Discussions of how the Square has changed in recent years usually center on the gentrification of the Harvard Square neighborhood and Cambridge in general.
The Square also used to be a neighborhood shopping center, including a grocery store (Sages) and a Woolworth's five and ten.
 Although a hardware store (Dickson Hardware at 26 Brattle Street) survives amid chain drug stores and bank branches, the Square is mainly a regional rather than neighborhood shopping destination, serving students and commuters.

In 1981 and 1987 the Harvard Square Theater was converted into a multiplex cinema; it later became part of the Loews Cineplex Entertainment chain and then closed on July 8, 2012.
 During the late 1990s, some locally run businesses with long-time shopfronts on the Square—including the unusual Tasty Diner, a tiny sandwich shop open long hours, and the Wursthaus, a German restaurant with an extensive beer menu—closed to make way for national chains.
Elsie's Lunch, a long-popular deli, has also closed; what remained of its small corner storefront space facing Lowell House on Mount Auburn Street is now occupied by an ATM.
Another long-time restaurant, the 64-year-old Leo's Place, closed in December 2013 when the landlord of the property terminated their lease.
The owners are hoping to reopen in a new location.

The student co-op, the Harvard/MIT Cooperative Society ("The Coop", founded in 1882) is now managed by Barnes & Noble, though it is still overseen by a board elected by its membership of Harvard and MIT students and staff.
Schoenhof's Foreign Books is owned by the French Éditions Gallimard.
Major bookstores Paperback Booksmith, Reading International, and Barilari Books had closed by the end of the 1990s.
 WordsWorth Books at 30 Brattle Street closed in 2004, after 29 years as a fixture in the Square.
In the same year, the famous Grolier Poetry Bookshop announced that it would be sold (although it survived under new management).
Globe Corner Bookstore converted to an exclusively online business, serving its last walk-in customer on July 4, 2011.

Following national trends, the former Harvard Trust Company has been absorbed into the national Bank of America through a series of mergers.
The iconic Out of Town News is owned by the UK-based Hudson Group.
 Still, several establishments remain as longstanding, locally-run businesses with unique styles.
Examples include Leavitt & Pierce tobacconists (est.
1883), Laflamme Barber Shop (est.
1898), Harvard Book Store (est.
1932), Cardullo's Gourmet Shoppe (est.
1950), Charlie's Kitchen (est.
1951), the Brattle Theater (est.
1953), the Hong Kong Chinese restaurant (est.
1954), Club Passim (est.
1958), Café Pamplona (est.
1959), Mr. Bartley's Burger Cottage (est.
1960), Dickson Brothers Hardware (est.
1961), Million Year Picnic comics (est.
1970), Algiers Coffee House (est.
1970), and Grendel's Den (est.
1971).

Raven Used Books arrived in 2005, helping to preserve Harvard Square's reputation as a center for used and new book browsing and sales.

A 2012 proposal suggested major changes to the pedestrian island in the heart of Harvard Square, including possible removal of the landmark Out of Town News kiosk.
Reaction to the proposal was mixed, and no changes have been approved as of April 2015.
Discussions of how the Square has changed in recent years usually center on the gentrification of the Harvard Square neighborhood and Cambridge in general. The Square also used to be a neighborhood shopping center, including a grocery store (Sages) and a Woolworth's five and ten.  Although a hardware store (Dickson Hardware at 26 Brattle Street) survives amid chain drug stores and bank branches, the Square is mainly a regional rather than neighborhood shopping destination, serving students and commuters.
In 1981 and 1987 the Harvard Square Theater was converted into a multiplex cinema; it later became part of the Loews Cineplex Entertainment chain and then closed on July 8, 2012.  During the late 1990s, some locally run businesses with long-time shopfronts on the Square—including the unusual Tasty Diner, a tiny sandwich shop open long hours, and the Wursthaus, a German restaurant with an extensive beer menu—closed to make way for national chains. Elsie's Lunch, a long-popular deli, has also closed; what remained of its small corner storefront space facing Lowell House on Mount Auburn Street is now occupied by an ATM. Another long-time restaurant, the 64-year-old Leo's Place, closed in December 2013 when the landlord of the property terminated their lease. The owners are hoping to reopen in a new location.
The student co-op, the Harvard/MIT Cooperative Society ("The Coop", founded in 1882) is now managed by Barnes & Noble, though it is still overseen by a board elected by its membership of Harvard and MIT students and staff. Schoenhof's Foreign Books is owned by the French Éditions Gallimard. Major bookstores Paperback Booksmith, Reading International, and Barilari Books had closed by the end of the 1990s.  WordsWorth Books at 30 Brattle Street closed in 2004, after 29 years as a fixture in the Square. In the same year, the famous Grolier Poetry Bookshop announced that it would be sold (although it survived under new management). Globe Corner Bookstore converted to an exclusively online business, serving its last walk-in customer on July 4, 2011.
Following national trends, the former Harvard Trust Company has been absorbed into the national Bank of America through a series of mergers. The iconic Out of Town News is owned by the UK-based Hudson Group.  Still, several establishments remain as longstanding, locally-run businesses with unique styles. Examples include Leavitt & Pierce tobacconists (est. 1883), Laflamme Barber Shop (est. 1898), Harvard Book Store (est. 1932), Cardullo's Gourmet Shoppe (est. 1950), Charlie's Kitchen (est. 1951), the Brattle Theater (est. 1953), the Hong Kong Chinese restaurant (est. 1954), Club Passim (est. 1958), Café Pamplona (est. 1959), Mr. Bartley's Burger Cottage (est. 1960), Dickson Brothers Hardware (est. 1961), Million Year Picnic comics (est. 1970), Algiers Coffee House (est. 1970), and Grendel's Den (est. 1971).
Raven Used Books arrived in 2005, helping to preserve Harvard Square's reputation as a center for used and new book browsing and sales.
A 2012 proposal suggested major changes to the pedestrian island in the heart of Harvard Square, including possible removal of the landmark Out of Town News kiosk. Reaction to the proposal was mixed, and no changes have been approved as of April 2015.
Harvard Square