Key takeaways
- Changing hosts means backing up your site, moving files and databases, testing, updating DNS, and canceling the old plan last.
- Keep your old hosting active until the new site is fully tested.
- Website migration can be manual, host-assisted, or plugin-based.
- Email, DNS, and post-migration testing are easy to miss during a hosting move.
Learning how to change your web hosting provider is easier when you follow the right order. This guide walks through each step so you can move your site without broken pages, missing files, lost email, or unnecessary downtime.
Why your web hosting provider matters
If your current host is slow, unreliable, difficult to reach, or too limited for your site’s traffic, moving can protect your visitors and your business. Slow pages, outages, support delays, and resource limits can affect conversions, search visibility, and customer trust.
Changing hosts means backing up your site, moving files and databases, testing the new setup, updating DNS, and confirming email before you cancel anything. Keeping the old plan active until everything works gives you a fallback if something goes wrong.
Can you transfer your website to another host?
Yes, you can transfer your website, including WordPress websites, to a new hosting provider.
Most website migrations follow one of three paths:
- Host-assisted migration: Your new provider helps move the site for you.
- Manual migration: You move files, databases, DNS records, and email settings yourself.
- Plugin-based migration: You use a WordPress migration plugin or backup tool to move the site.
The best option depends on your site type, technical comfort level, and risk tolerance. A small brochure site may be simple to move with a plugin, while an ecommerce store, membership site, or business-critical application usually needs more planning.
How to change web hosting providers step by step
1. Choose a new hosting provider
Before you move anything, compare your options carefully. Changing hosts takes work, so make sure the new provider solves the problems that pushed you to leave the old one.
Look at:
- Uptime and speed
- Customer support quality
- Hosting type and resource limits
- Migration help
- Email support
- DNS management
- Security features
- Backup and restore options
- Renewal pricing and contract terms
2. Keep your old hosting active
Don’t cancel your old hosting plan before the migration is complete.
Keeping the old plan active gives you a working version of the site while you move and test the new one. It also gives you a fallback if something breaks, files go missing, DNS takes longer than expected, or email needs more work.
3. Back up your website files and database
Before starting the transfer, back up your website files and database. Use FTP or your host’s backup tools to download files including configuration files from the root directory.
Your backup should include:
- Website files
- Themes and plugins
- Uploads and media
- Configuration files
- Databases
- Email, if your email lives on the old hosting account
For WordPress sites, a backup or migration plugin can help, but you should still confirm that the backup includes both files and the database.
4. Choose a migration method
Website migration can happen in a few different ways. Pick the method that fits your site and your comfort level.
| Migration method | Best for | Main benefit | Watch for |
| Host-assisted migration | Beginners, busy teams, business sites, ecommerce sites | Less manual work and lower risk | Availability depends on the host and plan |
| Manual migration | Technical users and custom setups | More control over the process | More room for mistakes |
| Plugin-based migration | Many WordPress sites | Fast setup for smaller or mid-sized sites | Still requires testing before launch |
If your site supports sales, customer data, bookings, or lead generation, host-assisted migration is often the safer path.
5. Migrate your site to the new host
After you choose a method, move the site to the new hosting account.
This process often involves:
- Setting up a new database in your new hosting account
- Configuring your database name
- Importing your MySQL database using tools like phpMyAdmin
- Uploading website files to the new server
- Updating configuration files
- Checking file permissions
- Reviewing application settings
For WordPress, you may need to update wp-config.php so the site can connect to the new database. For other content management systems or applications, review the relevant configuration file for database name, username, password, host, and path settings.
If your new host offers migration support, use it. Business sites, ecommerce stores, and higher-stakes applications benefit from a guided migration because the cost of downtime or broken checkout is usually higher than the cost of doing the move carefully.
6. Test the new site before changing DNS
Before making the new site live, test your setup using a temporary domain or the server’s IP address.
Use this quick pre-launch checklist:
- Homepage and key pages load correctly
- Admin login works
- Forms submit properly
- Checkout, cart, or booking flows work
- Redirects work
- Images, videos, and styling load correctly
- SSL certificate works
- Analytics and tracking scripts load
- Database-driven content appears correctly
- Search, filters, and dynamic pages work
- Email sending works if the site sends notifications
DNS changes can send real visitors to the new hosting account, so the new site should work before you point traffic there.
7. Update DNS or nameservers
After transferring website files, update your nameservers to point to the new server’s IP address.
You usually make this change where your domain is registered, such as your domain registrar or DNS provider. Depending on your setup, you may update nameservers, an A record, a CNAME record, or other DNS records.
DNS propagation can take up to 48 hours, though many changes finish faster. During that window, some visitors may reach the old server while others reach the new one.
To reduce visible disruption, lower your DNS TTL before the migration if you have access to that setting. A lower TTL tells DNS resolvers to check for updates more often, which can help the switch take effect faster once you update records.
8. Confirm DNS, email, and files before canceling the old plan
Once traffic reaches the new host, confirm the pieces that depend on the final switch:
- DNS points to the right place
- Email sends and receives
- No files are missing
- No database-driven content is missing
Only cancel your old hosting plan after the new site works and enough DNS propagation time has passed.
You might even be able to claim money for unused time on your old hosting contract. If the new provider offers a contract buyout or migration incentive, check the terms before canceling the old account.
How to change web hosting without changing your domain
You don’t always need to move your domain registration when you change hosts.
To switch hosts without changing your domain, separate your domain registrar from your hosting provider.
You can keep your domain at the current registrar and update DNS or nameservers to point the domain to the new hosting provider. This keeps your URL the same while changing where the website files live.
For many site owners, changing hosting without transferring the domain is simpler because it limits the number of moving parts.
Does changing hosts affect SEO?
Changing hosts can affect SEO if migration causes downtime, slow loading, or broken links.
To reduce SEO risk during a hosting change:
- Keep downtime as low as possible
- Test the new site before DNS changes
- Check redirects and internal links
- Confirm important pages still load
- Review crawl errors after the move
- Monitor page speed after launch
- Keep the same URLs when possible
Common hosting migration problems
Even a straightforward migration can run into issues. Most problems are easier to fix when you keep the old hosting plan active and test before launch.
Common issues include:
- DNS propagation delays: Some visitors may reach the old server while others reach the new one.
- Broken internal links: Paths may change during migration.
- Missing files: Uploads, themes, plugins, or media files may not transfer fully.
- Incomplete database imports: Content, orders, users, or settings may be missing.
- SSL certificate problems: The new site may show browser warnings if SSL is not installed correctly.
- Caching issues: Old files or old DNS information may continue to appear.
- Broken email: MX records or mailbox settings may still point to the old host.
- Canceling the old host too early: This can remove the fallback before the migration is stable.
Web hosting providers FAQs
Web hosting providers next steps
Changing hosts without downtime comes down to doing the steps in the right order: back up your site, keep the old plan active, move files and databases, test carefully, update DNS, confirm email, and cancel the old host only after everything works.
Start with a full backup and ask your new host whether migration help is included. That one step can help you decide whether to handle the move yourself or let the provider guide the process.
If you want less downtime and less operational risk, explore Liquid Web hosting solutions and migration support. Liquid Web handles migrations regularly for developers, agencies, ecommerce sites, and growing businesses that need the move done carefully.