Google started rolling out its Page Experience update on the 22nd of February 2022 and quickly completed it after a nine-day rollout. By comparison, the mobile Page Experience update took 2 and a half months to fully roll out.
Now that the update has been deployed successfully, you can now assess the impact on your search rankings and results
What does the Desktop Page Experience Update change?
Google’s page experience update for desktop search includes many of the same ranking factors as the algorithm that launched on the mobile search last year. This includes:
- Core Web Vitals (LCP + CLS + FID)
- HTTPS Security
- Absence of intrusive interstitials
If your website fails to meet any of the above criteria, you will not benefit from the page experience ranking boost on desktop.
Will my rankings drop because of the Google update?
A ranking drop doesn’t mean your site is being punished for not meeting Google’s page experience criteria.
It means sites meeting Google’s criteria might end up ranking above you, causing your pages to rank lower. Therefore, improving your page experience score can help you regain those ranking positions and remain competitive.
If you want to learn more about your website’s Core Web Vitals, you can utilise the Core Web Vital reports in Search Console to diagnose what needs to be done to improve your website’s experience for Google’s latest update.
