Google Page Experience Update Delayed

The launch of the eagerly anticipated Google Page Experience Updated has been moved from May 4th, 2021 to mid-June 2021.

After months of speculation and anticipation from the SEO community, the Google Page Experience update is now scheduled to arrive around six-weeks later than originally anticipated.

Google announced over night that the Page Experience update will start rolling out in mid-June 2021, however, don’t expect to see the full impact of the update until the end of August 2021.

“We’ll begin using page experience as part of our ranking systems beginning in mid-June 2021. However, page experience won’t play its full role as part of those systems until the end of August. You can think of it as if you’re adding a flavoring to a food you’re preparing. Rather than add the flavor all at once into the mix, we’ll be slowly adding it all over this time period.”

Google have been warning of the impending update since May 2020. Despite this, Google decided that an extra month was in order to let SEOs and webmasters prepare for the update. We suspect that the delay in rollout combined with the planned gradual rollout described above means that Google is wary of the chaos that may ensue with a single day switchover. To monitor the results and user feedback, Google will roll out the update in stages to ensure a smooth experience.

Google Page Experience Report in Search Console

As part of the process, Google have added a page experience report in Google Search Console that provides insight into URL performance. In order for URLs to be eligible in the Page Experience report, a URL must have data that is available in the Core Web Vitals Report. If you do not see URL data in the Core Web Vitals report, you will not see any data in the new Page Experience report section of Google Search Console.

Here are the factors that are being reported on in the report:

1. Core Web Vitals
2. Mobile usability
3. Security Issues
4. HTTPS Usage
5. Ad Experience

What You Should Know about the Mid-June Page Experience Rollout

• Expect changes to come through gradually – there will not be a single day when all websites from all niches and languages are impacted.
• The AMP badge will disappear in the Google search results pages
• AMP is no longer required in the Google news app
• Focus on creating a mobile friendly experience that improves metrics in-line with your page speed insights report including LCP, FID, and CLS.
• The rollout will conclude by the end of August 2021

Will the Page Experience Update be Drastic?

It’s hard to know to be honest. Google have released some contradictory information around the kinds of updates that we can expect in-line with this update. The latest statement from Google says:

“While this update is designed to highlight pages that offer great user experiences, page experience remains one of many factors our systems take into account… Given this, sites generally should not expect drastic changes,”

What Now?

You have some more time to prepare for the Page Experience update. Make this time count! Consult with your SEO specialist and web developer to implement the changes suggested in your page speed insights. If you have made no changes to date, the Page Experience Delay may be a blessing in disguise.