Back in October 2021, Google revealed that it would enable continuous scrolling for its Search feature for mobile users. In December 2022, it added that same feature for desktop users of Search. At the time, Google stated this switch from the old pagination system would allow users to find search results faster.
Well, as it turns out, the use of continuous scrolling for Google Search wasn't a huge improvement. Search Engine Land has posted word directly from Google that it is ditching continuous scrolling for search results and will go back to the old-fashioned pagination system.
The story says that, according to a Google spokesperson, the switch back to the old page system will actually generate search results faster than with continuous scrolling because users won't have to load any results that they haven't requested. Also, the continuous scrolling method did not offer better satisfaction from Google Search users.
The story points out that this switch could affect some SEO results, as users will have to click on Page 2 from now to get more links instead of just scrolling down to see more results.
Google says desktop search users should be back to the old pagination layouts today. It will apparently take a bit longer to make the same change on mobile devices. Google says they will also switch to the pagination system sometime in the coming months.
This change comes several weeks after Google launched its AI Overviews in Search for US users. At the time, the company said it would create answers to questions based on info gathered by its search of outside links. However, the company soon faced a ton of criticism from many users, claiming that a number of AI Overview answers were factually incorrect. Search Engine Land reported a few days ago that AI Overview answers are only showing up in a few percent of overall Google searches.
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