Google Is Changing How It Formats Search Results on Mobile

Google is changing the way it formats search results on mobile devices, with a larger “Sponsored” tag for paid results and site names listed more prominently. The goal of these changes, which are rolling out now, is to make it easier to identify the website associated with each search result. Google has occasionally been criticized for making its search results difficult to understand, but with these new changes, the company is hoping to make things a bit more straightforward.

Paid results on Google will now carry a larger “Sponsored” tag, making it more clear that they are ads. This is in contrast to the smaller “Ad” tag that was used before. In addition, each website’s name will now be listed at the top of its respective search result. The “size and shape” of each website’s favicons are also getting updated to make them easier to see.

Google says that the new “Sponsored” tag is being introduced to ensure that “ads are clearly labeled.” Meanwhile, showing site names and favicons more prominently is aimed at making it easier to “identify the website that’s associated with each result at a glance.” These changes are rolling out on mobile devices now, and Google plans to test a similar experience for desktop searches in the near future.