Migration
WordPress migration without gambling on DNS and downtime.
Moving off a budget host is easy to postpone until something breaks at the worst hour. This guide explains how we think about migrations so you know what happens in what order. Business and Agency plans include the move itself at no extra cost.
How we run a WordPress migration
Snapshot the reality on your old host
We inventory WordPress files, the database, cron jobs, MU-plugins, and anything weird your theme depends on. If a shop runs WooCommerce, we note active payment gateways and staging cautions before touching checkout.
Move files and database on a controlled window
Exports run against the live site once we agree on a freeze point for writes (quick maintenance banner if needed). We verify table prefixes, serialized data, and upload paths so media does not 404 after cutover.
Point DNS without nicking email mid-flight
Web and mail do not have to move on the same minute, but they have to be planned. We lower TTLs ahead of time where possible, stage the new A or CNAME records, and confirm MX still aims where you expect before the world sees the new origin.
Smoke test, then watch
Forms, tracking snippets, booking widgets, and edge caches are the usual gremlins. We exercise critical paths, turn monitoring back on, and stay reachable while search engines pick up the new home.
Curious what life looks like after you land? Read the managed WordPress hosting guide. If you are Midwest-local, the Chicago shared hosting guide covers latency and support expectations.
Migration FAQs in long form
Who should plan a migration instead of clicking auto-migrate
Auto tools work until they do not: multilingual tables, broken serializations, or a firewall rule blocking WP-CLI. If revenue touches the site (appointments, carts, retainers), a human checklist beats a black box that stops halfway through an export.
What Host Little migrates for you
WordPress core files, themes, uploads, and database to our managed stack. Business and Agency include migration from your previous host at no extra charge. Starter customers can upgrade into Business to unlock the included move or ask us for a scoped quote if the site is unusual.
SEO during a host change
Rankings wobble when URLs break, SSL is mis-set, or redirects vanish. We preserve permalink structure, keep HTTPS strict, and avoid duplicate HTTP/HTTPS copies fighting each other. Radical redesigns are a separate project; a straight host move should not torch months of content work.
Chicago and remote businesses welcome
Most of the work is digital. If you are local and want to walk through DNS on a whiteboard, we like that too. Either way you get the same engineers who will answer if a plugin update collides with your stack later.
After you land
Managed hosting means we keep core and security cadence on schedule, backups daily, and the CDN configuration sane. The migration is the handshake; the ongoing plan is where weekends come back.
Ready to schedule a move?
Business and Agency include migration. Starter starts at $49/month if you want to begin small and upgrade when you are ready to switch hosts.
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