How Do I Migrate WordPress to a New Host?

Common reasons Tampa businesses migrate their WordPress site:

• Current host is slow — pages loading in 4+ seconds, even after optimization
• Current host is unreliable — frequent downtime, slow support, account issues
• Pricing increased significantly — common with hosts that have low intro pricing and high renewal pricing (looking at you, Bluehost, SiteGround)
• Hit storage or bandwidth limits — outgrew the plan
• Need better features — staging environments, daily backups, SSH access
• Agency change — new agency wants you on their preferred hosting
• Acquired a site — taking over a site from a previous owner

Most Tampa migrations we do are clients moving off Bluehost, GoDaddy, or HostGator onto Cloudways, Kinsta, or WP Engine. See best WordPress hosting for Tampa.

If you want to migrate yourself, here’s the actual process. Plan for 2 to 4 hours.

Step 1: Full backup of current site

Before touching anything:

• Take a full backup using your current host’s tools
• Take a separate backup using a plugin (UpdraftPlus, All-in-One WP Migration, Duplicator)
• Download the backup files to your computer
• Verify the backup files actually contain everything

This is your insurance policy. Don’t skip it.

Step 2: Set up the new host

• Sign up for new hosting
• Create a fresh WordPress install in their dashboard
• Do not point your domain yet — use the temporary URL the host provides

Step 3: Choose a migration plugin

Three options worth knowing:

• Duplicator (free, with paid Pro version) — creates a zip of your entire site + a installer file. Most flexible.
• All-in-One WP Migration (free up to 512 MB sites, paid for larger) — simplest, just export and import. Limited free size makes it less useful for serious sites.
• WP Migrate (paid, $99+/year) — agency-grade, handles database search-and-replace cleanly. What we use.

Step 4: Export from old host

• Install your migration plugin on the old site
• Generate an export/package
• Download the resulting files

Step 5: Import to new host

• Connect to the new host via SFTP or its file manager
• Upload the export files
• Run the importer (usually a installer.php from Duplicator, or just an import from the plugin)
• Wait while it imports the database and files

Step 6: Test the new site

The new site is now sitting at the temporary URL provided by your new host. Test it thoroughly:

• Homepage loads
• All key pages load
• Contact form submits
• Images display
• Admin login works
• Permalinks work
• Any custom functionality works

Most sites have at least one thing that doesn’t work right after migration. Fix it now, before going live.

Step 7: Update DNS

When you’re confident the new site works:

• Log into your domain registrar (Namecheap, GoDaddy, Cloudflare)
• Update the A record (or nameservers) to point at the new host
• Save changes

DNS propagation takes anywhere from 5 minutes to 48 hours, but most of the world will see the new server within an hour. During propagation, some users see the old site, some see the new — keep both running for safety.

Step 8: Verify and clean up

• After 24 to 48 hours, verify all traffic is hitting the new host
• Verify SSL certificate is working (most hosts auto-issue Let’s Encrypt — see adding SSL to WordPress)
• Verify Google Analytics is recording from the new host
• Update any hardcoded URLs that reference the old hosting
• Cancel the old hosting account (after a week or two of confidence)

The common migration issues:

1. Broken URLs

WordPress hardcodes URLs in some places. After migration, you may see URLs still pointing to the old domain or old host. Use a search-and-replace tool (Better Search Replace plugin, or WP-CLI) to fix.

2. Broken images

If image paths got mangled, images won’t load. Same search-and-replace fix usually works.

3. Permalinks not working

After migration, you sometimes need to re-save permalinks. Go to Settings → Permalinks and click Save Changes. WordPress regenerates the rewrite rules.

4. Caching issues

Old caching plugin settings can cause weird behavior. Disable caching, test, re-enable.

5. SSL errors

If SSL isn’t configured on the new host, you’ll get warnings. Most managed hosts auto-issue Let’s Encrypt — wait a few minutes after migration for it to provision.

6. Email forms breaking

Forms that use SMTP credentials may need reconfiguration if the SMTP setup was host-specific.

7. Cron jobs not running

Custom cron jobs need to be set up on the new host. WordPress’s wp-cron should “just work” but if you’d disabled it for real cron, set that up again.

Real-world timings:

• Host-managed migration: 1 to 3 business days from request to completion
• Simple DIY migration (small site, common stack): 2 to 4 hours
• Complex DIY migration (WooCommerce, custom theme, many plugins): 4 to 8 hours
• DNS propagation after migration: 5 minutes to 48 hours for full propagation
• Total downtime: Usually under 5 minutes if you do it right; more if you’re sloppy

For a Tampa business migration, plan for a quiet evening (Sunday night is traditional) and have your developer or host on call.

DIY migrate if:

• The site is small (under 1 GB)
• You’re comfortable with FTP and basic admin
• The stack is standard (no exotic plugins)
• Downtime isn’t critical

Hire help if:

• The site is large (over 5 GB) or has WooCommerce
• You have a custom theme or custom plugins
• The site generates real revenue daily
• You’re not comfortable with the technical steps
• A previous migration broke and you’re traumatized

We migrate Tampa client sites regularly — see WordPress web design in Tampa for our full services.