Traffic fell off a cliff? Find out why, then fix it.
A Google penalty, an algorithm update and a broken redesign all look the same on a traffic chart, and each one is fixed differently. We find the real cause with evidence, fix it properly, and file the reconsideration request when there’s a manual action to lift.
Check your site now
First finding lands in about ten seconds. No email needed to see it.
Nothing is sent anywhere until you say so
- Manual actions and algorithm updates
- Evidence first, no guaranteed dates
SEO experience with brands like
Where do you want to start?
Three ways in, depending on what you already know about the drop.
- 01
Traffic dropped and I don’t know why
Answer six quick questions. You’ll see the most likely cause, what to check first, and how recovery usually works.
Diagnose my traffic drop - 02
I want a quick look at the site
Run a free SEO snapshot. The first finding shows up in about ten seconds, no email needed.
Run a snapshot - 03
It dropped after a redesign
Most post-launch drops are technical: missing redirects, leftover noindex tags, lost content. Start with the migration checklist.
Website migration SEO
Latest Google algorithm updates
Every Google ranking update from the last 12 months, straight from Google’s Search Status Dashboard and checked daily. If your traffic dropped while one of these was rolling out, that’s your first clue.
September 2026 spam update
Released the September 2026 spam update, which applies globally and to all languages. The rollout may take up to two weeks to complete.
Google’s announcement- September 2026 spam updateSep 24 – Oct 8, 202614 days
- August 2026 spam updateAug 18 – Aug 21, 20263 days
- June 2026 spam updateJun 24 – Jun 26, 20262 days
- May 2026 core updateMay 21 – Jun 2, 202612 days
- March 2026 core updateMar 27 – Apr 8, 202612 days
- March 2026 spam updateMar 24 – Mar 25, 20261 day
- Serving was experiencing an issueFeb 25 – Feb 25, 20261 day
- February 2026 Discover updateFeb 5 – Feb 27, 202622 days
- December 2025 core updateDec 11 – Dec 29, 202518 days
Is it a Google penalty? Diagnose your traffic drop
Answer what you can. You’ll see the most likely cause, what to check first, and how recovery usually goes for that kind of drop.
- 01Is there a manual action in Search Console?Search Console → Security & Manual Actions → Manual actions
- 02What did the drop look like?
- 03Did it line up with a Google update?Compare with the update dates above
- 04Did anything change on the site the month before?
- 05Which pages dropped?
- 06What does Search Console show?
A traffic drop can be a Google penalty, an algorithm update, a technical problem or something that isn’t a drop at all. The answers narrow it down.
Manual action, algorithm update or something else?
Only one of these is a Google penalty in the strict sense. Knowing which one you have decides the whole recovery.
- Penalty
Manual action
SignsA notice in Search Console, often with example URLs. Usually a sharp drop for the affected pages or the whole site.
How it’s fixedFix every instance of the problem, not just the examples, document it, and file a reconsideration request.
- Not a penalty
Algorithm update
SignsNo notice. The drop lines up with a core or spam update on Google’s Search Status Dashboard.
How it’s fixedImprove or consolidate the pages that lost ground. Recovery shows at a later update.
- Not a penalty
Technical problem
SignsA cliff right after a launch or deploy. Pages missing from the index or showing errors in Search Console.
How it’s fixedFix the crawl or index blocker, then resubmit. Usually the fastest to recover.
- Not a penalty
Search results changed
SignsImpressions and positions hold steady but clicks fall. AI Overviews or new features sit above you.
How it’s fixedBetter titles, structured data and AI search visibility work to win back clicks.
Google manual actions, and how each one is fixed
These are the manual actions in Search Console’s Manual Actions report. Pick one to see what it means and how it’s fixed. Each needs every instance fixed, not just Google’s examples, before a reconsideration request.
Unnatural links to your site
Google found a pattern of links pointing at your site that look bought, exchanged or otherwise built to manipulate rankings.
- Pull every link pointing at the site from Search Console and link tools
- Flag the manipulative ones and ask site owners to remove them
- Disavow the links that can’t be removed
- Document all of it in a reconsideration request
Unnatural links from your site
Your pages link out in ways that look paid or traded to pass ranking credit to other sites.
- Find paid, exchanged and site-wide outbound links
- Remove them, or mark them rel="sponsored" or "nofollow"
- File a reconsideration request
Thin content with little or no added value
Pages add little for searchers: doorway pages, scraped or auto-generated content, or thin affiliate pages.
- Inventory thin pages across the whole site, not only the examples
- Rewrite, merge or remove them
- File a reconsideration request
Major spam problems
Google believes the site relies on aggressive spam: auto-generated gibberish, cloaking, scraped content or similar.
- Decide honestly whether the site can be saved
- Rebuild it around original, useful content
- File a reconsideration request
User-generated spam
Visitors posted spam in your comments, forums or profiles, and it’s showing up in Google.
- Remove the spam posts and accounts
- Add moderation, sign-up checks and nofollow on user links
- File a reconsideration request
Site abused with third-party spam
Someone else published spam pages on your site, often through a hacked or unprotected section.
