Google has officially eliminated its cache operator. After announcing plans to do so in January when it removed the cache link from search result snippets, the company has finally made the change nine months later.
It’s possible Google delayed disabling the cache operator until linking with the Wayback Machine as an alternative, which it implemented two weeks ago.
What it looks like: Here’s an image showing my attempt to use the cache command. I’ve been trying this daily since January to check if it was removed.
What Google said: In January, when the cache link was removed, Danny Sullivan, the Google Search Liaison, commented:
The cache has been removed. It’s unfortunate, as it was one of our oldest features, meant to help access pages when loading was unreliable. Nowadays, loading issues are less common. Personally, I hope links to @internetarchive will be added where the cache link was, as it’s a fantastic resource. For information literacy goals, it fits well—allowing users to see how a page changes over time. But, this requires further discussions and permissions.
To check how Google views pages, Search Console users can use the URL Inspector tool.
The cache command will also disappear soon. However, the noarchive command will continue to be respected, as others beyond Google use it.
Now, it is completely removed.
Why we care: I frequently use the Wayback Machine for research and other projects. Having quick access to these links in Google Search is useful for me and others. With the cache operator gone, this should address some complaints about the removal of the cache link, though it doesn’t resolve issues about viewing how Google views your pages. SEOs can use the URL Inspection tool in Google Search Console or the rich result testing tool, although this might increase workload for some moving forward.
