduced rate of 25% as taxable income amount, subject to an enterprise income tax rate of 20%. Zhizhe Sihai and Beijing Qingzhong Education Technology Co., Ltd. were qualified as HNTEs and enjoyed a preferential tax rate of 15% for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2024 and 2025. Shanghai Zhishi was qualified as HNTE and enjoyed a preferential tax rate of 15% for the year ended December 31, 2024 and 2025. Some of our subsidiaries were “small low-profit enterprises” under the PRC laws and regulations, and accordingly were eligible for a preferential tax rate of 20% in each of 2023, 2024 and 2025. Our other PRC entities were subject to enterprise income tax at a rate of 25% in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Pursuant to the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law, a 5% or 10% withholding tax is levied on dividends declared to foreign investors from China effective from January 1, 2008. We are subject to value added tax, or VAT, at rates of 6% on the products and services we provide to users and customers, less any deductible VAT we have already paid or borne. We are also subject to surcharges on VAT payments in accordance with PRC law. Dividends paid by our wholly foreign-owned subsidiary in China to our intermediary holding company in Hong Kong will be subject to a withholding tax rate of 10%, unless the Hong Kong entity satisfies all the requirements under the Arrangement Between the Mainland of China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Incomes and receives approval from the tax authority. If our Hong Kong subsidiary satisfies all the requirements under the tax arrangement and receives approval from the tax authority, then the dividends paid to the Hong Kong subsidiary would be subject to withholding tax at the standard rate of 5%. If our holding company in the Cayman Islands or any of our subsidiaries outside of China were deemed to be a “resident enterprise” under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law, it would be subject to enterprise income tax on its worldwide income at a rate of 25%. See “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—We may be classified as a “PRC resident enterprise” for PRC enterprise income tax purposes, which could result in unfavorable tax consequences to us and our shareholders and materially and adversely affect our results of operations and the value of your investment.” 107 Table of Contents Results of Operations The following table sets forth our results of operations with line items in absolute amount and as a percentage of our revenue for the periods indicated. This information should be read together with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included elsewhere in this annual. The results of operations in any period are not necessarily indicative of our future trends. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ 2023 ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ (in thousands, except percentages) Revenues ​ 4,198,889 100.0 3,598,905 100.0 2,749,004 393,103 100.0 Cost of revenues ​ (1,903,041) (45.3) (1,418,076) (39.4) (1,101,259) (157,478) (40.1) Gross profit ​ 2,295,848 54.7 2,180,829 60.6 1,647,745 235,625 59.9 Selling and marketing expenses ​ (2,048,090) (48.8) (1,599,186) (44.4) (1,252,274) (179,073) (45.6) Research and development expenses ​ (901,452) (21.5) (732,553) (20.4) (524,996) (75,073) (19.1) General and administrative expenses ​ (418,531) (9.9) (330,173) (9.2) (251,419) (35,952) (9.1) Impairment of goodwill ​ — ​ — ​ — ​ — ​ (126,344) ​ (18,067) ​ (4.6) Total operating expenses ​ (3,368,073) (80.2) (2,661,912) (74.0) (2,155,033) (308,165) (78.4) Loss from operations ​ (1,072,225) (25.5) (481,083) (13.4) (507,288) (72,540) (18.5) Investment income ​ 41,695 1.0 65,441 1.8 231,864 33,156 8.4 Interest income ​ 158,671 3.7 114,964 3.2 71,542 10,230 2.6 Fair value change of financial instruments ​ (5,170) (0.1) 78,405 2.2 — — — Exchange gains/(losses) ​ 97 0.0 1,013 0.0 (233) (33) (0.0) Others, net ​ 49,236 1.2 42,902 1.2 30,641 4,382 1.1 Loss before income tax ​ (827,696) (19.7) (178,358) (5.0) (173,474) (24,805) (6.3) Income tax (expenses)/benefits ​ (11,832) (0.3) 9,391 0.3 (21,687) (3,101) (0.8) Net loss ​ (839,528) (20.0) (168,967) (4.7) (195,161) (27,906) (7.1) ​ Year Ended December 31, 2025 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2024 Revenues ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ Change ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ (in thousands, except percentages) Revenues ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Marketing services ​ 1,247,092 843,933 120,681 (403,159) (57,651) (32.3) Paid membership ​ 1,761,978 1,538,942 220,066 (223,036) (31,894) (12.7) Others(1) ​ 589,835 ​ 366,129 ​ 52,356 ​ (223,706) ​ (31,989) ​ (37.9) Total 3,598,905 2,749,004 393,103 (849,901) (121,534) ​ (23.6) Note: (1) Starting from the third quarter of 2025, we simplified our revenue stream by reclassifying vocational training into “others” to align with our overall strategy. Revenues for the applicable comparison periods have been retrospectively reclassified. ​ Our revenues decreased by 23.6% from RMB3,598.9 million in 2024 to RMB2,749.0 million (US$393.1 million) in 2025. Marketing services. Marketing services revenue was RMB843.9 million (US$120.7 million) in 2025, compared with RMB1,247.1 million in 2024. The decrease was primarily due to our proactive and ongoing refinement of service offerings. Paid Membership. Paid membership revenue was RMB1,538.9 million (US$220.1 million) in 2025, compared with RMB1,762.0 million in 2024. The decrease was primarily due to a decline in the number of our average monthly subscribing members. Others. Other revenues were RMB366.1 million (US$52.4 million) in 2025, compared with RMB589.8 million in 2024. The decrease was primarily due to the strategic refinement of our vocational training business. 108 Table of Contents Cost of Revenues ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ Change ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ (in thousands, except percentages) Cost of revenues ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Content and operational costs ​ 707,710 573,947 82,073 (133,763) (19,128) (18.9) Cloud services and bandwidth costs ​ 195,248 161,473 23,090 (33,775) (4,830) (17.3) Staff costs ​ 218,873 142,162 20,329 (76,711) (10,970) (35.0) Payment processing costs ​ 168,151 132,248 18,911 (35,903) (5,134) (21.4) Others ​ 128,094 91,429 13,075 (36,665) (5,242) (28.6) Total ​ 1,418,076 1,101,259 157,478 (316,817) (45,304) (22.3) ​ Our cost of revenues decreased by 22.3% from RMB1,418.1 million in 2024 to RMB1,101.3 million (US$157.5 million) in 2025. The decrease was primarily due to reduced content and operating costs associated with the decline in our revenues and a decrease in personnel-related expenses. Gross Profit and Gross Profit Margin ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ Change ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ (in thousands, except percentages) Gross profit 2,180,829 ​ 1,647,745 ​ 235,625 ​ (533,084) ​ (76,230) ​ (24.4) ​ In 2024 and 2025, our gross profit was RMB2,180.8 million and RMB1,647.7 million (US$235.6 million), respectively, and our gross profit margin was 60.6% and 59.9%, respectively. Operating Expenses ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ Change ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ (in thousands, except percentages) Operating expenses ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Selling and marketing expenses 1,599,186 1,252,274 179,073 (346,912) (49,608) (21.7) Research and development expenses 732,553 524,996 75,073 (207,557) (29,680) (28.3) General and administrative expenses ​ 330,173 ​ 251,419 ​ 35,952 ​ (78,754) ​ (11,262) ​ (23.9) Impairment of goodwill — 126,344 18,067 126,344 18,067 — Total 2,661,912 2,155,033 308,165 (506,879) (72,483) (19.0) ​ Selling and Marketing Expenses. Our selling and marketing expenses decreased by 21.7% from RMB1,599.2 million in 2024 to RMB1,252.3 million (US$179.1 million) in 2025, primarily due to more disciplined marketing spending and a decrease in personnel-related expenses. Research and Development Expenses. Our research and development expenses decreased by 28.3% from RMB732.6 million in 2024 to RMB525.0 million (US$75.1 million) in 2025, primarily attributable to improvements in our research and development efficiency. General and Administrative Expenses. Our general and administrative expenses decreased by 23.9% from RMB330.2 million in 2024 to RMB251.4 million (US$36.0 million) in 2025, primarily attributable to a decline in the allowance for expected credit losses on trade receivables. Impairment of goodwill was RMB 126.3 million (US$18.1 million) in 2025, compared with nil in 2024. The impairment was primarily attributable to goodwill associated with our prior acquisitions, mainly driven by lower valuations amid the current market conditions. 