How has Product Hunt changed in the last year? 2025 Recap
In 2025, we witnessed a true Product Hunt (r)evolution – so many things changed dramatically. I honestly think this was the most intense year of changes the platform has ever had.
For example, we got to experience all of this:
Verifying profiles (badges)
Alternative product suggestions on launch pages
Views and online count on forum posts
Adding/Removing the ambassador program
Forums instead of Discussions
Changing the UX/UI of launch pages
Removing “Coming soon” (Notify me pages)
Adding/Removing downvotes on comments
Forum comments now showing up on our profiles
More extensive footer
Redesign of the main page UI (e.g., new notification icon)
Removing Kitty’s awards
What changes do you like the most/least?
150 views
Replies
FuseBase
I still miss Golden Kitty Awards, though Orbit is also an interesting replacement. Looking forward to what 2026 will bring us here 😻
minimalist phone: reduce your screentime
@kate_ramakaieva I see Orbit as something that eventually should retain the attention of makers more on this platform. Tho, still missing the Golden Kitty as well, because it sounded so fancy, those titles etc :D
MultiDrive
@kate_ramakaieva @busmark_w_nika What is it - Orbit? :)
minimalist phone: reduce your screentime
@kate_ramakaieva @tetianai It is a replacement for Kitty Awards: https://www.producthunt.com/p/producthunt/best-ai-automation-tools-nominate-your-favorites-for-the-product-hunt-orbit-awards
Good list. Adding a few more to your list:
Addition and removal of the cover photo for launch posts
Extending description limit from 260 characters to 500 characters
Shifting placement of top nav elements (Best Products and Launches swapped)
Introducing Orbit awards
minimalist phone: reduce your screentime
@rohanrecommends I totally missed the character limit. So glad they extended it. I am preparing for one launch and have around 400 characters :D
IXORD
I do not like that the day activity was removed; it was easier to see whether a day was counted or not. I also used to be very sensitive to the PH interface, but now it seems fine to me, probably because I have gotten used to it 🙃
minimalist phone: reduce your screentime
@ixord Wait, what do you mean by daily activity?
IXORD
@busmark_w_nika I am referring to the Daily Streak that we had.
minimalist phone: reduce your screentime
@ixord But the daily streak is still counting.
IXORD
@busmark_w_nika The streak counter is still there, yes. But I am referring to the place where "Forums" is now; on the right side of the screen, the current number of consecutive days we have logged in was always displayed. It was convenient, but it was removed after the updates.
MultiDrive
Oh my God, were here downvotes on comments? Thank God they don’t exist anymore :D
minimalist phone: reduce your screentime
@tetianai They were here for a little while a few months ago. They used to be next to "Upvoted." I was used to the old system, and anytime I wanted to tap "Reply" on my desktop, by accident I tapped "Downvote." :D
The change I find most promising is forum activity becoming part of a maker’s visible history. It lets people evaluate whether someone arrived only to promote a launch or has been contributing ideas and feedback over time. That is useful while I build toward Lernex’s launch: the context should be inspectable. I do miss stronger continuity between a launch and the months of product updates afterward; progress is more informative than a single day.