HORIZONTAL TOP-BAR HIVE PLANS
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What are Horizontal Top-Bar Hives? (free, easy DIY plans below!)
Top-bar hives have been used since ancient Greece, offering a simple, no-nonsense, effective approach to beekeeping.
Today’s Horizontal Top-Bar Hives are a modern take on this time-tested method.
Thanks to their horizontal design and thick walls and bars, these hives noticeably perform well in all climates, from the freezing winters of Nebraska or Vermont to the intense heat of Texas or Arizona.
Because they don't use costly frames and foundation, they are arguably the most cost-effective, the easiest to manage, and the most bee-friendly hive option there is today.
Bees build 100% natural comb on removable bars, optimizing cell sizes based on their needs, without exposure to chemical-laden foundation or plastic. This freedom is critical to hive health and resilience.
The design of these Horizontal Hives is ergonomic and back-friendly, making them super accessible to all: inspections are done horizontally one bar at a time at waist level, with no heavy lifting or stressful exposure of the brood, limiting interference with their natural organization. With the brood nest near the entrance and surplus stores in the back, it's easy to keep track of where everything is at all times. Minimally invasive inspections keep the colony calmer, healthier, and the beekeeper more comfortable.
Top-bar hives also align closely with Integrated Pest Management (IPM) principles. They support natural bee behaviors, cultural and mechanical strategies, greatly reducing the need for treatments, and offering a strong defense against pests like Varroa.
Why am I making the Bee Mindful Standardized Horizontal Top-Bar Hive plans below available to all for free?
Quite simply, I’m making these plans available for free so that anyone, regardless of background or means, can build a better home for their bees and experience the simplicity and accessibility of horizontal top-bar beekeeping without unnecessary barriers. I’m also able to do this because this is my own design and process, and because the goal was never ownership. It has always been service to the greater good.
These plans are intended to serve as a shared, practical standard for horizontal top-bar hives, so knowledge, experience, and even comb can be exchanged freely instead of being locked behind proprietary systems. Authentic, healthy systems thrive through circulation, not control. Bees have always lived this way. We are simply learning from them. In many parts of the world, paid plans, proprietary components, or specialized tools are simply not realistic options. Knowledge that depends on privilege does not travel far. Open designs do. When skills are shared freely, capacity spreads and resilience grows.
These plans are free also because I want to remove friction to adoption and make natural, horizontal beekeeping accessible to people of all backgrounds and means. By making them more accessible, I want everyone to have the chance to try at least one horizontal top-bar hive for themselves. Ultimately, what matters most is that the bees are given a better home, and beekeepers find renewed joy in their beekeeping experience.
After nearly two decades working with many hive systems, I have come to trust what I see consistently in the field. Well-designed horizontal top-bar hives are simpler, lighter, and more practical than most alternatives. They avoid expensive and constraining frames, reduce heavy lifting and unnecessary complexity, and align more closely with bee biology. For these reasons, they are especially well suited to backyard, homestead, hobbyist, and sideline operations, where ease of care, connection to the bees, and sustainability matter most. They are not designed to replace large-scale, commercial migratory systems, but to offer a better fit for beekeepers who choose to keep bees closer to their heart and home. The result is often calmer bees and more confident, capable people caring for them.
I trust people to take what is shared here and do something good with it. To build thoughtfully. To teach others. To serve the bees in ways that works for them. To keep bees more mindfully. To inspire. To pass it forward.
In the end, knowledge grows stronger when it is shared, not guarded.
Because when we support one another and lower barriers, together we rise, for people and for the bees.
Thank YOU!
Nathalie B.
The popular podcast The Hive Jive calls this hive "The People's Hive Of The Future"
Click to listen to the Podcast Episode to hear all the reasons why it is getting so popular :
The Bee Mindful Standardized Horizontal Top-Bar Hive Plans:
FREE HIVE BOX PLANS:
Horizontal Top-Bar NUC BOX Plans:
FREE NUC BOX PLANS:
WATCH OUR FRIENDS BUILD THEM!
Nathalie B. assembling hives on a Texas roof:
Our friend Darin filmed a video on how to assemble the hive body and the underside legs for 3-in-1 hives:
