Google updates how it ranks and selects content throughout the year. A traffic change needs investigation; it does not automatically mean your website has been penalised.
Know the update type
- Core update: Broad changes to how Google evaluates and ranks content.
- Spam update: Changes to systems that detect content or practices that break Google’s spam policies.
- Discover update: Changes to the Discover recommendation feed, which is separate from ordinary web search results.
Recent confirmed updates
Latest announced update in each category, checked 9 October 2026. All three rollouts below are complete. Dates follow Google’s US/Pacific dashboard.
| Update | Rollout dates |
|---|---|
| September 2026 spam update | 24 September–8 October 2026 |
| May 2026 core update | 21 May–2 June 2026 |
| February 2026 Discover update | 5–27 February 2026 |
February’s Discover rollout initially targeted English-language users in the US.
What to do after an update
- Confirm the rollout. Use Google’s Search Status Dashboard to check the dates and completion status.
- Compare the right data. For a core update, wait at least one full week after it ends. In Search Console, compare the week after completion with the week before the rollout began.
- Find the affected pages. Check queries, traffic changes and relevant technical or content issues. Review spam policies after a spam update.
- Make focused improvements. Improve weak pages and fix verified problems. Avoid changing everything because a chart moved.
An audit score does not guarantee ranking recovery. Keep a record of changes and measure actual search performance.
Need help understanding a traffic drop? Discuss an SEO review.
Sources
Sources checked 9 October 2026.