August 2024 Google Core Algorithm Update Goes Live

Google’s August 2024 core algorithm update is now rolling out.

As is tradition with these things, Google announced the latest core algorithm update through the Google Search Central and Google SearchLiaison Twitter (X) accompanied by a brief message:

“Today we released the August 2024 core update. It continues our work to improve the quality of our search results by showing more content that people find genuinely useful and less content that feels like it was made just to perform well on Search.”

The update appears in the Google Search Status Dashboard with a note stating: “The rollout may take up to a month to complete.”.

As Google continues to refine the search results, the big question is whether we will see any ‘reversal’ of the widespread changes that occurred during the March 2024 core algorithm update. If the information provided by Google Search Advocate John Mueller is anything to go by, the August core update could be good news for small and independent publishers.

August 2024 Google Core Update Rundown

Google’s August 2024 core algorithm update is designed to continue Google’s work to improve the quality of search results by showing content that is genuinely useful to users in place of content that has been made for the purpose of SEO. The August 2024 core update may be good news for smaller publishers with Google’s John Mueller stating that the update is intended to “connect people with a range of high quality sites, including small or independent sites that are creating useful”.

Google’s August 2024 core algorithm update is the first update since the back March core update some 163 days back on the 5th March 2024.

The March 2024 core update was, without doubt, one of the most impactful core algorithm updates in recent memory. The March core update, which intended to reduce unhelpful and spammy content in the search results, resulted in strong feedback from affected publishers. In particular, small and independent publishers were vocal in the perceived preferential treatment of larger websites.

Now, Google’s August 2024 core algorithm update may be levelling the playing field for small and independent websites.

Google Search Advocate John Mueller posted a brief summation of what we can expect to see in the August 2024 core algorithm update on the Google Search Central Blog.

Mueller also gave a nod to the feedback that Google has received from users since the March 2024 core update.

“As always, we aim to connect people with a range of high quality sites, including small or independent sites that are creating useful, original content, when relevant to users’ searches. This is an area we’ll continue to address in future updates.”

Mueller also stated that the August 2024 core algorithm aims to “better capture improvements that sites may have made, so we can continue to show the best of the web”, which may well indicate that sites that have been working to improve content ‘helpfulness’ since the March 2024 core update may be rewarded accordingly.

How Google’s Core Algorithm Updates Work

Core updates are an important of Google’s continued push to show the most relevant and helpful search results for users.

During a core algorithm update, Google makes improvements to the ranking systems that are used to generate search results. These changes can be reflected in the type of content that users are served, as well as the diversity of results that they receive.

• Core updates typically occur three to four times each year
• Core updates are universal and affect all industries and websites
• Changes to site traffic during a core update does not mean that you have been “penalised”, instead, it indicates that ranking systems may now favour other types of content.
• Core algorithm updates take time to fully roll out. In the instance of the August 2024 core update, Google has confirmed that it will take a month to complete.
• Core updates are designed to improve the integrity of search results and weed-out content that has been designed specifically to ‘rank’ instead of help users.
  Site owners and publishers are advised to wait until Google confirms the completion of an update to properly assess the impact.

What Now?

The August 2024 core algorithm update is just the second core update that we’ve received in 2024. If I were a betting enthusiast, I’d say that this won’t be the last one that we receive before the end of the year.

For those impacted by the August core algorithm update, hang tight over the next month. We recommend holding back on any major site or content changes over the next 30-days to properly assess the changes and get a sense of what is and is not working.

Between now and then, continue to focus on creating relevant, high-quality content that provides value to users. Google is continuing to shift away from “SEO content” and towards content that is written to provide real value to users through demonstrated expertise.

Update – Ranking Glitch Coinciding with August 2024 Core Update

Google confirmed on Thursday 15 August that Google was currently experiencing a separate issue that was affecting search rankings. The issue is unrelated to the ongoing core algorithm update, and we do not have any indication of what exactly has been impacted.

We first became aware of the issue through the Google Search Central twitter account where it was announced:

The Google Search Status dashboard was update with the following information at 22:48 PDT on Thursday 15 August:

“There’s an ongoing issue with ranking in Google Search that’s affecting a large number of search results. We’ve identified the root cause and this issue is unrelated to the ongoing core update rollout. Next update will be within 12 hours.”

The Google Search Status dashboard was subsequently updated again on 09:29 PDT on Friday 16 August:

“We’re still working on fixing the issue with ranking. Next update will be within 72 hours.”

We still do not have any indication of the sites that have been affected and given that there is a core update occurring at the same time, it is difficult to piece things together. We are expecting a further update in the next 24-hours where we should have a better idea of what has happened.