Home & Garden Websites Were Hit Hardest in the Week After Google’s September Spam Update
In the first full week after Google's September 2026 spam update began, 1 in 10 websites in Diib's data lost half or more of their Google search visits, up from about 1 in 50 in a normal stretch. Home & garden, pet and auto websites were hit most often; health and book sites the least.
About 1 in 8 home and garden, pet and auto websites saw their Google search traffic cut in half in the week after this update, versus about 1 in 50 sites in a normal stretch. Most sites in every industry came through fine, so a dip on your site is a reason to look closer, not a reason to panic.
Google began rolling out its September 2026 spam update on September 24 and said it could take up to two weeks. Diib’s first look covered the first three days. This one covers a full week and breaks the results down by industry.
What Diib measured
Using aggregated Diib website data, we compared each site’s visits from unpaid Google search in the week of September 27–October 3 with the week of September 13–19. The group: 33,643 websites with connected Google Analytics and at least 70 search visits in the earlier week. As a baseline, we ran the same comparison across two weeks with no spam update (August 30–September 5 vs. September 13–19).
What we found
Across all industries, 10% of sites lost half or more of their search visits, compared with 2% in the baseline weeks. Some industries saw it far more often than others:
| Industry | Sites | Lost half or more of search visits | Baseline weeks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home & Garden | 2,677 | 13% | 1% |
| Pets & Animals | 205 | 12% | 2% |
| Autos & Vehicles | 1,386 | 12% | 2% |
| Jobs & Education | 1,064 | 11% | 2% |
| All industries | 33,643 | 10% | 2% |
| Law & Government | 822 | 8% | 2% |
| Health | 2,323 | 6% | 2% |
| Science | 203 | 6% | 1% |
| Books & Literature | 191 | 4% | 1% |
What this data can’t tell you
The timing lines up with the update, but this data can’t show which sites Google actually flagged for spam. Some drops will have other causes, like site changes, tracking problems or seasonal swings. The rollout may also still be finishing, so these numbers could shift. Treat this as a map of where to look, not a verdict on any one industry.
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