Google Eases Login and Follower Bar for Search Profiles

Google has made three changes to "Search profiles," the feature publishers use. A Search profile is a space that brings together a publisher's website, social accounts, videos, and posts, and it appears when a user searches for a creator's or publisher's name on Google. What Google changed this time is account management, participation requirements, and screen design.

The most notable change is how accounts are managed. Instead of the hassle of creating a separate Google account for each brand, publishers can now manage Search profiles for multiple sub-brands under a single login. Google said the feature is meant for media organizations that run multiple outlets, and added that a single account can now create up to 10 sub-brand profiles.

The bar for creating a new profile has also come down. The social follower requirement, based on YouTube, Instagram, X, or TikTok, dropped to 10,000, a sizable cut considering the requirement was 100,000 when Search profiles first launched. Google also lowered the threshold to 35,000 on the 12th of last month, making this the second adjustment.

According to NetInfluencer, at the time of that first adjustment last month, Robby Stein, Google's Vice President of Search, said on X that "we're lowering the follower thresholds so more creators and publishers can set them up." According to Android Authority, that adjustment also opened the door for creators and publishers with smaller but meaningful audiences.

Beyond lowering the bar, Google also redesigned the screen itself. It optimized image thumbnails, lengthened how much of a headline is displayed, and refined the article-reading view within profiles. Google said this makes content easier to discover and explore in depth.

Google also unveiled a badge for websites so Search profiles can be recognized outside Google's own screens too. A profile itself can be requested directly through Google's application page, and one can also be created automatically for accounts that already have a Knowledge Panel.

Google said it made these changes to help publishers showcase their content better and connect with readers through Search.

In Korea

The source material does not say whether this update applies equally to Korean-language publishers or domestic accounts. Publishers running a Search profile in Korea can check directly whether the unified login and lower follower requirement have rolled out on their account, and whether their profile was created automatically if they already have a Knowledge Panel.

Source: Search Engine Roundtable, Barry Schwartz, September 16, 2026. Checked September 17, 2026. Read the original