SiteGround's WordPress Migrator makes migration easier than before

WordPress Migration tool - SiteGround Migrator

SiteGround offers free migration service for all plans except StartUp. Now StartUp users are able to SiteGround Migrator which enables them to transfer WordPress sites to Siteground.

For many people, the thought of moving themes, plugins, and content to a new host is daunting. Of course at SiteGround, you always have the option to request a manual website migration by one of SG's support professionals. This service is even complimentary for your first site on GrowBig and GoGeek plans. However, this can take more time because it depends on the availability of the experts and can get costly if you need to transfer one site to SG.

Now, with SG's unique SiteGround Migrator plugin, you can easily transfer multiple WordPress sites from any host to SiteGround even without extra cost.

Step 1: Generate a migration token from SiteGround cPanel

First, you need to generate a migration token in SG cPanel. Log in to your cPanel account and then click on WordPress Tools > WordPress Migrator.

SiteGround WordPress Migrator

The WordPress Migrator page appears.

SiteGround WordPress Migrator - Generate Migration Token

Select the domain you want to use and add a path, if needed (if your WordPress site is installed on example.com/subdirectory for example). Click on the Generate button.

SiteGround WordPress Migrator - Migration Token Issued

You will see a long string of symbols - the Migration Token. It’s unique per each transfer and has all the information our system needs to start moving your files and databases.

Step 2: Install the SiteGround migrator plugin on your WordPress installation

Once you have the Migration Token, log in to the WordPress installation you want to transfer to SiteGround. Install and activate the free SiteGround Migrator plugin from the official WordPress plugin repository by entering "SiteGround Migrator" in the search box.

SiteGround WordPress Migrator installation

Please make sure that your WordPress application has a valid email so you can receive notifications upon the success of your transfer. It's possible to edit admin email in your WordPress admin panel > Settings > General tab.

Step 3: Paste the migration token in the plugin

Once the plugins has been installed, select the SG Migrator menu on your left column.

SiteGround WordPress Migrator

Now, paste the Migration Token you’ve generated in the step above and click on the Initiate Transfer button.

SiteGround WordPress Migrator - Progress

The message Website Migration in Progress appears. If the domain name of the original site and that of the target site are different, the following screen appears:

SiteGround WordPress Migrator Service

Click on Continue to continue to the migration.

SiteGround WordPress Migrator - In Progress

SiteGround Migrator starts to download the files.

SiteGround WordPress Migrator

Please be patient and wait until it's complete. Please do not click on "Cancel Transfer even if it seems very slow.

Step 4: Check your website and update DNS records to finalize the migration

When the transfer is complete, you will receive instructions on how to complete the transfer both on the confirmation screen and via email.

SG creates a temporary URL for each transferred site that can be used for 48 hours to check how the site looks and functions in the new location. If everything looks fine on the temporary link, you might want to switch the DNS settings of the domain to point to your SiteGround account. The new DNS settings will be displayed in the plugin and in the email you will receive. You can also get the DNS settings at any time from your SiteGround User Area.

The following is an example of an email sent from SiteGround.

SiteGround WordPress Migrator - Notification

It can take up to 48 hours for the nameserver changes to propagate.

SiteGround WordPress Migrator - Transfer Successful

If everything is fine, please change the DNS information by following the instructions.

Conclusion

I found it's very convenient to transfer from any other hosting company to SG. However, it might take some time to finish the transfer. If your site is very large, it would be better to transfer it manually.

If transfer using SiteGround Migrator fails, you might try to use Duplicator.

Just for your reference, if you sign up for web hosting services by clicking the referral links on this post, I will get some commission. In particular, if you sign up for Bluehost by clicking this link, you can use Bluehost webhosting service with US$1/mo off. But I do not recommend a webhosting service just for commission. Actually I am using SiteGround and Bluehost on several WordPress sites.

This blog is hosted with Bluehost VPS. If you want an inexpensive but good web hosting, Bluehost’s Shared Hosting will be one choice.

If you wanna more stable and fast web hosting services, you might consider Siteground’s WordPress hosting.