Google's September 2026 Spam Update Is Done. What to Check
The rollout ended October 8 after 13 days and 16 hours, far longer than any spam update this year. A guide to reading your own numbers now that it is over.
Topic hub
Small Business Tech News
Search, email and software changes that land on a small business owner's desk.
3 stories, 9 guides, 11 key terms
Latest Small Business Tech Stories
Google Starts Rolling Out Its September 2026 Spam Update
The update applies to all languages and may take up to two weeks. Below is how to tell if your site was hit, and what not to panic about.
Google Workspace Can Now Import Old Email During Setup
New Workspace admins can pull past email from any IMAP provider while they set up. It covers one user, which fits a lot of small businesses.
Learn the Basics
Guides
- How to Get Business Email on Your Own DomainPick a provider like Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, create mailboxes, point your MX records to it, then add SPF, DKIM and DMARC.
- Google Workspace vs Microsoft 365 for Small Business (2026)In October 2026 the two cost the same. Both start at $7 a user a month on a yearly plan and $8.40 on a monthly one. So pick on how your team works. Pick Microsoft 365 if you need Word and Excel installed on a computer. Pick Google Workspace if your team lives in Gmail and the browser.
- Free Gmail vs Google Workspace for Business Email (2026)Free Gmail is fine for a business that is happy with an @gmail.com address. If you want [email protected], plan on Google Workspace at $7 a person a month on a yearly plan, or another paid mailbox. The old trick of running a business address through free Gmail stops working in January 2027.
- Free Business Email at Your Own Domain: What Still WorksYes, but only one option is a real free mailbox. Zoho Mail's Forever Free plan gives up to 5 people an inbox at your own domain, read in a browser or Zoho's app. The rest are forwarders that only receive, trials that turn into a bill, or addresses on someone else's domain.
- Not Receiving Emails at Your Business Address? Start HereIf mail to your business address stops, test it from another account and read the bounce. A bounce with a reason means the problem is on your side, usually a full mailbox, a missing address or an MX record that points nowhere. No bounce and no mail usually means spam, a filter or a forwarding rule.
- IMAP vs POP3 for Small Business EmailUse IMAP. It keeps your mail on the server, so your phone, laptop and office computer all show the same inbox. POP3 downloads mail to one device and, by default, deletes it from the server. Pick POP3 only if one computer is the only place you ever read mail and you back it up.
- How to Fix an Email That Bounced Back, Code by CodeRead the code in the bounce before you do anything else. A code that starts with 5 is a permanent failure, so sending it again won't help. One that starts with 4 is temporary, so your server will keep trying. A 7 in the middle, like 5.7.26, usually means your own domain's mail records need fixing.
- Email Deliverability: SPF, DKIM and DMARC ExplainedSPF, DKIM and DMARC are three DNS records that prove your email is really from you, and big inbox providers now require them from bulk senders.
- The Small Business Website ChecklistA good local business website is owned by you, loads securely on phones, makes it easy to call or book, and gets checked on a regular schedule.
Free tools
- Email Security CheckerCheck SPF, DKIM, DMARC and MX in one go.
From T3CHS, not the news desk
Email on Your Own Domain
Look like a real business with [email protected].
See Business Email