For some Google searchers the ability to go to page two of the search results is simply not possible. The classic Google pagination bar is missing at the bottom of the results for some searchers.
There are many complaints about this in the Google Web Search Forums about this issue, and there have been a number of complaints about this on social media including X for a couple of days ago. I am wondering if the bug expanded since then and now, because I see several new complaints this evening.
Here is a screenshot a reader sent me of the bug, you can see the bar is missing:
You should see this pagination option:
But for some, this is not an option.
I am not sure if this is a test, but the last time this happened, which was in 2010, it turned out to be a bug. But recently, Google tested a new button for its pagination bar, so maybe this is a test gone bad?
I am told this is impacting Chrome, Firefox and Edge browsers, so it isn’t a specific browser issue. I am also told it might be tied to a Google account across browsers, so I do wonder if this is a test and not a bug?