How do I move my website to a new hosting provider?

Slow pages, poor support or rising renewal prices are common reasons to move to a new hosting provider. Done carefully, a move causes little or no downtime and keeps your search rankings, because your domain and URLs stay the same. Done in a rush, it can break email, SSL or the whole site for days.

Here is a safe, step-by-step process.

Before you move

• Choose a new hosting provider with enough resources, daily backups and free SSL.
• Note where your email is hosted; moving hosting can affect it.
• Lower the DNS “TTL” setting a day in advance if you can, so changes spread faster.
• Do not cancel the old hosting yet.

Step-by-step: moving to a new hosting provider

1. Back up all files and the database from the old host.
2. Copy files to the new host, using a migration plugin, the host’s migration tool or SFTP.
3. Import the database and update the database details in wp-config.php for WordPress.
4. Test the site on a temporary URL or by editing your computer’s hosts file.
5. Set up SSL on the new host.
6. Recreate email accounts if your email was on the old host.
7. Update DNS to point the domain to the new server.
8. Check everything once DNS has updated: pages, forms, checkout, email.

Many hosts offer free migration. Ask your new hosting provider before doing it yourself.

DNS and timing

When you change DNS, the update spreads across the internet over a few hours, sometimes longer. During that time, some visitors reach the old server and some the new one. That is why the old hosting must stay active. Make content changes after the move is complete, not during it.

Example: a quiet weekend move

A consultancy moved to a new hosting provider over a weekend. On Friday, the team took a backup and lowered the TTL. On Saturday morning, the site was copied and tested on a temporary address. SSL was installed, and DNS was switched at midday. By evening, every visitor was on the new server, and pages loaded noticeably faster. The old hosting was cancelled two weeks later, after a final backup. No downtime, no lost enquiries.

Common mistakes

• Cancelling the old hosting before the move is confirmed.
• Forgetting email accounts and DNS records such as MX and SPF.
• Not testing forms and checkout after the move.
• Moving during a sale or campaign.

Google’s guide on site moves covers extra steps if your URLs change at the same time.

How to choose the new host

Before you move, compare a new hosting provider on more than price. Check the server location relative to your customers, the PHP version, daily backups, staging sites, malware scanning, support hours and renewal prices. Read recent reviews from businesses similar to yours. A good new hosting provider should also help with the move itself. Spending an hour on this comparison avoids having to move again next year.