After more than a decade as part of Google Search, the sitelinks search box is officially being retired. Starting November 21, 2024, this feature will no longer appear in search results. The decision comes as usage of the sitelinks search box has steadily declined, and it’s time to simplify search results for a better, cleaner experience.

What’s Changing?

The sitelinks search box, a familiar feature that let users refine their search queries directly within a specific website, will soon disappear. While it served its purpose for many years, changing user habits and improvements in site navigation have reduced its relevance.

Here’s what you need to know:

• The sitelinks search box will be removed from search results globally, across all countries and languages.
• Rankings won’t be affected, and other sitelinks elements (those clickable links beneath certain results) will remain unchanged.
• The feature won’t be tracked in Google’s Search status dashboard anymore.
• The Search Console rich results report and the Rich Results Test will no longer highlight sitelinks search box markup.

What Do You Need to Do?

The short answer: nothing!

If your site uses structured data for the sitelinks search box, there’s no urgent need to remove it. Unsupported structured data like this won’t cause errors or affect your site’s performance in Google Search. But if you want to clean up your code, feel free to remove it.

It’s worth noting that the site name feature, which uses a variation of the WebSite structured data, is still supported. If you’re updating your structured data, make sure you don’t accidentally remove the site name markup.

What’s Staying the Same?

This change only affects the sitelinks search box. Other sitelinks features, like the smaller links that appear under certain search results to help users navigate a website, are here to stay.

What Happens Next?

Once the sitelinks search box is gone:

• The feature will no longer appear in search results.
• Google will remove it from the Search Console rich results report and the Rich Results Test.

Have Questions?

If you’re curious or have concerns, Google’s got you covered. Check out the Search Central Help Community for advice or connect with Google Search Central on social media.

Saying goodbye to the sitelinks search box marks the end of a small chapter in the evolution of search. It’s a change that reflects how both users and the web have grown. While this feature fades into history, Google remains committed to refining search results to better meet the needs of today’s users.