Google began rolling out its September 2026 spam update on 24 September, and the rollout may take up to two weeks to finish. It is the fourth spam update of the year and a much slower one than the others. For most businesses that follow Google’s guidelines, it should pass without any lasting change, and so far that is what we are seeing across the websites we look after. It is still worth knowing what the update is and what to watch while it runs.

Between 4 and 13 September 2026, a number of large websites dropped sharply in Google Search and then recovered within about nine days. Google didn’t confirm or name an update. For most businesses, it’s a good example of a dip that didn’t need any action.

Google’s John Mueller has confirmed that publishing large batches of low value, templated pages, a practice known as programmatic SEO, can make Google’s systems lose trust in your entire website, not just the pages involved. Deleting the pages afterwards isn’t enough to fix it. This matters most for businesses tempted to scale content quickly through automation rather than genuine research and writing.

Since Google’s August 2026 Spam Update wrapped up on August 21, search rankings have kept shifting rather than settling down. Third-party tracking tools and SEO community reports are showing a fresh round of unconfirmed volatility running through at least August 26, with no official update named or acknowledged by Google.

Google confirmed and completed the August 2026 spam update between 18 and 21 August, its third spam-focused ranking adjustment of the year. Unlike a broad core update, this type of update specifically targets content that breaches Google’s spam policies rather than reassessing overall site quality, so most legitimate sites should see little to no change.

Third-party ranking trackers picked up another spike in Google Search volatility on August 12-13, 2026, the sixth unconfirmed spike since the June 2026 spam update finished rolling out. Google has not logged anything on its official Search Status Dashboard, so this remains unconfirmed, and early signs suggest it’s milder than the spike earlier in the month.

Local SEO helps businesses show up in Google’s local search results and Maps by focusing on three ranking pillars: relevance, distance, and prominence. An optimised Google Business Profile, consistent NAP details, positive reviews, local keywords, and citations all work together to build visibility and trust with Google and customers. As AI-driven search grows, businesses also need to build entity authority and a strong digital footprint so they get recommended by tools like Google AI Overviews, not just ranked in traditional results.