Google Will Remove Its Disavow Link Tool

Google’s John Mueller said on X that he believes Google will remove the disavow link tool “at some point” in the future. Bing dropped the disavow links tool from Bing Webmaster Tools in September 2023 and I suspect Google will also drop it from Google Search Console.

John was asked by Rowan Collins, “Any discussion on following suit and removing the disavow tool in Search Console? Or is it there solely for a way out of manual penalties once people are caught?”

John replied, “At some point, I’m sure we’ll remove it.”

This comes from a thread on the topic of the disavow link tool, when to use it and when not to use it. John reiterated that you can remove it if you don’t have manual actions or a history of link schemes.

John wrote, “We’ve touched on this over the years… If you have a manual action for link-spam, or if you’re certain you’ll get one when someone looks, then disavowing can make sense. Most spammy / paid / placed / swapped links are just ignored nowadays. It’s rare you’d need it.”

“In particular, the disavow links tool is not something you’d *ever* need on a regular basis. I’d consider it a big red flag if any SEO tool reported on “toxic links” and suggested you need to clean it up regularly – that’s been wrong for many years now. Don’t fall for it,” he added.

Google has said the link disavow tool hurts more than it helps. Google has consistently recently said on not using the disavow link tool.

Here are new posts on this topic:

@JohnMu Perhaps you can enlighten us…

— Michael & Chloe | Nomad And In Love (@nomadandinlove) May 4, 2024

In particular, the disavow links tool is not something you’d *ever* need on a regular basis. I’d consider it a big red flag if any SEO tool reported on “toxic links” and suggested you need to clean it up regularly – that’s been wrong for many years now. Don’t fall for it.

— John 🧀 … 🧀 (@JohnMu) May 4, 2024

Gosh, this was controversial over a decade ago when it launched, but now? Are you saying there’s more to this than what’s documented? Go for it, if you really want to, I won’t hold you back. It’s just that watching TV is more productive.

— John 🧀 … 🧀 (@JohnMu) May 4, 2024

At some point, I’m sure we’ll remove it.

I’m tempted to add something snarky regarding the conspiracy-posts, but I’ll hold my tongue.

— John 🧀 … 🧀 (@JohnMu) May 4, 2024

Forum discussion at X.