How to Move WordPress Website to a New Host: Complete Guide

Maybe you want to change your host but are afraid of hassles to move WordPress website to a new host. It could be just because of bad service or perhaps better performance or due to the fact that there might be a cheaper choice. To move WordPress website to a new host might change everything for the functioning and user experience of your site. The good news, however, is that the process can be smooth and without hassle if done with proper tools and a clear-cut roadmap.

This guide shall take you through step by step on how to successfully move WordPress website to a new host, using minimal downtime and ensuring full integrity of your site.

Why Migrate a WordPress Website to a New Host?

Before diving into the process, let’s look at the reasons why you might consider changing your hosting provider:

• Better Performance: Your current host may not be providing the speed and uptime your site demands.
• Cost-Effectiveness: You may find a hosting provider offering better services at a lower price.
• Scalability: Growing businesses often require hosting solutions that can accommodate increased traffic and advanced features.
• Better Support: Quality customer support can make a big difference when dealing with technical issues.

Whatever the reason, move WordPress Website to a new host can help ensure that your website will be performing at its best while meeting your evolving needs.

Step-by-Step Guide to Migrating Your WordPress Site to a New Domain or Host

Method 1

Preparation and accuracy are critical when you decide to move WordPress website to a new host. Here is the step-by-step, simple, and straightforward guide to help you move WordPress website to a new host without a hitch.

1. Back up your website files

Before deciding to move WordPress website to a new host, backup all of your WordPress site completely. That is crucial in order to ensure you don’t lose information and get your site up and running if anything wrong occurs. A backup requires that you download your whole website files and database on to a local drive.

The website files involved include the following;

Database: These consist of your content and your sites’ data.
Static files: This will refer to your WordPress core, themes, and plugin files.

A Duplicator plugin is a perfect tool to enable smooth backup processes.

How to use it follows.

• Install and activate the Duplicator plugin via the WordPress dashboard.

• Then navigate to Duplicator > Packages > Create New.
• You have named your backup and can follow through the setup process with Next.

• Once scanned, click Build. It can take a few minutes according to the size of your site.
• After the build, download your backup file and the installer.php file using the One-Click Download option.
• Store these files safely, as you’ll need them later to restore your site on the new domain or host.

2. Create a New Database (If Needed)

If your new domain or host doesn’t already have a database set up, you’ll need to create one. This is most easily done via cPanel, a control panel included with most hosting services.

Steps to Create a Database in cPanel:

• Log into your hosting account and access the cPanel dashboard.
• Go to MySQL Databases under the Databases section.

• Enter a name for your database and click Create Database.
• Add a user to the database by creating a username and password under the Add a New User section.

• Assign the user to the database and grant ALL PRIVILEGES.
• Save the database name, username, and password for later.

3. Upload Your Backup Files to the New Database

Populate your new database with the backed-up files. Use the Duplicator plugin and cPanel to complete this step:

• Go to File Manager from your cPanel and select your new domain’s document root.
• Upload the backup file and the installer.php into that directory.

• Open the browser and navigate to yournewdomain.com/installer.php. This will provide an open setup wizard to the Duplicator application.
• Fill in the given boxes of database name, username, and password; click on Next.

• The URL for the new site configuration is done automatically by the Duplicator. The Next button will be clickable at this point.
• Once the process is complete, check your site to ensure everything looks good.

4. Redirect Your Old Domain to Your New Domain

To ensure that visitors and search engines locate your new domain, use permanent 301 redirects. These redirects all traffic from your old domain to the new one, preserving both SEO rankings and user experience.

If you’re comfortable with light coding, update the .htaccess file in your old domain’s root directory with the following:

#Options +FollowSymLinks
RewriteEngine on
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ http://www.newdomain.com/$1 [R=301,L]

Replace http://www.newdomain.com with your new domain URL. Save the file and test your old domain to confirm the redirection works.

5. Finalize and Clean Up

Even after moving WordPress website to a new host, some minor issues might pop up. Here’s how to address them:

• Broken Links: Use a search-and-replace plugin, such as Better Search Replace, to update internal links pointing to the old domain.
• Missing Media Files: Manually replace broken images or media or use the search-and-replace plugin.
• Site Sweep: Manually review all pages, plugins, and settings to ensure everything is working as expected.

