Google is rolling out a new embeddable Preferred Sources button that lets websites encourage readers to add their publication directly to their preferred sources in Google Search.
The interactive button is designed to make the process easier for publishers and their audiences. When a reader clicks the button, the site can be added to the user’s Preferred Sources, after which Google can show content from that publication more prominently in relevant Top Stories results. The new button also returns readers to the page they were viewing after the selection process.
Google introduced Preferred Sources in 2025 as a way for users to personalize the news they encounter in Search. Readers can select websites they trust, and articles from those sources can appear more frequently in Top Stories. Google has said users who select a site as a Preferred Source are twice as likely to click through to that site.
The feature has expanded considerably since its launch. Google said in May that users had selected more than 345,000 unique sources. By August, that figure had surpassed 600,000, according to reporting on the latest rollout.
How the new button works
Publishers can place the interactive button alongside other audience-engagement tools on their websites. Rather than requiring readers to independently navigate Google’s source-preference settings, the button provides a direct route for selecting the publication.
Google’s documentation also allows publishers to use their own button design, provided it follows the required link format and the publication is eligible to appear in the source-preferences system.
The development gives publishers another way to build a direct relationship with Google Search users at a time when search behavior is changing rapidly because of AI-generated results.
Preferred Sources reaches Google's AI search
The timing is significant because Google has also expanded Preferred Sources beyond traditional Search results. In May, the company began bringing preferred-source labels into AI Overviews and AI Mode, allowing users to identify links from websites they have selected as preferred sources.
Google has also introduced prominent article carousels for some searches involving developing topics, with preferred sources receiving visibility within those experiences. The company says these changes are intended to help people discover original reporting, trusted publishers and different perspectives across the web.
For publishers, the new button could therefore become a useful audience-growth tool. Getting readers to explicitly select a publication may increase the likelihood that its future coverage appears in personalized Search experiences.
However, Preferred Sources does not guarantee placement. Google says content is still selected algorithmically and must be relevant and fresh for a particular query.
The rollout comes as publishers increasingly seek ways to maintain referral traffic and visibility as Google's AI-powered search experiences change how users discover information. A recent study of Google Search found that AI search features can affect how frequently users click through to publishers, highlighting the growing importance of how news organizations are surfaced within search.
For website owners, the new embeddable button represents a relatively simple addition to their pages, but its broader significance lies in giving readers a direct way to signal which publishers they want Google to prioritize in their personalized news experience.
