Finding Cached Web Content
Google has shut down Cached Pages in 2024.
Until now, Google Cached Pages was a popular resource for crawling saved versions of web pages, including from websites that were updated or taken down. Google explained that the Internet has become more reliable than in the past for page loading.
Still, sometimes websites can fail before their content is captured. To determine whether or not a site is cached or archived, some resource was needed to replace Google Cached Pages.
Google previously worked with the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine on user access to historical versions of cached websites. This makes for a ready fallback now that Google Cached Pages is gone. Google search results now include links to the Web Archive; you can click on three dots next to a search result to open the “About the source” panel, then follow the “More about this page” link.
CachedView: Multiple Sources
Another archive, CachedView.nl, searches multiple cache collections such as the WaybackMachine, Archive.today, and Library of Congress to report whether a given webpage is in their cache or archive.
GSC’s URL Inspection Tool
It’s good practice to check on cached versions of your own pages, too. Google Search Console has a useful tool for URL inspection. You can enter your URL on the Console field labeled “Inspect any URL in [your site].” Run the Live Test on the same Console page, then click on “View tested page” and choose the Screenshot view option.
Check out the alternatives
Getting access to information you need can sometimes be challenging, especially when searching for older content. For the times when you need additional measures to succeed, making use of cached pages is a great tool for your scraping arsenal.
