Google Panda algorithm update guide: Everything thing you need to know - Search Engine Land

It was 11 years ago today that Google announced an algorithm update that had a massive and far-reaching impact on SEO for years to come.

Here’s a complete history of the Google Panda algorithm update.

What was the Google Panda update?

Google Panda was a major algorithm update that impacted search rankings for 11.8% of queries in the U.S. Google said Panda was designed to reduce the rankings for low-quality sites (“sites which are low-value add for users, copy content from other websites or sites that are just not very useful”) and reward better rankings to high-quality sites (“sites with original content and information such as research, in-depth reports, thoughtful analysis and so on”).

The algorithm officially started rolling out on Feb. 23 but it wasn’t until Feb. 24 that we learned about it.

Panda didn’t only impact content farms. Websites of all sizes, across industries, felt the wrath of Panda. There were multiple reports of companies going out of business because they had relied on Google traffic for years. Once that traffic was gone, so was their business.

After its initial launch, Google announced several refreshes and updates to Panda on a near-monthly basis for the next two years (9 in 2011 and 14 in 2012). You will find a full timeline and our coverage of those updates at the bottom of this guide.

Why was Google Panda launched?

In 2011, Google was trying to find a solution for its content farm problem. In case you’re not familiar with the term, a “content farm...

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