Google Starts Rolling Out Its September 2026 Spam Update

Google began rolling out a new spam update on September 24. Its Search Status Dashboard says the update "applies globally and to all languages" and that the rollout "may take up to two weeks to complete."

Background: setting up email on your own domain.

If your site's search traffic moves in the next two weeks, this update is one likely reason.

The Fourth Spam Update This Year

The dashboard lists three earlier spam updates in 2026. They started on March 24, June 24 and August 18. Each one finished in less than three days.

This one may take longer. Search Engine Roundtable reported that Google's John Mueller said it is "likely to take longer than some of the previous ones." The site also reported that the update is not aimed at link spam.

[It is] likely to take longer than some of the previous ones.

Who Should Pay Attention

Spam updates target sites that break Google's spam rules. For a small business, the risky patterns tend to look like this:

• Many near copies of the same page with only the town name changed.
• Large batches of pages written by software with no real local detail.
• Pages made only to catch searches, which then push visitors somewhere else.

A normal local site with real service pages, real photos and honest reviews is not what these updates are built to catch.

What to Do Now

1. Open Google Search Console and look at the Performance report.
2. Compare clicks from September 24 onward with the weeks before.
3. If traffic drops, look at which pages lost it. Ask whether those pages would help a real customer.
4. Do not rush big changes while the update is still rolling out.

Search Engine Roundtable noted that sites hit by a spam update can take many months to recover. The best fix is to remove or improve the weak pages, not to chase quick tricks.