109 Table of Contents Loss from Operations As a result of the foregoing, we had a loss from operations of RMB507.3 million (US$72.5 million) in 2025, compared with a loss from operations of RMB481.1 million in 2024. Investment Income Our investment income increased from RMB65.4 million in 2024 to RMB231.9 million (US$33.2 million) in 2025, primarily attributable to unrealized gains as a result of re-measuring the fair value of our investment in a privately held company associated with an observable price change in 2025. Interest Income Our interest income decreased from RMB115.0 million in 2024 to RMB71.5 million (US$10.2 million) in 2025, primarily due to a decrease in term deposits during 2025. Fair Value Change of Financial Instruments We recorded nil from fair value change of financial instruments in 2025, in comparison with gain of RMB78.4 million from fair value change of financial instruments in 2024, which reflected the fair value change of contingent consideration payables for our acquisitions. Exchange Gains/(Losses) We had exchange losses of RMB0.2 million (US$0.03 million) in 2025, in comparison with exchange gains of RMB1.0 million in 2024, as a result of fluctuations of the exchange rates of Renminbi against U.S. dollars. Others, Net We had net other gains of RMB30.6 million (US$4.4 million) in 2025, in comparison with net other gains of RMB42.9 million in 2024, primarily due to a decrease in non-operating income. Loss Before Income Tax Primarily as a result of the foregoing, our loss before income tax in 2025 was RMB173.5 million (US$24.8 million), narrowed by 2.7% from RMB178.4 million in 2024. Income Tax Benefits/(Expenses) We had income tax expenses of RMB21.7 million (US$3.1 million) in 2025, in comparison with income tax benefits of RMB9.4 million in 2024, primarily due to deferred income tax expenses associated with unrealized gains on re-measuring the fair value of our long-term investment were recognized in 2025. Net Loss As a result of the foregoing, our net loss increased from RMB169.0 million in 2024 to RMB195.2 million (US$27.9 million) in 2025. Year Ended December 31, 2024 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2023 For a detailed description of the comparison of our operating results for the year ended December 31, 2024 to the year ended December 31, 2023, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—A. Operating Results—Results of Operations—Year Ended December 31, 2024 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2023” of our annual report on Form 20-F filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 15, 2025. 110 Table of Contents B.Liquidity and Capital Resources To date, we have financed our operations primarily through cash generated by historical equity financing. We had cash and cash equivalents, current and non-current term deposits, short-term investments and restricted cash of RMB5.5 billion, RMB4.9 billion and RMB4.5 billion (US$636.5 million) as of December 31, 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively. We may decide to enhance our liquidity position or increase our cash reserve for future operations and investments through additional financing. The issuance and sale of additional equity would result in further dilution to our shareholders. The incurrence of indebtedness would result in increasing fixed obligations and could result in operating covenants that would restrict our operations. We cannot assure you that financing will be available in amounts or on terms acceptable to us, if at all. As of December 31, 2025, 55.2% of our cash and cash equivalents were held in China, of which 99.7% was held in Renminbi. As of December 31, 2025, 10.9% of our cash and cash equivalents were held by the VIE and its subsidiaries. Substantially all of our revenues have been denominated in Renminbi, and we expect them to likely continue in the same manner. Under existing PRC foreign exchange regulations, payments of current account items, including profit distributions, interest payments and trade and service-related foreign exchange transactions, can be made in foreign currencies without prior the approval of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange as long as certain routine procedural requirements are fulfilled. Therefore, our PRC subsidiaries are allowed to pay dividends in foreign currencies to us without prior SAFE approval by following certain routine procedural requirements. However, approval from or registration with competent government authorities is required where the Renminbi is to be converted into foreign currency and remitted out of China to pay capital expenses such as the repayment of loans denominated in foreign currencies. The PRC government may at its discretion restrict access to foreign currencies for current account transactions in the future. Although we consolidate the results of the variable interest entities and their subsidiaries, we only have access to the assets or earnings of the variable interest entities and their subsidiaries through contractual arrangements. We believe that, taking into account the cash and cash equivalents on hand and the financial resources available to us, including internally generated funds, we have sufficient working capital for our present requirement, which is, for at least the next 12 months from the date of this annual report. Our short-term investments mainly include investments in financial instruments with a variable interest rate indexed to performance of underlying assets for cash management purposes. From the cash management and risk control