HostGator Website Migrations

HostGator is committed to migrating your website to your new hosting account. We can migrate website files, databases, and scripts to your HostGator account.

Here are the topics covered in this article.

• Site Migration Requirements ⤵
• Free Site Migration ⤵
• How to Request for Site Migration within the Customer Portal ⤵
• While the Site Migration is Ongoing...⤵
• Post-Site Migration ⤵
• Frequently Asked Questions ⤵

If you're interested in migrating your emails, please refer to the article Will my existing email accounts be migrated over too?

If you would like to transfer your domain to HostGator, please see the article How Can I Transfer My Domain to You?

Site Migration Requirements

Here are the things you need to check before requesting Site Migration within your Customer Portal.

1. Active hosting account with HostGator - For our migration team to process your request, an active hosting package should be available in your HostGator Customer Portal. This is the "destination" hosting package, where our migration team will move your website files. If you do not have an active hosting package yet, you can add a new one to your account. Please use the following guide for the instructions.
   • Customer Portal - Add Packages
      
2. Migration fee - HostGator migrates one website per request ($149.99 as a one-time migration fee).
    
   HostGator offers new customers an excellent opportunity to take advantage of limited free site migration services with our VPS and Dedicated hosting plans—just select a 12-month billing term! This free migration service is available within 30 days of signup, making your transition seamless. However, if you opt for a 1-month term for either VPS or Dedicated hosting, please note that a one-time fee of $149.99 will apply.
    
3. Access to your "source" account - Our migration team will need access to your website's files and databases to process your migration request. This may include but is not limited to access to your hosting company's control panel, account username, and password. Please visit the following article for details about the information our migration team would need to process your request.
   • Information Needed for Migrating Content
      
4. Backup options - Backups may also be requested if deemed necessary; however, please note that our migration team can use your backup but cannot guarantee a successful migration output as they have no way of knowing if the backup provided is complete or not.
    
5. DNS records update - It is important to note before submitting your migration request that we do not recommend updating your DNS records while the migration is still ongoing. This could prevent our migration team from accessing your "source" hosting account and disrupt the overall migration process.
    

Free Site Migration

With HostGator, new customers can get free site migration for VPS or Dedicated hosting when signing up for a 12-month plan within 30 days. If you choose a 1-month plan, a fee of $149.99 applies. If your VPS or Dedicated hosting plan is already outside of the 30-day signup window but would still like HostGator to migrate your website for you, you can still avail of our professional migration services through your Customer Portal. Please follow the steps provided below to learn how!

Free migration services are only offered for "as-is" migration of site data and content with no updates to the site configuration, aside from database connection details. To copy an existing site to a new domain name or change the URL of an existing site would NOT be free.

Example: WordPress must be configured for the location where it is installed. Migrating a WordPress site from mydomain.com/website to mydomain.com/ or myotherdomains.com/ would require re-configuration to function after the migration and would not be eligible for free migration.
 

How to Request for Site Migration within the Customer Portal

To submit a site migration request:

1. Log in to your Customer Portal.
2. Click MARKETPLACE in your left-side menu.

   

3. On the Marketplace page, you'll notice that HostGator offers two migration services — Site Migration and Email Migration. Under the Site Migration card, click CLAIM OFFER.

   

4. A pop-up window will appear. Put a checkmark on "By selecting Buy Now, you agree to purchasing this product with Additional Terms." to proceed.

   

5. Once done, click the BUY NOW button.
6. Your request is now submitted. A migration admin will be in correspondence with you via your email address on file to request details about your source hosting account.
    

While the Site Migration is Ongoing...

Here are the things you need to know after submitting your migration request.

• Our migration team will contact you via your email on file, requesting details of your "source' hosting account. Please visit the Information Needed for Migrating Content article for details.
   
• Please do NOT cancel your "source" hosting account or hosting plan while the migration process is ongoing. This will prevent our migration team from moving your website files to your HostGator hosting account.
   
• Do NOT make changes to your DNS records, as this will also cause a delay in the migration process. Our migration team will let you know via email if it's time for you to point your domain to your HostGator account.
   
• Making changes to your website while the migration is ongoing is also NOT recommended, as this will disrupt the completeness of the migrated content to your HostGator account.
   
• Updates about the migration process are sent via email, so please check your emails regularly.
   
• Once the migration is initiated, HostGator will NOT refund the charges; however, if you want us to cancel the migration, please reach out to Support immediately.
   

