How to Migrate Your Website to a New Host (Step-by-Step)

This is part of our complete web hosting buyer’s guide. Moving a live website to a new host sounds intimidating, but it’s a specific, well-understood process most sites go through at least once, whether to save money, get better performance, or move to a more specialized host. Here’s how to do it without meaningful downtime or lost data.

Step 1: Back up everything first

Before touching anything, take a full backup of your current site, files and database both, and confirm it’s actually complete and restorable, not just that a backup process ran. This is your safety net if anything goes wrong partway through the migration, and skipping this step to save time is the single riskiest shortcut in this entire process.

Step 2: Set up the new host before migrating anything

Sign up with your new host and get the basic environment ready, matching PHP version, database setup, any specific requirements your site needs, before moving actual content over. Getting this foundation right first avoids discovering compatibility issues mid-migration, when troubleshooting is more stressful and time-pressured.

Step 3: Migrate files and the database

For WordPress sites specifically, a migration plugin like Duplicator or All-in-One WP Migration can package your entire site, files and database together, into a single transferable archive, considerably simpler than manually moving files via FTP and importing a database separately. For non-WordPress sites, this step is more manual: transferring files via FTP or SFTP and exporting/importing the database directly through your hosting control panel.

Step 4: Test on the new host before switching DNS

Most hosts let you preview your site on their servers using a temporary URL or a modified local hosts file, before your domain’s DNS actually points there. Use this to check that everything works correctly, pages load, forms submit, the database connects properly, while your live site is still running normally on the old host for visitors.

Step 5: Update DNS and wait for propagation

Once testing confirms everything works, update your domain’s DNS records to point to the new host. DNS changes don’t take effect everywhere instantly; propagation across the internet can take anywhere from a few minutes to up to 48 hours depending on DNS settings and caching, during which some visitors may briefly see the old host and others the new one.

Step 6: Keep the old host active until propagation completes

Don’t cancel your old hosting plan immediately after switching DNS; keep it active for at least a few days to a week while propagation fully completes and you confirm everything is stable on the new host. This overlap costs a small amount in double hosting fees temporarily but avoids the far worse scenario of a visitor hitting a dead old host mid-propagation.

Common mistakes during migration

Migrating during a high-traffic period is avoidable and unnecessary risk; schedule migrations during your site’s lowest-traffic window, late night for most audiences, to minimize impact if anything does go wrong. Forgetting to update hardcoded URLs (some older sites have the domain hardcoded in specific places rather than using relative paths) is another common issue, worth specifically checking for broken images or links after migration completes. Not testing thoroughly before switching DNS is the most consequential mistake, catching a problem after the domain already points to the new host is a far more stressful, time-pressured fix than catching it during the pre-switch testing phase.

Migrating email alongside your website

If your business email is hosted through the same provider as your website, migrating the site doesn’t automatically migrate email, this typically requires a separate export and import process, or updating MX records if moving to a dedicated email provider. Plan for this as a distinct task within the overall migration rather than assuming it happens automatically alongside the website move, since email downtime affects real, time-sensitive business communication.

Using your host’s free migration service if one is offered

Many hosts, especially when trying to win customers away from a competitor, offer a free, assisted migration service handled by their own support team. Taking advantage of this, when available, removes most of the technical risk covered in this guide, worth asking about explicitly during signup rather than assuming you have to do the entire technical process yourself.

What to check immediately after migration

Confirm SSL is working correctly on the new host (see our website security and SSL guide), check that forms and any interactive features function properly, verify email (if hosted through the same provider) still works, and monitor site speed and uptime for the first few days to confirm the new host is performing as expected before fully committing.

How long the whole process realistically takes

For a straightforward WordPress site, the technical migration itself often takes just a few hours using a migration plugin; the full process, including thorough testing and waiting out DNS propagation, more realistically spans a few days from start to full confidence in the new setup. Budget accordingly rather than assuming it’s a same-day, instant switch.

Related reading

Back to the full web hosting buyer’s guide, our guide to shared vs VPS vs cloud hosting if migration is happening because you’re upgrading tiers, and best cloud storage and backup services for where to actually store that critical pre-migration backup.

Frequently asked questions

Will my site go down during migration?

With careful planning, testing on the new host before switching DNS, keeping the old host active during propagation, most sites experience no meaningful downtime visitors would notice. Rushing the process without this preparation is what typically causes visible downtime.

Do I need technical skills to migrate a WordPress site?

A migration plugin significantly lowers the technical bar, most of the process becomes point-and-click rather than manual file transfers. Non-WordPress sites or unusually complex setups may still benefit from technical help or a host’s migration assistance service, which many hosts offer for free specifically to win new customers.

Will migrating hurt my search engine rankings?

Not if done correctly, since your domain and URLs stay the same, only the underlying hosting changes. A brief period of monitoring is still worth doing afterward to confirm the site is fully accessible to search engine crawlers on the new host.