Last week on Feb. 5, 2026, Google released its February Discover core update. Its main goal as always is to improve the user experience and provide the best possible results for users. In this specific update, there was a broad update to the system that places articles in Discover affecting visibility. There were three specific points which determined how this update improves the overall user experience.
- Showing users more local results that are more relevant based on their location
- Minimizing what is considered “clickbait” and over-sensationalized content
- Displaying more results from websites that display experience in a specific topic or genre
What is Discover and why is this relevant?
Discover is a personalized content user feed which consists of articles, videos, and additional content based on the user’s search history and location. It is AI generated and similar to what you might see within the algorithm of popular social media platforms like TikTok, YouTube, or X. You will notice that if you watched videos on YouTube of your favorite artist as an example, your feed will consist of similar music videos that the AI algorithm thinks would be of interest to you based on what you have just watched or consumed. Users also have the ability to manage their interest, follow topics, and disable these features in Chrome or the Google App.
Where does Discover appear?
Discover appears on mobile devices in various locations and is optimized for mobile viewing currently. Mainly in the Google App (including both Android and iOS). You’ll also notice it when opening a new page in Chrome directly below the search bar.
What action items should be taken with this core update?
The first step is to determine whether this is relevant for your site. Does it fit within your marketing strategy and target the user base of those who might be interested in what your site has to offer. As always, know your target audience. In other words who you are trying to reach and where they are. It can also be a challenge to know the extent of your web traffic coming from Discover as well since there is no source/medium present in Google Analytics at the current time. As a result, this makes an effective data driven decision difficult when determining need. The traffic also can be extremely inconsistent as well adding another layer to the complexity.
If this is an effective tool for your business model and marketing strategy, once again it comes back to content. Relevant content that answers a specific problem that a user is having with your site providing a reliable and experienced solution which shows expertise. Not one that is lite, AI written, or written specifically for the search engines. Once again, write for the user and to provide the best possible experience, not to rank on Google. Showing expertise around a topic and interlink similar articles and categories together to increase visibility. Be original and provide something new which is not already out there. Lastly, add schema markup which is extremely helpful to Google and AI algorithms in determining what your page is about and how it might be relevant and helpful to users for their specific query.
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Sal Graci has over 20 years experience helping companies grow their business through SEO. He has worked for agencies, had his own agency and continues to act as a SEO consultant for many businesses in the Delaware County, PA area. He also has published many articles on search engine optimization and is considered an expert in the field.