perspective, we diversify our investment portfolios and mainly purchase low risk products from reputable banks in China and overseas and prefer those products with high liquidity. We prudently manage our short-term investments portfolio and their respective term to ensure that we have short-term investments readily convertible into cash from time to time in the event that there is a need for liquidity. Our trade receivables primarily consist of outstanding amounts payable by third parties. Our trade receivables decreased from RMB664.6 million as of December 31, 2023 to RMB420.6 million as of December 31, 2024, and further to RMB358.0 million (US$51.2 million) as of December 31, 2025. We applied ASC Topic 326 to measure current expected credit losses for all trade receivables. We recorded provision of allowance for expected credit losses of trade receivables of RMB122.7 million, RMB147.5 million and RMB109.7 million (US$15.7 million) as of December 31, 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively. Accounts payable and accrued liabilities represent (i) accrued sales rebates, (ii) operational costs payables and accruals, and (iii) marketing expenses payables and accruals. Accounts payable and accrued liabilities decreased from RMB1.0 billion as of December 31, 2023 to RMB835.7 million as of December 31, 2024, and further to RMB681.3 million (US$97.4 million) as of December 31, 2025, primarily due to a decrease in operational costs payables and accruals. 111 Table of Contents Cash Flows The following table sets forth a summary of our cash flows for the periods indicated. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ 2023 ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ (in thousands) ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Net cash used in operating activities ​ (415,527) (280,185) (363,605) (51,993) Net cash (used in)/provided by investing activities ​ (1,681,140) 2,562,617 (116,301) (16,632) Net cash used in financing activities ​ (365,056) (403,862) (131,629) (18,822) Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash ​ 42,510 14,851 (18,293) (2,617) Net (decrease)/increase in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash ​ (2,419,213) 1,893,421 (629,828) (90,064) Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at the beginning of the year ​ 4,525,852 2,106,639 4,000,060 572,001 Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at the end of the year ​ 2,106,639 4,000,060 3,370,232 481,937 ​ Operating Activities For the year ended December 31, 2025, net cash used in operating activities was RMB363.6 million (US$52.0 million), as compared to our net loss of RMB195.2 million (US$27.9 million) for the same period. Net loss can be reconciled to net cash used in operating activities mainly by deducting an investment income of long-term investments of RMB159.2 million, an accrued investment income of short-term investments of RMB71.5 million and a reversal of allowance for expected credit loss of RMB26.8 million, and adding back other non-cash items, which primarily comprised an impairment of goodwill of RMB126.3 million, share-based compensation expenses of RMB87.3 million and deferred income tax expenses of RMB20.3 million, and further deducting another RMB174.0 million used for working capital. The cash used for working capital was primarily the result of (i) a decrease of RMB154.3 million in accounts payable and accrued liabilities, (ii) a decrease of RMB87.2 million in salary and welfare payables to our employees, (iii) a decrease of RMB48.8 million in contract liabilities, partially offset by (y) a decrease of RMB90.1 million in trade receivables, (z) a decrease of RMB47.2 million in prepayments and other current assets For the year ended December 31, 2024, net cash used in operating activities was RMB280.2 million, as compared to our net loss of RMB169.0 million for the same period. Net loss can be reconciled to net cash used in operating activities mainly by deducting a fair value change of financial instrument of RMB78.4 million, an accrued investment income of short-term investments of RMB58.3 million and adding back other non-cash items, which primarily comprised share-based compensation expenses of RMB59.3 million and provision of allowance for expected credit losses of RMB36.7 million, and further deducting another RMB84.5 million used for working capital. The cash used for working capital was primarily the result of (i) a decrease of RMB183.4 million in accounts payable and accrued liabilities, (ii) a decrease of RMB65.4 million in salary and welfare payables to our employees, (iii) a decrease of RMB59.5 million in contract liabilities, (iv) a decrease of RMB45.1 million in amounts due to related parties, partially offset by (y) a decrease of RMB208.2 million in trade receivables and (z) a decrease of RMB63.3 million in