Google Algorithm Change History

• Each year, Google changes its search algorithm around 500–600 times. While most of these changes are minor, Google occasionally rolls out a "major" algorithmic update (such as Google Panda and Google Penguin) that affects search results in significant ways.

• For search marketers, knowing the dates of these Google updates can help explain changes in rankings and organic website traffic and ultimately improve search engine optimization. Below, we’ve listed the major algorithmic changes that have had the biggest impact on search.

Google Algorithm Update History

2016

• Penguin 4.0 (Real-time) — September 23, 2016Google announced a long-awaited (almost 2 years)

Penguin update. They suggested the new Penguin is now real-time and baked into the "core" algorithm. Initial impact assessments were surprisingly small, with almost no reports of Penguin recoveries.

• Image/Universal Drop — September 13, 2016MozCast recorded a nearly-record 111° temperature

and a 50% drop in SERPs with image (universal/vertical) results. The universal result shake-up opened up an organic position on page 1, causing substantial ranking shifts, but it's likely that this was part of a much larger update.

• "Possum" — September 1, 2016While unconfirmed by Google, MozCast recorded

extreme temperatures of 108° and a drop in local pack prevalence, and the local SEO community noted a major shake-up in pack results. Data suggests this update (or a simultaneous update) also heavily impacted organic results.

• Mobile-friendly 2 — May 12, 2016Just more than a year after the original "mobile

friendly" update, Google rolled out another ranking signal boost to benefit mobile-friendly sites on mobile search. Since the majority of sites we track are already mobile-friendly, it's likely the impact of the latest update was

1. Penguin 4.0 (Real-time) —September 23, 2016.

2. Image/Universal Drop —September 13, 2016

3. "Possum" — September 1, 2016

4. Mobile-friendly 2 — May 12, 2016

Google Algorithm Update History 2016

• Unnamed Major Update — May 10, 2016MozCast and other Google weather trackers showed

a historically rare week-long pattern of algorithm activity, including a 97-degree spike. Google would not confirm this update, and no explanation is currently available.

• AdWords Shake-up — February 23, 2016Google made major changes to AdWords, removing

right-column ads entirely and rolling out 4-ad top blocks on many commercial searches. While this was a paid search update, it had significant implications for CTR for both paid and organic results, especially on competitive keywords.

• Unnamed Update — January 8, 2016Multiple tracking tools (including MozCast) reported

historically-large rankings movement, which Google later confirmed as a "core algo update". Google officially said that this was not a Penguin update, but details remain sketchy.

5. Unnamed Major Update —May 10, 2016

6. AdWords Shake-up —February 23, 2016

7. Unnamed Update — January 8, 2016

Google Ranking Updates 2015-2016

Google Algorithm Update History

2015

• RankBrain* — October 26, 2015Google made a major announcement, revealing that machine

learning had been a part of the algorithm for months, contributing to the 3rd most influential ranking factor. *Note: This is an announcement date - we believe the actual launch was closer to spring 2015.

• Panda 4.2 — July 17, 2015Google announced what was most likely a Panda data

refresh, saying that it could take months to fully roll out. The immediate impact was unclear, and there were no clear signs of a major algorithm update.

• The Quality Update — May 3, 2015After many reports of large-scale ranking changes, originally

dubbed "Phantom 2", Google acknowledged a core algorithm change impacting "quality signals". This update seems to have had a broad impact, but Google didn't reveal any specifics about the nature of the signals involved.

• Mobile Update AKA "Mobilegeddon" — April 22, 2015In a rare move, Google pre-announced an algorithm update,

telling us that mobile rankings would differ for mobile-friendly sites starting on April 21st. The impact of this update was, in the short-term, much smaller than expected, and our data showed that algorithm flux peaked on April 22nd.

• Unnamed Update — February 4, 2015Multiple SERP-trackers and many webmasters reported major

flux in Google SERPs. Speculation ranged from an e-commerce focused update to a mobile usability update. Google did not officially confirm an update.

1. RankBrain* — October 26, 2015

2. Panda 4.2 (#28) — July 17, 2015

3. The Quality Update — May 3, 2015

4. Mobile Update AKA "Mobilegeddon" — April 22, 2015

5. Unnamed Update —February 4, 2015

Google Algorithm Update History

2014

• Pigeon Expands (UK, CA, AU) — December 22, 2014

Google's major local algorithm update, dubbed "Pigeon", expanded to the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia. The original update hit the United States in July 2014. The update was confirmed on the 22nd but may have rolled out as early as the 19th.

