Migrating WordPress sites is essential for website owners who want to switch to a new hosting provider. When you start the migration process, you move all your WordPress website data over to a new host.
There are many ways to migrate your WordPress website, including plugins and paid WordPress migration services. However you want to proceed, you have multiple options to choose from.
To migrate your website from one hosting provider to another, you could:
- Use a WordPress site migration plugin
- Manually migrate your site using cPanel
- Pay for site migration services
- Let NameHero migrate your WordPress site for free
In this article, we’ll go over each of these options for your WordPress website migration process. Let’s jump right into it.
Plugins for the WordPress Site Migration Process
Interested in using a WordPress migration plugin to move your entire website? There are plenty of plugins that transfer your WordPress files to a new hosting provider for you.
Plugins are great for site owners who:
- Want to migrate their WordPress installation only, but not their cPanel
- Don’t currently have cPanel through their old hosting provider
- Might not feel comfortable manually moving site files, but still feel savvy enough to handle the process without a support team
Since plugins move both your site files and your database, these tools might actually make the migration process easiest for WordPress site owners.
If you’re ready to get your new website up and running with a site migration plugin, here are some ideas to get you started.
All-in-One WP Migration
First up: All-in-One WP Migration. This WordPress plugin is great for moving all your data from one web host to another. If you want to use a robust plugin to move your old site over to your new provider, this is a fantastic option.
The plugin’s functionality includes:
- Widely compatible with host providers and operating systems
- Custom uploads, including plugins and themes
- Accessibility for disabled individuals
- Support for more than 50 languages
- Wide variety of web hosting providers supported
- Compatible with mobile devices
- GDPR compliance
All-in-One WP Migration has a free version. Users can upgrade to the paid version for further features and support.
Duplicator
Duplicator is a popular, paid WP migration plugin that does all the heavy lifting for you. If you want a WordPress plugin that includes an automatic backup option, then Duplicator could be an excellent choice for you.
This plugin allows for scheduled backups in addition to complete site migration. If you want a tool that allows you to migrate your WordPress site a new self hosted WP website, take a look at Duplicator.
Its features include WordPress migration, cloud storage, regular site backups to protect against data loss, and WP website cloning
Duplicator is a paid plugin that starts at $49.50 per year.
Migrate Guru: Migrate & Clone WordPress Free
Looking for a free plugin that clones and migrates WordPress sites? Migrate Guru is a popular option.
This plugin allows for some of the most challenging possibilities of WordPress migration. For example, it supports large website migration and multi-site networks.
Like Duplicator, Migrate Guru can clone your entire self hosted WordPress site. It advertises faster site migrations since your existing site is cloned on Migrate Guru’s servers.
WP Migrate Lite
WP Migrate Lite is a free plugin with a paid pro version. It’s a tool that exports your entire WordPress installation, including database files, plugins, and media files, all together.
WP Migrate Lite supports full website exports and database migrations. This plugin also features a robust find and replace tool, as well as database backups.
Which WordPress Migration Plugin Should You Choose?
Although there are many great plugins available, we recommend All-in-One WP Migration. This tried-and-true plugin has been around since 2013, and is trusted by government organizations and large corporations alike.
Best of all, you don’t need in-depth technical knowledge to easily migrate your website using this plugin.
If you’re ready to get started with All-in-One WP Migration, we’ve created a tutorial to walk you through the process.
Using cPanel to Manually Migrate Your WordPress Website
If you’re tech-savvy, you can move your WordPress site to a new host using cPanel and your FTP client. Essentially, you’ll be manually moving all the files from your self hosted WordPress site from one hosting provider to another.
So who should use cPanel-to-cPanel site migration? This process is fantastic for users with solid technical knowledge. It’s a comprehensive way to move your WordPress site to a new hosting provider, especially because you’ll be overseeing the process from start to finish.
Using cPanel to migrate your website is also free. There’s no need to pay for a plugin or a migration service.
Overview: Using cPanel to Migrate to Your New Hosting Provider
Briefly, here’s what the cPanel migration process looks like.
1. Download your WordPress website files from your current hosting provider. (Your hosting provider should allow you to access your file manager via FTP.)
