What is a Google manual action and how does it differ from an algorithmic penalty?

Question

SEO Fundamentals — Medium

What is a Google manual action and how does it differ from an algorithmic penalty?

Accepted Answer

A Google manual action is applied by a Google employee after reviewing a site for policy violations and is visible in Search Console. In contrast, an algorithmic penalty is automatically applied by Google's algorithms without direct human review and does not come with a specific notification.