Google Search · Official documentation
3 of Google's 5 scaled content abuse examples turn on a lack of value for users
Google's spam policy looks at purpose and value, not at how pages were made. Scaled content abuse is defined as many pages generated primarily to manipulate rankings and not to help users, and 3 of the 5 examples Google lists state a lack of value for users in the sentence itself.
Programmatic SEO draws two opposite warnings: that any large page set will be treated as spam, and that a clever template makes scale safe. Both skip what Google's policy actually says.
We opened the scaled content abuse and doorway abuse sections of Google's spam policies, along with its guidance on generative AI content, and checked which condition each example sentence states.
Finding 01
The definition targets purpose and value, not the method of production
Scaled content abuse is when many pages are generated for the primary purpose of manipulating search rankings and not helping users.
- Stated in the example
- Not in the sentence
Rows follow the order of Google's list. The full sentences are in the table below.
| # | Google's example, verbatim |
|---|---|
| 1 | Using generative AI tools or other similar tools to generate many pages without adding value for users |
| 2 | Scraping feeds, search results, or other content to generate many pages (including through automated transformations like synonymizing, translating, or other obfuscation techniques), where little value is provided to users |
| 3 | Stitching or combining content from different web pages without adding value |
| 4 | Creating multiple sites with the intent of hiding the scaled nature of the content |
| 5 | Creating many pages where the content makes little or no sense to a reader but contains search keywords |
The sentence right after the definition says the policy applies however the content is created. Written by people or generated by tools, the test is the same.
Google's guidance on generative AI content draws the same line: AI is useful for research and for structuring original content, while generating many pages without adding value may violate the scaled content abuse policy.
Finding 02
City pages become doorways when they funnel users to one page
Doorway abuse is when sites or pages are created to rank for specific, similar search queries. They lead users to intermediate pages that aren't as useful as the final destination.
- Stated in the example
- Not in the sentence
Rows follow the order of Google's list.
Having multiple domain names or pages targeted at specific regions or cities that funnel users to one page
The example is not "a page per city". It is a page per city that sends people on to a single page.
A location page that answers the question for that location lets the visitor finish there. That is a different role from the intermediate page the example describes.
Finding 03
Google's self-check questions name extensive automation as a warning sign
Are you using extensive automation to produce content on many topics?
| # | Google's question, verbatim |
|---|---|
| 1 | Is the content primarily made to attract visits from search engines? |
| 2 | Are you producing lots of content on many different topics in hopes that some of it might perform well in search results? |
| 3 | Are you using extensive automation to produce content on many topics? |
| 4 | Are you mainly summarizing what others have to say without adding much value? |
Google's guidance also suggests explaining how automatically generated content was made. The recommended direction is disclosure, not concealment.
So what does a large page set need?
- Give every page a value that only its combination produces, from data such as prices, locations or measurements.
- Let each location page finish the job for that location instead of passing visitors on to another page.
- Exclude pages that add no value from Search, the response Google names in its spam policy.
- Add a line to automatically generated pages explaining how they were made.
Methodology
- Google Search Central, "Spam policies for Google web search" (updated 2026-08-28) · checked 2026-09-14 · https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies
- Google Search Central, "Google Search's guidance on using generative AI content on your website" (updated 2025-12-10) · checked 2026-09-14 · https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/using-gen-ai-content
- Google Search Central, "Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content" (updated 2025-12-10) · checked 2026-09-14 · https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/creating-helpful-content
- Google Search Central Blog, "Google Search's guidance about AI-generated content" (updated 2023-02-08) · checked 2026-09-14 · https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2023/02/google-search-and-ai-content
- Example lists are reproduced in Google's order, in full. A condition is marked only when words for it appear in that example sentence.
- The spam policies page was last updated 2026-08-28 with a change to the site reputation abuse section concerning the European Economic Area, separate from the two sections quoted here.