6. Let Google and Your Visitors Know About the New Domain

Finally, let the search engines and your audience know about the new domain:

Update your domain in Google Search Console using the Change of Address tool. Announce the migration to your visitors through blog posts, emails, and social media. To move WordPress website to a new host might seem daunting, but with careful steps and tools like the Duplicator plugin, the process can be seamless. With your new domain or host ready, you’re all set to continue growing your online presence!

Method 2

It may appear to be a huge deal to move WordPress website to a new host, but it is doable if you follow the right steps. Here’s an easy guide that will walk you through this process hassle-free:

1. Setting Up Your New Hosting Account

Start with selecting a hosting provider that will be best for your needs. Most of the hosts have free migration services, so that would be less painful for you during this process. Do keep an eye out for it when you select one.

2. Backup WordPress Files

Back up the existing WordPress site files to have a copy of everything just in case things do go wrong in the process to move WordPress website to a new host.

The Duplicator plugin simplifies the process. How to use:

• Download and install the Duplicator via your WordPress dashboard and then activate it.
• Navigate to Duplicator > Packages then click Create New.
• Create a name for your backup then click Next.
• After a scan is completed, then click Build; this might take a long time depending on your site size.
• Once the backup is ready, download both the backup file and the `installer.php` file using the One-Click Download option.

Save these files securely, as you’ll need them later.

3. Transfer Your Website Files to the New Host

• If your new hosting provider offers a migration service, follow their instructions. If not, you’ll need to manually transfer your files:
• Log in to your new hosting account and set up a database for your WordPress files using cPanel
• Go to MySQL Databases and create a new database. Add a user with full privileges to this database. Save the credentials for later.
• Import your backup and `installer.php` files to the new hosting account’s root folder.
• Access the installer by following the link `yourdomain.com/installer.php`:
  – Input your database credentials and test the connection.
  – Run the deployment and adjust your URLs if necessary.

4. Move Your Website Files to the New Host

You have two options for this step. If your hosting provider offers migration service, follow their instructions and then move on to the next step.

If your host does not provide this, you’ll have to create a database on your new hosting server where you’ll place your WordPress files. This is easiest using cPanel, which is available with most popular hosting providers. From there, Duplicator will take care of the rest of the transfer.

• To upload your website files to your new host server:
• Log into your hosting account and open up the cPanel main menu.
• Under Databases, select MySQL Databases.
• Under Create a New Database, enter a name for the database and click Create Database. Save this name for later.
• Add yourself as a user to modify the database. Under Add a New User, enter a username and password, then click Create a User. Save these credentials for later.
• Go down to Add a User to a Database. In the dropdown menus on that page, select both the user and database that you just created, then click Add.
• Click on the ALL PRIVILEGES check box on the Manage User Privileges screen, allowing you to have complete privileges for the database, and then click Make Changes.
• Once you have set up your database, you can upload your WordPress backup files. In cPanel, upload your site backup file and installer file to your root directory.
• Go to domain.com/installer.php, where “domain.com” is your domain name. You will see the duplicator installation wizard.
• Enter your database name, then your username and password that you just created (Host can stay as “localhost”).
• Click Test Connection. If the test runs properly, you’ll see the following:

• Click Run Deployment.
• The next screen will show your old and new URLs, which should be the same if you’re keeping your old domain. Click Run Update.
• On the final page, follow the testing suggestions if you’d like.

4. Point Your Domain to Your New Host

You’ve successfully re-created your website on a new host. Now, you need to point your domain to your new host to direct users to your new location. Otherwise, you will face difficulty because the URL will send visitors to your old website.

Your host will give you at least two nameservers which connect your domain name to the server where your content is hosted. Most hosts provide these in an accessible place in your account.

After you obtain your nameservers, log into your domain registrar and replace the nameservers of your old host with those from your new host. You will have to wait anywhere from a few hours to a couple of days for your domain to point to your new site for all users.

5. Check Your New Site

Visitors should not even notice any changes to your website while you switch hosts, since the content itself hasn’t changed, only where it’s stored. Better still, assuming no major issues with the transfer, your site will experience zero downtime during the migration.

This is all good practice, by the way-to check as many pages as you can to make sure all your content transfers over properly and replace any missing files or content if necessary. (Remember your backup?)

Final Thoughts

Congratulations! Your site is now hosted on a new server. If you want to go the extra mile, you might consider creating a staging site. It is a private copy of your website where you can test updates or changes in safety before making them live.

Having followed these steps, you are not only able to move WordPress website to a new host but also gained valuable experience to handle similar tasks in the future.

FAQs