Google has started rolling out its September 2026 spam update for Google Search. The update began on September 24 and applies globally across all languages and regions. Google said the rollout could take up to two weeks to finish.
The update is focused on websites that violate Google's search spam policies. Google has not provided details about any specific spam technique being newly targeted or the percentage of searches that could be affected.
Google regularly improves its automated systems for identifying search spam. These changes can lead to ranking changes for websites that its systems identify as violating spam policies.
Sites affected by the update may see changes in their search visibility and organic traffic while the rollout continues. However, Google has not shared an expected level of impact for this update.
The September update is also not specifically a link spam update. Google has not announced that it is targeting one particular spam category with this release.
The update started at 9:15 a.m. Pacific Time on September 24, according to Google's Search Status Dashboard. The dashboard currently lists the update as active and affecting Search ranking.
This rollout is expected to take longer than some of Google's recent spam updates. The August 2026 spam update took about two and a half days, while the June update took just over two days.
Because the September update is still rolling out, ranking changes seen during this period may not represent the final impact.
Google recommends that sites experiencing changes after a spam update review its Search spam policies. Websites that violate these policies can see lower rankings or may not appear in Search.
Google also notes that recovery may take time. Its automated systems need to reassess a site after changes are made, and improvements may take months to appear.
For website owners, this means it is better to review spam-related issues rather than make quick SEO changes based only on short-term ranking fluctuations.
The September release is the fourth confirmed Google spam update of 2026.
Google previously released spam updates in March, June and August. The March update finished in less than a day, while the June and August updates each took a little over two days.
The latest update is still in progress, so Google has not yet published a final completion date. The Search Status Dashboard will be updated once the rollout is complete.
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