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Google Search Volatility Remains High in the New Year

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Published on January 2, 2025

Happy New Year! 2024 saw many ups and downs in the search landscape, with four core algorithm updates impacting businesses throughout the year. But, what does 2025 have in store for website owners?

Unfortunately, volatility in the SERPs remains high as we kick off the year. December 2024 saw the surprise rollout and completion of the December core update and spam updates, but things haven’t calmed down following the holiday season.

Volatility Continues in January 2025

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We usually observe search volatility during and around algorithm updates, so it’s not unusual to see the trackers continuing to show high volatility in January:

Semrush Sensor showing SERP volatility in December 2024 and January 2025 — Source: Semrush

Algoroo SERP volatility tracker showing December 2024 and January 2025 data — Source: Algoroo

Advanced Web Ranking (1) — Source: Advanced Web Ranking

cognitiveSEO SERP volatility tracker showing Dec 2024-Jan 2025 data — Source: cognitiveSEO

You can catch up on Google’s activity and volatility in the SERPs with my previous articles from the latter half of 2024:

December: Google Drops Surprise December 2024 Core Update
November: Google November 2024 Core Update Ends After Three Weeks
November: Google’s Site Reputation Abuse Policy Update: Everything You Need To Know
November: Google’s November 2024 Core Update Is Here
September: Google Search Remains Volatile After August Core Update
September: Google’s August 2024 Core Update Is Complete
August: August 2024 Core Update: How Do the Experts Feel?
August: Google’s August 2024 Core Update Arrives: What We Know
August: August SERP Volatility Reaches New Heights Ahead of Google Update
July: Looming Google Update Causes July SERP Unrest
July: June Closes With a Surge in Google SERP Volatility
June: More SERPs Chaos As Google Rolls Out Latest Spam Update

As you can see, 2024 was a busy year for search. But, is constant Google volatility the new normal? It seems likely, especially with Google hinting at more frequent updates in 2025 at the Search Central Live Event in December 2024. Is another core update on the way? Stay tuned to our newsfeed for regular updates.

Written by:

Emma Ryan Writer

Emma is Lead Writer at Website Builder Expert, having first joined the team in 2022. She manages the website's topical content strategy to help website owners navigate the highs and lows of being online. Emma also specializes in following the development of leading website builders Wix, Squarespace, and Shopify, through hands-on testing and research. Her work and expertise have been featured in Startups.co.uk, Digiday, TechRound, Industry Today, and Digital Information World.