2. Download your database. You may need your hosting provider to assist you if your old site doesn’t have cPanel.
3. Connect your FTP client to your new hosting provider’s cPanel.
4. Upload your WordPress installation files to your new hosting provider.
5. Import your database.
6. Reconfigure your WordPress website wp-config.php file.
This isn’t an exhaustive guide to the cPanel WordPress migration process. We’ve provided step-by-step instructions here.
Even if your old host doesn’t have cPanel, you can still manually migrate your site. Read our how-to guide here.
Pay for Website Migration Services
If you don’t want to use a plugin or cPanel for WordPress database migration, you could pay for third-party WordPress migration services instead. There are a number of service providers who charge a nominal fee for website migration.
When a website migration support team moves your website from your old hosting provider to a new server, you’ll have peace of mind knowing you don’t have to migrate your WordPress site without help.
However, keep in mind that the fees involved with setting up a new site, opening a hosting account, and paying for new hosting services add up. It’s great to save money wherever you can.
It’s possible to get your WordPress website migrated to a new host free of charge–if you’re switching to NameHero, that is. Let’s talk about how it works.
Let NameHero Migrate Your WordPress Website for Free
Moving a website can be a daunting task, especially if you’re not tech-savvy or need some extra help where website management is concerned.
When you switch from one host to another, oftentimes you want to move everything over to the new host.
Website migration involves many moving parts. You need to be able to move files, databases, and emails over to your new hosting provider with zero downtime. That’s where many WordPress website owners freeze; they don’t feel equipped to do so on their own.
Luckily, you don’t have to pay for outside WordPress migration services to move your WordPress website to NameHero. We’re here to help!
We’ll Migrate Your Site for Free
Here at NameHero, we offer a complimentary WordPress migration service to new customers with cPanel on their existing WordPress website within the first 30 days of opening an account.
If you’re already hosting your WordPress site elsewhere and you want to move the website to NameHero, our team can do that for you.
To qualify for the free website migration, your current web host must use cPanel. If it doesn’t use cPanel, we can still help for a small fee.
Your site files must also be 8GB or less when compressed to qualify for free website migration.
Resellers can qualify for up to 10 free migrations within the first 30 days of opening a NameHero account as long as each existing site has cPanel.
Regardless of where your site is hosted, we can get it moved to NameHero quickly and easily. Here’s how it works.
How to Initiate the NameHero WordPress Migration Service
Our migrations team is standing by, ready to get your site moved over to its new home at NameHero. To initiate the migration process, there are a few steps you need to take first.
1. Sign up for your NameHero web hosting package of choice and open your account.
2. If desired, transfer your domain name to NameHero hosting. (We recommend it!)
3. Fill out the migration form on our site, which will open a support ticket so our team can get to your site migration.
Hosting Account Details We’ll Need to Get Started
There are several important pieces of information you’ll need to include in the form, including:
- Your name and email address
- Project priority (we automatically set it to Medium, but you can raise the priority and we’ll do our best to expedite your migration)
- Subject and message (optional)
- Your hosting account details, such as your domain name, old hosting provider control panel, and host URL + login credentials
- DNS settings
We’ll also ask a few more specific questions, including where your email is hosted and what version of PHP you’d like our team to use for your site.
Finally, our migration team will initiate the migration process to get your site over to the NameHero server.
That’s it! Our team will take care of your migration, with little to no site downtime in the process. With our team, the WordPress migration process is streamlined, simple, and most importantly, hands-off for you.
Conclusion: When It Comes to Plugins vs a Site Migration Service, You Have Options
Moving your hosted WordPress website from your old host to a new host can be easy! Whether you’re planning to use cPanel, try a plugin, or hire a migration service, there are plenty of affordable (or even free) choices.
If you want help setting up your new site at NameHero, our team is looking forward to hearing from you. Select your hosting package to get started, and we’ll be ready to assist.
Haley Walden is an intuitive brand voice copywriter who helps thought leaders and innovative brands position themselves as industry experts, influencers, and visionaries in their fields. She’s a multi-passionate geek with many obsessions, including books, martial arts, film, music, and musicals. When she’s not writing copy, she’s immersed in the magical world of The Witness Tree Chronicles, her epic fantasy series-in-progress.
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