Google has announced a major algorithmic update aimed at improving the quality of articles shown to users on Google Discover, the personalised content feed available on mobile devices, Okay News reports.
In a statement published via its Search Central Blog, the global technology company said the change, officially named the February 2026 Discover Core Update, is designed to make the Discover experience more useful, relevant and trustworthy for users around the world.
“Today, we’ve released the February 2026 Discover core update. This is a broad update to our systems that surface articles in Discover. Our testing shows that people find the Discover experience more useful and worthwhile with this update,” Google said.
According to the company, the update introduces several refinements to how content is selected and ranked on Discover.
One of the key changes is an increased emphasis on locally relevant content, ensuring that users are more likely to see articles from websites based in their own countries.
Google also said the update will reduce the visibility of sensational headlines and clickbait, while rewarding content that demonstrates depth, originality and subject-matter expertise.
“This update will improve the experience in a few key ways: showing users more locally relevant content from websites based in their country; reducing sensational content and clickbait in Discover; and showing more in-depth, original, and timely content from websites with expertise in a given area,” the company explained.
Google clarified that its systems now assess expertise on a topic-by-topic basis, meaning publishers do not need to focus on only one subject area to perform well on Discover.
However, shallow or opportunistic content is less likely to be surfaced.
“Since many sites demonstrate deep knowledge across a wide range of subjects, our systems are designed to identify expertise on a topic-by-topic basis,” Google noted.
The company warned that, as with previous core updates, publishers may experience fluctuations in Discover traffic, including increases or declines, depending on how their content aligns with the updated criteria.
“As with all core updates, this change may lead to fluctuations in Discover traffic. Some sites might see increases or decreases; many sites may see no change at all,” the statement added.
Google said the February 2026 Discover Core Update is currently being rolled out to English-language users in the United States, with plans to expand it globally to all countries and languages in the coming months.
For publishers and site owners, Google advised adherence to its existing core update guidance, stressing that the focus should remain on creating helpful, original and people-first content rather than attempting to optimise specifically for algorithm changes.
