Google Pushes Back on the Keyword Cannibalization Myth

The debate over keyword cannibalization—the idea that multiple pages from the same website competing for the same keyword phrase will damage search rankings—was reignited recently when Google’s John Mueller responded to an SEO’s concerns. His answer? Don’t lose sleep over it.

What Is “Keyword Cannibalization” Anyway?

In SEO circles, keyword cannibalization is often described as a scenario where different pages on a site target the same search queries, supposedly hurting overall performance. The fear is that search engines can’t decide which page to rank, and as a result, all pages suffer.

But here’s the problem: the term itself is vague. It lumps together a wide range of possible issues—duplicate content, thin pages, poor internal linking—without identifying what’s actually wrong. Calling something “cannibalization” is more of a convenient label than a real diagnosis.

This is why Mueller, a Search Advocate at Google, tends to push back when the topic comes up.

The SEO Misunderstanding

The latest flare-up came from confusion around a recent technical change: Google blocking rank trackers from scraping the top 100 results (&num=100). Some rank-tracking tools began showing results only for the top 20 positions, leading one SEO to assume that Search Console no longer recorded impressions beyond that range.

That assumption was wrong. Search Console continues to show data whenever pages are actually displayed in search results. The “missing” data was a problem with third-party rank trackers, not with Google’s reporting.

Mueller’s Take: Multiple Pages Ranking Is Fine

When asked how to avoid keyword cannibalization under these new circumstances, Mueller downplayed the concept entirely:

• If multiple pages from your site rank for the same query, that’s not inherently bad.
• Search Console only shows what’s real—not theoretical overlap.
• Pages appearing together in the same results don’t mean they are duplicates.

As Mueller put it, “If you have three different pages appearing in the same search result, that doesn’t seem problematic to me just because it’s more than one. You need to look at the details, you need to know your site, and your potential users.”

His advice: focus on reducing unnecessary duplication, but don’t treat every overlap as a crisis.

The Real Issues Behind Low Rankings

Instead of chasing cannibalization ghosts, SEOs should look at concrete problems that truly affect performance:

• Overly long, unfocused articles.
• Pages drifting into off-topic content.
• Weak or missing internal linking.
• Thin content that doesn’t deliver enough value.
• True duplicates where content adds no unique perspective.

If multiple pages rank for the same keyword, that’s often a strength—it increases visibility and gives users options. The real problem arises when none of the pages are ranking well, which usually points to content quality or structural issues.

Why the Cannibalization Myth Persists

The persistence of keyword cannibalization in SEO discussions says more about the industry than it does about Google’s algorithm. Many SEOs gravitate toward tidy explanations, even if they oversimplify complex ranking dynamics. It’s easier to say “your pages are cannibalizing each other” than to dig into issues like user intent, internal linking, or topic clarity.

But as Mueller reminds us, the better question is not whether multiple pages rank for a query, but whether those pages serve users well.

Bottom Line

Keyword cannibalization, as a concept, obscures more than it reveals. Rather than worrying that your content is fighting itself, the smarter approach is to:

• Audit pages for focus, clarity, and usefulness.
• Strengthen internal linking so Google and users understand relationships.
• Consolidate true duplicates when needed, but embrace variety where it adds value.

In short, multiple pages ranking for the same term isn’t a problem. Multiple pages failing to rank at all is. The sooner SEOs let go of the cannibalization myth, the sooner they can focus on fixing what really matters.