Post-Site Migration

Once migration is complete, our migration team will notify you via your email on file. They will also provide you with post-site migration instructions you should do on your end, such as pointing your domain to your HostGator servers by updating your DNS records, which is not part of the migration process and is your responsibility as the domain owner.

Also, please note that the domain transfer is a completely different process and is not included in the migration. If you have a domain you want to transfer to your HostGator account, you can request one via the Customer Portal. Please visit the following article for the instructions.

• How Can I Transfer My Domain to HostGator?
   

Frequently Asked Questions

I am currently on Shared hosting. Am I eligible for free site migration if I upgrade to VPS or Dedicated hosting?

Yes! If you're on a non-VPS or non-Dedicated hosting plan and would like to upgrade to VPS or Dedicated hosting, you will require a server move. As long as you request migration of your website files to your new VPS or Dedicated hosting plan within the 30-day signup window and you're on a 12-month billing term, then it is definitely free!
 

What advantages does the professional site migration service offered by HostGator entail?

• Complete website migration
• Expedited service
• Seamless transition
• Complete review
• 24/7 service
   

How many websites can be migrated per request?

One website per migration request can be processed.
 

What features are NOT included in HostGator site migration services?

Here are some out-of-scope items when requesting site migration.

• Anything that requires a Windows server will not be supported on a Linux server, especially ASP.net files. However, if a WordPress site is hosted on a Windows package and you want to move it to a Linux package, we will migrate it.
• Migrating emails - (Please check out the article Will my existing email accounts be migrated over too? for the details.)
• Contacts from webmail.
• DNS records settings. (Our migration team will let you know when and how to point your DNS records via email.)
• Website modification, such as troubleshooting existing website issues, domain changes, etc.
• Websites with malware.
• Cron jobs, auto-responders, and spam filter settings.
• Moving FTP accounts is not included.
   

Are emails included in the site migration?

No. While we do not transfer emails while migrating your website to your HostGator hosting server, we offer a separate email migration service via your Customer Portal.

For more information on how to migrate your emails to your HostGator hosting server, please visit the following article.

• Will my existing email accounts be migrated over too?
   

What websites can be migrated to your HostGator server?

HostGator migrates one website per request ($149.99 as a one-time migration fee).

We will migrate various types of websites, including WordPress, Joomla, Laravel, Magento, and custom PHP and HTML-based sites, as long as access to the source account is provided. This does not include proprietary sites listed in the article Transferability from Common Hosts.

Please note that we do migration "as-is," and our migration team will be unable to make modifications or fixes on your website. Additionally, migrating WordPress sites from WordPress.com is not recommended; however, our migration team will still proceed with your migration request, provided that you agree to a disclaimer.
 

My site is infected with malware. Can you still migrate my site to my HostGator account?

One of our top priorities is to safeguard our servers from malware and unknown cyber intrusions. In alignment with this, we do not migrate infected websites to our servers. We recommend reaching out to your hosting company so they can assist you in fixing or removing malware from your website before requesting migration.
 

What websites can we not migrate?

While HostGator has a well-trained and very experienced migrations team, some sites cannot be moved due to technical limitations. Our current list of sites/hosts which we cannot migrate from is as follows:

• Google Sites
• Intuit
• Microsoft Office Live Small Business/Microsoft 365
• MobileMe
• SMCing.com
• VistaPrint
• Website Builder
• Website Tonight
• Weebly
• Wix

For the full list, please visit the following article.

• Transferability from Common Hosts 

We also cannot migrate from hosts that do not allow access to your site files (typically by FTP) or databases or the data in those databases. Without access, we cannot copy and migrate your site.
 

Did you know upgrading from a hosting plan of the same type usually does not require a server move and, therefore, does not need a migration?

For example, upgrading a Shared hosting account from Shared Baby to Shared Business does not involve moving any files; instead, you are allocated more resources. Migrations are only required for upgrades to a different hosting type, like going from Shared to VPS.

To learn more about the upgrade process, please read the following article:

• How Do I Upgrade My Account to a Better Plan?
   

What are the different types of migration?

When moving your website from one hosting provider to another, the process of transferring your files and database can vary based on your website's complexity and the specific requirements of your migration. You may encounter different types of migrations, each with its own set of needs and challenges. These migrations can involve transferring your website's files and databases to a new server environment.