Google Algorithm Updates
In one line
Google algorithm updates are the recurring algorithm refreshes Google rolls out — Core Updates, Helpful Content Updates, Spam Updates and Reviews Updates being the headline families.
Going deeper
Google algorithm updates are the recurring refreshes that recalibrate how search ranks pages. The four families you hear about most are Core Updates (broad quality recalibration), the Helpful Content System (folded into Core in March 2024, rewarding people-first content), Spam Updates (policy enforcement) and the Reviews System (renamed from 'Product Reviews' in April 2023 to cover services, places and media in addition to products).
When traffic moves during an update window, resist the urge to panic-debug your own site first. Separate two cases: did the SERP for the keyword change wholesale, or did your domain alone fall? The first is a query-intent reinterpretation; the second points at site-level content or quality issues.
Updates still matter in the AI search era. The pool of sources AI Overviews quote is drawn from the same Google index, so a Core Update that shifts domain-level evaluation tends to shift citation patterns alongside it.
Sources
Related terms
SERP Features
SERP features are the everything-that-isn't-ten-blue-links: featured snippets, People Also Ask, image packs, video carousels, AI Overviews and the rest of the modern result page.
GEO·AEOAI Overview
Google AI Overviews is the AI-generated summary that appears above the standard results in Google Search — one of the most prominent zero-click surfaces today.
SEOE-E-A-T
E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) is Google's four-axis lens for content quality — and the same kinds of signals matter when LLMs decide whom to cite.
SEOVoice Search
Voice search is the family of queries spoken to phones, speakers and cars — typically phrased as natural-language questions and answered with a single result.
SEODisavow Tool
The Disavow Tool lets you tell Google to ignore specific backlinks when evaluating your site — a last-resort instrument typically reserved for actual manual actions.
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