Adam Hafez
Key takeaways
- Damien Andell reported on 25 September 2026 that the Follow button for Search profiles was gone from desktop results but still on mobile knowledge panels.
- Barry Schwartz tested it on Lily Ray's results and saw a Search profile button on desktop but no Follow button.
- A follow-up post by Andell on 29 September says the button is back, and that it was missing on Chrome, signed in or not, for several days.
- Google has not commented, so it is unknown whether this was a test, a bug or a deliberate change.
- Google's launch post says people follow sources from a profile so they are more likely to see that content on Discover.
Google briefly appears to have taken the Follow button off desktop search results for Search profiles. Search Engine Roundtable reported it on 28 September 2026 after Damien Andell flagged it on X on 25 September.
What was removed?
Search profiles are Google’s page for publishers and creators, launched in June 2026. Google’s announcement says people can follow a source from its profile, so they are more likely to see its content on Discover. It also says profiles are reached on mobile through a knowledge panel, by tapping a name on Discover or by a direct URL.
Andell wrote that Google removed the follow button on desktop search, while it remained on mobile knowledge panels. Barry Schwartz checked Lily Ray’s results himself and saw a “Search profile” button on desktop with no Follow button, but a Follow button on mobile.
Is it back?
Apparently. Search Engine Roundtable added an update after a second post from Andell on 29 September, saying he had checked earlier, the button was missing, and now it was back. He added that it had not shown in Chrome, signed in or not, for several days.
Neither report includes a Google statement. We cannot say whether this was a test, a bug or a deliberate change, and the sources do not say how many users saw it.
Why does it matter?
For a publisher or creator with a Search profile, the Follow button is how a desktop searcher joins your Discover audience. Google ties following to Discover visibility, so a desktop gap could have cost follows from that surface. The sources give no figures on how many follows came from desktop.
Keep a note of your own follower counts if you track them. If you want the full picture of the feature’s recent changes, see our report on Search profile article cards and the lower follower bar.
The evidence
- Type
- industry
- Impact
- low
- Affects
- Search profiles, knowledge panels, Google Discover
Sources
- 1.Google Search Profiles Follow Button Removed From Desktop Search Results - Search Engine Roundtable, September 28, 2026Primary
- 2.A new profile to help publishers and creators highlight their work on Search - GooglePrimary
- 3.Google Search Profiles Is Officially Announced - Search Engine Roundtable, June 5, 2026
Frequently asked questions
Is the Follow button for Search profiles gone for good?
No evidence says so. Damien Andell reported on 29 September that it was back, and Search Engine Roundtable added that update. Google has not explained the gap.
Can people still follow a Search profile on mobile?
Yes. The report says the Follow button remained on mobile knowledge panels while it was missing on desktop. Google's launch post describes mobile as where profiles are accessed.
Why do Search profile followers matter?
Google says people who follow a source from its profile are more likely to see that content on Discover, found on the home screen of the Google app.
About the author
Founder, UpgradIQ FZC LLC
Adam Hafez works on technical SEO and search measurement: how pages get crawled, indexed, ranked and now quoted by answer engines. He founded UpgradIQ, which reads Google Search Console and GA4 to tie ranking movement back to the changes that caused it. He publishes what the data supports and states the limits of it.
- Technical SEO
- Search Console and GA4 measurement
- Answer engine optimization
- Structured data
The briefing
Only what actually changed in search, delivered in full by RSS, Atom or JSON feed.
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