- Find and remove every spam page
- Close the hole they came through and change access
- File a reconsideration request
Cloaking and/or sneaky redirects
Google sees different content from visitors, or visitors are redirected somewhere they didn’t expect.
- Compare what Google and visitors get with URL Inspection
- Remove the cloaking and unexpected redirects
- File a reconsideration request
Structured data issue
Your markup describes content that isn’t on the page, or breaks Google’s structured data policies.
- Audit structured data on every template
- Remove or correct markup that doesn’t match the visible page
- File a reconsideration request
Site reputation policy
Third-party pages on your site are ranking on your reputation without enough oversight from you.
- Find the third-party sections and pages involved
- Remove them, noindex them or bring them under real editorial control
- File a reconsideration request
How Google penalty recovery works
The same five steps whatever the cause, with who does each one and what you get. Step four only applies to manual actions.
- Step 1RedSEO
Diagnose
Search Console, analytics and the update timeline, page by page and query by query, to separate penalty from algorithm from technical.
You getCause report with evidence - Step 2RedSEO
Find the cause
The specific pages, links, templates or changes behind the drop, shown with evidence, not a guess.
You getPage and query loss report - Step 3RedSEO + your team
Fix it properly
Every instance of the problem fixed, not just Google’s examples: content, links, markup or technical blockers.
You getFix log of every change - Step 4Google reviews
Request reconsideration
For manual actions only: a documented request that shows what was found and what changed. Then Google reviews it.
You getRequest filed and trackedManual actions only - Step 5RedSEO
Monitor and rebuild
The recovery tracked against the pre-drop baseline, and the weak spots the drop exposed rebuilt.
You getRecovery tracking vs. baseline
What our penalty recovery services include
What we do depends on the cause. These are the pieces a recovery is built from.
Drop diagnosis
Search Console, analytics and update dates lined up, so the cause is shown with evidence.
Page and query loss report
Exactly which pages and searches lost traffic, and when.
Technical recovery
Crawl and index blockers, redirects, canonicals and noindex mistakes found and fixed.
Content repair
Thin, duplicate and outdated pages rewritten, merged or removed.
Link cleanup and disavow
For link-related manual actions: a full link audit, removal requests and a disavow file.
Reconsideration request
Written and filed for manual actions, with the documentation Google’s reviewers look for.
Recovery monitoring
Clicks, impressions and rankings tracked against the pre-drop baseline.
AI search visibility
Tracking for the prompts buyers ask AI assistants, so you can see if citations return too.
How penalty recovery is priced
A recovery is a project, so it’s quoted on its own. We’ll hop on a call to go through what happened, and may pull some preliminary data from Search Console first, but an accurate quote depends on the cause and how widespread it is.
Rebuild on a monthly plan
A drop usually exposes weak pages worth fixing anyway. Monthly SEO packages start at $749 a month, month-to-month.
Monthly SEO packagesGoogle penalty recovery questions
How do I know if my site has a Google penalty?
Check Search Console under Security & Manual Actions → Manual actions. If there’s an action listed, it’s a penalty. If it says “No issues detected”, the drop is something else: an algorithm update, a technical problem, changed search results or content decay. The diagnosis tool on this page works through the signs.
What’s the difference between a manual action and an algorithmic drop?
A manual action is applied by a person at Google, shows in Search Console and can be appealed with a reconsideration request once it’s fixed. An algorithmic drop comes from an update re-ranking pages; there’s no notice and nothing to appeal, so recovery comes from improving the pages and waiting for Google to reassess them.
How long does Google penalty recovery take?
For a manual action, the work takes as long as the cleanup does, and Google says most reconsideration reviews take several days or weeks (link-related ones can take longer). Algorithmic drops usually recover at a later update after the pages improve, which can take months. Technical problems are often the fastest. No one can honestly promise a recovery date.
Can you guarantee my rankings come back?
No, and be wary of anyone who does. Google decides when an action is lifted and how pages are re-ranked. What we can do is find the real cause, fix it completely and document it, which is what gives a site its best chance.
What is a reconsideration request?
It’s how you ask Google to review a site after fixing a manual action. A good request explains what the problem was, everything that was done to fix it, and how it won’t happen again. Filing one before the problem is fully fixed usually gets it rejected.
Do I need to disavow links?
Only in specific cases, mainly an “Unnatural links to your site” manual action, or a large set of manipulative links you can’t get removed. For most sites Google already ignores spammy links, and disavowing good links can hurt.
My traffic dropped after a redesign. Is that a penalty?
Almost never. Drops right after a launch are usually technical: missing redirects, noindex tags left from staging, lost content or changed URLs. See our website migration SEO page for the checklist.
How much do Google penalty recovery services cost?
Recovery is quoted per project. We start with a call to go through what happened, and may pull some preliminary data from Search Console beforehand, but an accurate quote depends on the cause and how widespread it is. Use the diagnosis tool on this page to send us the basics.
What happens after recovery?
The drop usually exposes weak pages and gaps worth fixing anyway. Many sites move onto a monthly plan to rebuild; see monthly SEO packages.
Find out what actually happened to your traffic.
Six questions, about a minute, and you’ll know whether it’s a penalty.