prepayments and other current assets. For the year ended December 31, 2023, net cash used in operating activities was RMB415.5 million, as compared to our net loss of RMB839.5 million for the same period. Net loss can be reconciled to net cash used in operating activities mainly by deducting an accrued investment income of short-term investments of RMB37.5 million, adding back a fair value change of financial instrument of RMB5.2 million and other non-cash items of RMB219.9 million, which primarily comprised share-based compensation expenses of RMB164.7 million, and provision of allowance for expected credit losses of RMB29.9 million, and further adding another RMB240.3 million released from working capital. The cash released from working capital was primarily the result of (i) an increase of RMB220.2 million in accounts payable and accrued liabilities, (ii) a decrease of RMB64.4 million in trade receivables, (iii) a decrease of RMB59.9 million in right-of-use assets, and (iv) an increase of RMB56.9 million in salary and welfare payables to our employees, partially offset by (y) a decrease of RMB87.1 million in contract liabilities and (z) a decrease of RMB50.8 million in lease liabilities. Investing Activities For the year ended December 31, 2025, net cash used in investing activities was RMB116.3 million (US$16.6 million), which was primarily attributable to (i) purchases of short-term investments of RMB13.4 billion, and (ii) purchases of term deposits of RMB742.5 million partially offset by (x) proceeds of maturities of short-term investments of RMB13.2 billion, (y) proceeds from disposal of term deposits of RMB814.5 million and (z) proceeds from sale of long-term investments of RMB76.8 million. 112 Table of Contents For the year ended December 31, 2024, net cash provided by investing activities was RMB2.6 billion, which was primarily attributable to (i) proceeds of maturities of short-term investments of RMB10.4 billion and (ii) proceeds from withdrawal of term deposits of RMB2.0 billion, partially offset by (y) purchase of short-term investments of RMB9.1 billion and (z) purchase of term deposits of RMB0.7 billion. For the year ended December 31, 2023, net cash used in investing activities was RMB1.7 billion, which was primarily attributable to (i) purchase of short-term investments of RMB7.5 billion and (ii) purchase of term deposits of RMB2.7 billion, partially offset by (y) proceeds of maturities of short-term investments of RMB6.6 billion and (z) proceeds from withdrawal of term deposits of RMB2.0 billion. Financing Activities For the year ended December 31, 2025, net cash used in financing activities was RMB131.6 million (US$18.8 million), which was primarily attributable to payment for repurchase of shares. For the year ended December 31, 2024, net cash used in financing activities was RMB403.9 million, which was primarily attributable to payment for repurchase of shares. For the year ended December 31, 2023, net cash used in financing activities was RMB365.1 million, which was primarily attributable to payment for repurchase of shares. Material Cash Requirements Other than the ordinary cash requirements for our operations, our material cash requirements as of December 31, 2025 and any subsequent interim period primarily include our capital expenditures and operating lease obligations, as well as cash requirements for potential investments. We intend to fund our existing and future material cash requirements with our existing cash balance and other financing alternatives. We will continue to make cash commitments, including capital expenditures, to support the growth of our business. Capital Expenditures Our capital expenditures are primarily incurred for purchases of property and equipment. Our total capital expenditures were RMB8.9 million in 2023, RMB2.7 million in 2024 and RMB1.5 million (US$0.2 million) in 2025. We intend to fund our future capital expenditures with our existing cash balance. We will continue to make capital expenditures to meet the expected growth of our business. Contractual Obligations Our operating lease obligations primarily represent the commitments under the lease agreements for our office premises. We lease our office facilities under non-cancelable operating leases with various expiration dates. The majority of our operating lease commitments are related to our office lease agreements in China. As of December 31, 2025, the total amount of future lease payments under operating leases was RMB38.7 million (US$5.5 million), of which RMB22.7 million (US$3.2 million) is short term. As of December 31, 2025, our investment commitment contracted with short-term payment schedule amounted to RMB12.3 million (US$1.8 million), which related to our investment obligation for a privately held company. We have not entered into any financial guarantees or other commitments to guarantee the payment obligations of any third parties. We do not have retained or contingent interests in assets transferred. We have not entered into contractual arrangements that support the credit, liquidity or market risk for transferred assets. We do not have obligations that arise or could arise from variable interests held in an unconsolidated entity, or obligations related to derivative instruments that are both indexed to and classified in our own equity, or not reflected in the statement of financial position. Other than as discussed above, we did not have any significant capital and other commitments, long-term obligations or guarantees as of December 31, 2025. 