Insight into the Google September 2026 Spam Update: What It Means for You

Towards the end of September, on the 24^th, Google released the second spam update in 6 weeks, one that would affect websites globally, impacting all languages, with an estimated completion date of 2 weeks. While the intended recipients of the update are those who opt for spam techniques, there may be damage along the way to others who are following the correct SEO practices. For this reason, even if you or your digital marketing partner avoids spammy techniques, it is important to remain up to date about the latest from Google as they improve their abilities to spot spam and catch new ones.

Here is everything you need to know about this latest update.

Overview

• Name: Google September 2026 Spam Update
• Launched: September 24, 2026 (12:00 pm ET/17:00 pm BST)
• Rollout: Around 2 weeks.
• Targets: Any site that is violating Google’s Spam Policies.
• Does Not Target: Every single spam policy, including link spam.
• Penalty: Penalties will be applied when spam techniques are used.
• Global: Global update impacting all regions and languages.

What is a Google Spam Update?

In the background, working quietly away, are Google’s automated systems, designed to spot search spam. Very occasionally, Google improves these systems and how they work to make it easier to spot these spam techniques, including new ones that might be designed to “cheat the system”. This ensures that their users get the best experience, and those working hard to follow the policies in place get just rewards. Whenever they conduct improvements like this, they note them as spam updates and will always share with the wider public that this is occurring.

There have already been 3 spam updates in 2026 so far, one only a month before this, in August. Previous updates typically took 2 days to roll out, but this is not the case with the September update. This recent update is expected to take around 2 weeks. A 2-week rollout for a spam update is rare, leaving many an expert asking, “Is this correct?” John Mueller of Google confirmed that “It will likely take longer than some of the previous ones.” Why? He did not comment.

What Impact Might This Spam Update Leave in its Wake?

A lot of volatility has been reported since this update came about, but it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s related. What we can say on the matter is that if a site sees changes after this update, the best course of action is for them to review the spam policies Google has laid out. If you can confirm that you are following their practices, there may be another reason for ranking movements. For example, it might not be that you’ve “dropped” exactly. Quite simply, competitors may have risen. If they’ve been working on their own SEO campaigns, you might slip down to a ranking of 6 because they’ve risen to take spots 3, 4, and 5. You might be experiencing technical SEO problems, dealing with the impact of changing websites, or inadvertently causing keyword cannibalisationWhen you have duplicate and competing keywords on a website, this can be known as keyword cannibalization. with your own content.

However, if, upon discovering that there may be a few elements of their spam policy that you’ve not been stringent on, a penalty may have been handed to you in the form of lower ranking results or not appearing at all.

Whether the shift in your circumstances is down to the spam update or because of other moving parts, if you aren’t already working with our SEO experts, make that your one positive change today. We will be able to audit your website and determine where your energies are best placed to come back from a change in rankings.

If you already have an account with us and use our managed SEO services, why not give your account manager a call today? Our team will already be monitoring any changes in your rankings and search performance and putting a clear strategy in place to combat this. We will be more than happy to explain all this and more to you and support you through these volatile times.