• Penguin Everflux — December 10, 2014

A Google representative said that Penguin had shifted to continuous updates, moving away from infrequent, major updates. While the exact timeline was unclear, this claim seemed to fit ongoing flux after Penguin 3.0 (including unconfirmed claims of a Penguin 3.1).

• Pirate 2.0 — October 21, 2014

More than two years after the original DMCA/"Pirate" update, Google launched another update to combat software and digital media piracy. This update was highly targeted, causing dramatic drops in ranking to a relatively small group of sites.

• Penguin 3.0 — October 17, 2014

More than a year after the previous Penguin update (2.1), Google launched a Penguin refresh. This update appeared to be smaller than expected (<1% of US/English queries affected) and was probably data-only (not a new Penguin algorithm). The timing of the update was unclear, especially internationally, and Google claimed it was spread out over "weeks".

1. Pigeon Expands (UK, CA, AU) — December 22, 2014

2. Penguin Everflux —December 10, 2014

3. Pirate 2.0 — October 21, 2014

4. Penguin 3.0 — October 17, 2014

5. "In The News" Box —October 2014

Google Algorithm Update History

2014

• Panda 4.1 — September 23, 2014Google announced a significant Panda update, which included an

algorithmic component. They estimated the impact at 3-5% of queries affected. Given the "slow rollout," the exact timing was unclear.

• Authorship Removed — August 28, 2014Following up on the June 28th drop of authorship photos,

Google announced that they would be completely removing authorship markup (and would no longer process it). By the next morning, authorship bylines had disappeared from all SERPs.

• HTTPS/SSL Update — August 6, 2014After months of speculation, Google announced that they would

be giving preference to secure sites, and that adding encryption would provide a "lightweight" rankings boost. They stressed that this boost would start out small, but implied it might increase if the changed proved to be positive.

• Pigeon — July 24, 2014Google shook the local SEO world with an update that

dramatically altered some local results and modified how they handle and interpret location cues. Google claimed that Pigeon created closer ties between the local algorithm and core algorithm(s).

• Authorship Photo Drop — June 28, 2014John Mueller made a surprise announcement (on June 25th) that

Google would be dropping all authorship photos from SERPs (after heavily promoting authorship as a connection to Google+). The drop was complete around June 28th.

6. Authorship Photo Drop —June 28, 2014

7. Payday Loan 3.0 — June 12, 2014

8. Panda 4.0 (#26) — May 19, 2014

9. HTTPS/SSL Update —August 6, 2014

10. Pigeon — July 24, 2014

Google Algorithm Update History

2014

• Payday Loan 3.0 — June 12, 2014Less than a month after the Payday Loan 2.0 anti-spam

update, Google launched another major iteration. Official statements suggested that 2.0 targeted specific sites, while 3.0 targeted spammy queries.

• Panda 4.0 — May 19, 2014Google confirmed a major Panda update that likely

included both an algorithm update and a data refresh. Officially, about 7.5% of English-language queries were affected. While Matt Cutts said it began rolling out on 5/20, our data strongly suggests it started earlier.

• Payday Loan 2.0 — May 16, 2014Just prior to Panda 4.0, Google updated it's "payday loan"

algorithm, which targets especially spammy queries. The exact date of the roll-out was unclear (Google said "this past weekend" on 5/20), and the back-to-back updates made the details difficult to sort out.

• Unnamed Update — March 24, 2014Major algorithm flux trackers and webmaster chatter spiked

around 3/24-3/25, and some speculated that the new, "softer" Panda update had arrived. Many sites reported ranking changes, but this update was never confirmed by Google.

• Page Layout — February 6, 2014Google "refreshed" their page layout algorithm, also known

as "top heavy". Originally launched in January 2012, the page layout algorithm penalizes sites with too many ads above the fold.

11. Panda 4.1 (#27) —September 23,

12. 2014

13. Authorship Removed —August 28, 2014

14. Payday Loan 2.0 — May 16, 2014

15. Unnamed Update — March 24, 2014

16. Page Layout #3 — February 6, 2014

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Google Ranking Updates 2001-2010