113 Table of Contents Holding Company Structure Zhihu Inc. is a holding company with no material operations of its own. We conduct our operations through our PRC subsidiaries and the VIEs in China. As a result, our ability to pay dividends depends significantly upon dividends paid by our PRC subsidiaries. If our existing PRC subsidiaries or any newly formed ones incur debt on their own behalf in the future, the instruments governing their debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends to us. In addition, our wholly foreign-owned subsidiaries in China are permitted to pay dividends to us only out of their accumulated after-tax profits, if any, as determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and regulations. Under the PRC law, each of our PRC subsidiaries and the VIEs in China is required to set aside at least 10% of its after-tax profits each year, if any, after making up previous years’ accumulated losses, if any, to fund certain statutory reserve funds until such reserve funds reach 50% of its registered capital. In addition, each of our wholly foreign-owned subsidiaries in China may allocate a portion of its after-tax profits based on PRC accounting standards to enterprise expansion funds and staff bonus and welfare funds at its discretion, and the VIE may allocate a portion of its after-tax profits based on PRC accounting standards to a discretionary surplus fund at its discretion. The statutory reserve funds and the discretionary funds are not distributable as cash dividends. Remittance of dividends by a wholly foreign-owned company out of China is subject to examination by the banks designated by SAFE. Our PRC subsidiaries have not paid dividends and will not be able to pay dividends until they generate accumulated profits and meet the requirements for statutory reserve funds. C.Research and Development, Patents and Licenses, etc. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Technological Infrastructure” And “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Intellectual Property.” D.Trend Information Other than as disclosed elsewhere in this annual report, we are not aware of any trends, uncertainties, demands, commitments or events for the period from January 1, 2026 to the date of this annual report that are reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on our total revenues, profitability, liquidity, or capital resources, or that caused the disclosed financial information to be not necessarily indicative of future operating results or financial conditions. E. Critical Accounting Estimates Our consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP and pursuant to the regulations of the SEC. The preparation of the consolidated financial statements requires management to make assumptions, judgments and estimates that can have a significant impact on the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue and expenses. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions believed to be applicable and reasonable under the circumstances. Actual results could differ significantly from these estimates. These estimates may change as new events occur, as additional information is obtained and as our operating environment changes. On a regular basis, we evaluate our assumptions, judgments and estimates and make changes accordingly. We also discuss our critical accounting estimates with the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors. Note 2 to our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report describes the significant accounting policies used in the preparation of the consolidated financial statements. We have listed below our critical accounting estimates which require management to make difficult, subjective and complex judgements often as a result of the need to make estimate on matters that are inherently uncertain and because it is likely that materially different amounts would be reported under different conditions or assumptions. