Google algorithm updates 2025 in review: 3 core updates and 1 spam update

Google launched four official and confirmed algorithmic updates in 2025, three core updates and one spam update. This is in comparison to last year, in 2024, where we had seven confirmed updates, then in 2023, when we had nine confirmed updates and in 2022 and 2021, Google had 10 confirmed algorithmic updates.

Fewer updates. Google appears to be confirming fewer updates, even though Google said a year ago, that we should expect more core updates, more often. But that doesn’t mean there were fewer updates. Google did reaffirm that it does not announce all core updates, that the search company only confirms the larger, broader core updates.

Plus, I covered dozens of unconfirmed Google updates on the Search Engine Roundtable. It was a super volatile year, even without Google confirming as many algorithmic search updates.

Google confirmed algorithm update summary

We whipped up this timeline documenting all the confirmed Google search algorithm updates…