Migrating a WordPress website sounds scary, and the stories about sites that vanished from Google after a migration do not make it less nerve-racking. Yet a migration is very doable, provided you work in the right order. This guide walks through the steps, whether you are moving to new hosting or to a new domain.
Two kinds of migration
There is an important difference. Moving to new hosting means your site keeps the same address but runs on a different server. That is technical, but low-risk for your findability. Moving to a new domain changes your web address, and then the way you handle your redirects becomes crucial, because that is exactly where you otherwise lose your Google positions.
Step 1: make a backup first
Before you touch anything: a full, restorable backup of your files and your database. If something goes wrong, you restore the old situation instead of repairing in a panic. Never skip this step.
Step 2: set up the new environment
Set up the new hosting and put a copy of the site there, shielded from visitors and search engines. Test thoroughly: do all pages, forms, and integrations work? Only when the copy is fully correct do you move on.
Step 3: take the site live on the new address
For a hosting migration you point the domain to the new server. For a domain migration you take the new site live on the new domain. Do this at a quiet moment, so any hiccup affects few visitors.
Step 4: the redirects, the moment for your SEO
This is the step that decides whether you keep your positions. If you move to a new domain, you set a permanent redirect (301) from every old URL to the new one. That way Google knows your content has moved, not disappeared, and your built-up authority moves along. Skip this, and you effectively start over in Google.
Step 5: check and resubmit
After the migration you check for broken links, submit your new sitemap to Google Search Console, and keep an eye on your positions and error reports for a few weeks. A temporary dip is normal; a lasting drop means something is missing in the redirects.
Why a migration is often the moment to clean up
A migration is the perfect chance to leave ballast behind: unused plugins, heavy themes, and old content nobody visits anymore. Instead of migrating the mess, you can set up clean right away. How we build WordPress clean and low-maintenance is on WordPress website development, and why maintenance matters afterwards in WordPress website maintenance.
Let us migrate without sleepless nights
At ForthScaling we migrate WordPress sites without downtime and with the redirects in order, so your findability is preserved. And after the migration we keep the site fast, secure, and current in a fixed monthly fee, starting at $200 per month with no setup fees. More on the pricing page. Does your site need to move and you want it risk-free? Schedule a free demo.