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Allowance for Expected Credit Losses on Trade Receivables The allowance for expected credit losses represents our estimate of the expected lifetime expected credit losses inherent on trade receivables as of the balance sheet date. The adequacy of our allowance for expected credit losses is assessed quarterly, and the assumptions and models used in establishing the allowance are evaluated regularly. Because expected credit losses can vary substantially over time, estimating expected credit losses requires a number of assumptions about matters that are uncertain. Changes in assumptions affect general and administrative expenses on our consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive loss and the allowance for expected credit losses contained within trade receivables on our consolidated balance sheets. See Note 2 to our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report for more information regarding expected credit losses. 114 Table of Contents Nature of Estimates Required. We estimate the allowance for expected credit losses on receivables that share similar risk characteristics based on a collective assessment using measurement models. The models vary by portfolio groups and consider factors such as historical trends in credit losses, external credit evaluations, and forward-looking macroeconomic conditions. Assumptions Used. The key assumptions used in the process of estimating the allowance for expected credit losses include: Portfolio groups: In evaluating financial assets on a collective basis, we aggregate financial assets on the basis of similar risk characteristics, which include a combination of size, type of the services or the products we provide. Historical default rate: The percentage of non-payment or default on receivables over an extended time period. In determining historical loss rate, we consider historical collectability based on past due status, the age of the trade receivables balances, credit quality of customers based on ongoing credit evaluations; and Forward-looking information incorporated in the expected credit losses models: The impact of economic indicators on loss rate varies to different. We comprehensively consider internal and external data, future forecasts and statistical analysis to determine the relationship between economic indicators with loss rate. We evaluate and forecast economic indicators at least annually at balance sheet date, and regularly evaluates the results based on changes in macroeconomics. Sensitivity Analysis. When one of our estimates of historical default rate and forward-looking information decreased/increased by 1% while holding all other estimates constant, there would be no significant impact to our consolidated financial statements. Goodwill Impairment Assessment We conduct an impairment test as of December 31 annually, or more frequently if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of goodwill might be impaired. Our goodwill was attributable to our company as a whole. A quantitative assessment is performed if we determine it is more likely than not that the carrying value of the net assets is more than the fair value of the reporting unit after the qualitative assessment. Fair value is estimated by us using the income approach. Key assumptions utilized in estimating the fair value of the reporting unit include revenue growth rates, profit margins and discount rate. Changes in these assumptions could materially affect the determination of the fair value for reporting unit. Revenue growth rate and profit margin. We make assumptions about the demand for our products in the marketplace. These projections are derived using our internal business plan forecasts that are updated at least annually. The internal business plan forecasts are developed considering the market data, selling plan and industry research. Discount rate. When measuring the fair value of reporting unit, future cash flows are discounted at a rate that is consistent with a weighted-average cost of capital that we anticipate a potential market participant would use. Weighted-average cost of capital is an estimate of the overall risk-adjusted pre-tax rate of return expected by equity and debt holders of a business enterprise. Sensitivity Analysis. The estimate of fair value of the reporting units are sensitive to our assumptions in these factors. When one of our estimates of revenue growth rates and discount rate decreased or increased by 1% while holding all other estimates constant, there would be no significant impact to our consolidated financial statements. For the year ended December 31, 2025, due to the changing market conditions and fluctuations in our share price, we performed both qualitative and quantitative analysis as of December 31, 2025. A third-party valuation firm was engaged to help us determine the fair value of the reporting unit by applying income approach. RMB126.3 million of impairment of goodwill was recognized for the year ended December 31, 2025. ​ 115 Table of Contents