In February 2024, Google made a significant alteration to its search engine by eliminating a useful feature: cached web pages. Previously, if a web page was no longer accessible, users could still view a cached version created by Google, which stored a snapshot of the page as it last appeared during the search engine’s visit.
With the discontinuation of cached pages, users had to rely on the Internet Archive as an alternative. Currently, this vast digital library houses more than 835 billion web pages, along with countless other types of content, including books, audio, video, and software—all available for free.
In an intriguing development, Google and the Internet Archive have joined forces. It is now possible to directly access the archived version of a web page stored on the Internet Archive from Google’s search results.
Joel Lee / Foundry
To access this feature, simply click on the three-dot menu adjacent to any search result. In the dropdown menu, select More about this page. Scroll to the bottom, where you’ll find “Site first indexed by Google,” and click the link labeled See previous versions on Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine to view a cached version of that page.
It’s important to note that not all archived links may be accessible. Some content may be restricted from archiving due to rights holder requests or violations of content guidelines.
