December 2024 Core Update: but why a new update?

7 days! It took 7 days for Google to roll out another Core Update! But why? Was November's not enough? We'll explain the context of this latest update to the core of Google's search algorithm... (and Merry Christmas, by the way)

Google rolls out its December 2024 Core Update

After the November 2024 Core UpdateGoogle announced a new update on Thursday, December 12, 2024, via the Google Search Central account on X (Twitter):

The December 2024 core update is rolling out and is expected to finish in two weeks.

If you’re wondering why there’s another core update this month after one last month, we have different core systems that we’re constantly improving. This recent blog post explains more: https://t.co/N5p3KsJyiI

— Google Search Central (@googlesearchc) December 12, 2024

Find all the latest Google updates on our dedicated page.

What to do if affected?

We can’t repeat it enough: analyze and be patient. Keep improving your website but don’t make major decisions based on drops observed during an update. Wait for the update to finish. If you need an outside perspective, we carry out SEO audits in case of a Google update.

But why two consecutive updates?

In its tweet, Google explains it has "different ranking systems" and thus different updates even though all called "Core Update." Among all these systems, for example, one can cite BERT to improve understanding of queries, the passage ranking system to identify individual sections of a webpage or the original content system to better rank sites that are the source of information reproduced elsewhere.

And to detail in their 2023 article, still valid this year:

"We try to separate major updates so that, if they introduce changes, site owners can better identify the system concerned. However, this is not always possible, given the large number of updates. Furthermore, when an update is evaluated and approved because it improves search, we do not want to delay its rollout."

So it is both a technical necessity and a business challenge which cause successive updates. In reality, Google updates its search thousands of times a year but only communicates about those that can strongly impact website visibility, in order to help publishers understand variations in their data.

More frequent updates in 2025

As noted by Aleyda Solis and the other participants of Search Central Live Event from Zurich, a Google spokesperson indicated that the search engine would roll out increasingly frequent updates next year.

More core updates and even faster core updates are expected in the future. #SCLZurich pic.twitter.com/9pZhYabxoH

— Kenichi SuzukiKenichi Suzuki (@suzukik) December 12, 2024

Updates to respond to deep changes?

Google's updates are not deployments of new interfaces or the technical response to a commercial strategy. Nevertheless, one must consider the context of online search in 2024 to understand the importance of the relevance of Google's results (and, by extension, Google's relevance overall).

Some statistics to give you context:

According to a 2024 Telmarhelixa study on Gen Z (which now represents 26% of the world's population!): 25% of them are less likely to use Google than previous generations and only 64% of Generation Z say they use search engines use search to discover brands (vs. 94% of baby boomers).

According to a Business Insider article, in a survey conducted by Evercore ISI of 1,000 people, ChatGPT was the primary search provider for 5% of respondents, compared with 1% in June 2024. According to analyst Mark Mahaney, 1% market share in search represents roughly $2 billion in annual revenue for a player able to monetize its audience as effectively as Google

Between younger generations' preference for social networks and the extremely rapid adoption of generative AIs by a highly digitized part of the population, it's likely that algorithmic changes will be accompanied by innovations already underway since 2022.

Meanwhile, we're still waiting for AI Overviews to arrive in Europe…