7 Factors to Consider When Moving Your WordPress Site to a New Host
A web software that has acquired immense popularity over the past years, WordPress lets you create amazing websites or blogs with its powerful Content Management System (CMS). It can easily be used to create a WordPress website for personal or professional online presence.
As you maintain your WordPress website by keeping it up-to-date with the changing trends of the online world, you attract high traffic on your site turning it into a successful business. And once you reach this point; your website will require more resources and services to handle the surge in demand and traffic of your site. This is when you need a better WordPress host. 
Like many users, you may find transferring your website to another web host quite a daunting task. However, if you follow some simple steps and directions, you can complete the migration process of the website with ease.
Another thing that can make site migration easy is the migration service offered by many WordPress hosts. There are many WordPress Migration tools that ensure a smooth transfer of your WordPress website to a new host. Some of them are All in One WP Plugin, MyEasyBackup, VaultPress, WP Migrate DB Pro among other exclusive migration plugins.
Important things to keep in mind when moving your WordPress website to a new host:
- Create a Backup of Your Website Files
The first step is to create a backup of all the WordPress website files. This may take some time depending on the volume and type of files on your site.
You can either use plugins such as BackupBuddy and UpdraftPlus or do it manually. You can also use free, open source file transfer tools that can help in connecting to the web host and copying backup files from the website’s directory to your computer.
It is important to export a database to your computer if you are using a dynamic website that relies on the database. You can perform this step with the help of third-party programs such as phpMyAdmin. This move can ensure proper functioning of your website on the new server.
- Choose a New Web Host Provider
The availability of a good number of web hosting providers often leads to confusion. Therefore, to make the right decision, factors such as price, bandwidth, server location, security, speed, and support team are worth considering.
- Import New Database and Upload Website Files
Another essential step is to establish a new environment to host your website in advance. You can do this by uploading the files to your website using FTP into a public_html directory on your new web hosting account. You can further contact your hosting provider to assist you in this step.
- Transfer Domain Name (optional)
You may need to move your domain name to the new WordPress host if it is registered with your previous web host. Alternatively, you can point your domain name to the nameservers given by the new web host. Contact your new web hosting provider as they can help you sort out any problem related to site migration.
Your emails are managed through the servers of your web hosting company if the domain name is hosted by them. Hence, these emails should also be moved. If the email account is hosted somewhere else, you need to change the DNS settings when the new website is set up.
Also, do not forget to copy all your emails from the old to the new mail before you delete the old email account.
- Test Website If It Is Setup Correctly
When you have completed your file transfer to the new web hosting configuration, the final step is to inspect whether everything is working properly or not. You can use temporary URL in IP numbers to preview your newly hosted WordPress website. To make this final check easy and effective, many web hosting providers may offer a development staging platform where you can see the website before it goes live. This helps you in fixing any issues that can affect your website’s quality and performance.
Once you have completed all the tasks in this checklist, you can move on to end your previous web hosting contract and delete all data from it. If you face any trouble or have any doubt during your WordPress website migration, you can always ask your new web host to assist you. This also ensures the quality of their customer support service.
