Moving a WordPress site to a new host: what free migration covers

All four hosts we checked offer a free way to move an existing WordPress site in, but they differ in who does the work. Kinsta and Cloudways staff do the migration, at Hostinger you submit a request in the dashboard, and at SiteGround you run a free plugin yourself. At Kinsta, Hostinger and SiteGround the vendor page says the old site stays online while the copy is built, and nothing changes for visitors until you change DNS.

None of the pages promises that email, scheduled jobs or third-party connections move with the site. Choose by the site you have, not by the free offer: a multisite network, a WordPress.com site or a site on a custom builder is excluded or needs extra work at several of these hosts.

The vendor pages are explicit about what a free migration does not carry:

• DNS. Kinsta says post-migration DNS is not included, and Hostinger lists DNS records as not migrated. SiteGround's tutorial has you switch the domain to its name servers yourself.
• Email. Kinsta lists email setup as not included. Hostinger says email must be migrated manually.
• Other server settings. Hostinger does not migrate cron jobs, custom SSL configuration or FTP accounts.
• Third-party services. Kinsta lists them as outside the free migration.
• Changes made during the move. Kinsta says changes made to the original site after the migration starts will not carry over.
• Access. Kinsta warns that two-factor authentication on some hosts (it names Cloudways, GoDaddy, SiteGround and WP Engine) can block its access, so it may need to be switched off until the move finishes. Hostinger recommends switching off two-factor authentication and anti-bot checks on the old host too.

Read as a decision, the pages point like this. This is our reading, not vendor advice.

• You want the host to do the move. Kinsta (free, weekdays only, usually within one business day) and Cloudways (first site free, usually one to two business days) use their own staff. Hostinger's dashboard request is also handled for you, with no turnaround stated.
• You are happy to run a plugin. SiteGround's migrator and Cloudways' WordPress Migrator plugin cover WordPress sites. SiteGround's tutorial says the live site is not affected and gives a temporary address for 48 hours to check the copy.
• Your site is a multisite network. Hostinger does not support it, SiteGround's migrator is described as not suitable for it, and Kinsta moves it only as a whole. Ask the host before you pay.
• Your site lives on WordPress.com. At Kinsta only content can be exported and imported, so themes, plugins and customisations are rebuilt. SiteGround's migrator is not suitable, and Hostinger uses a separate process.
• You have several non-WordPress sites. Cloudways lists a per-site fee after the first free one. Hostinger's page covers other open-source CMS sites but allows up to five active requests at a time.

Before you start a move, in this order:

1. Take your own full backup of files and database, even if the host also takes one.
2. List what the migration will not carry: email accounts, cron jobs, DNS records, FTP accounts, custom SSL setup and third-party connections.
3. Lower the DNS TTL to 300 seconds 12 to 24 hours before the switch, as Kinsta suggests. Its page says propagation typically takes about an hour.
4. If you run a store or memberships, decide how orders and sign-ups are handled between the copy and the switch. Kinsta recommends maintenance mode for these sites.
5. Review the copy on the temporary address before changing DNS. SiteGround gives one for 48 hours, and Hostinger points to its SkipDNS tool.
6. Switch DNS, then test forms, checkout, login, email delivery, scheduled jobs and certificates.
7. Keep the old hosting until you have checked all of the above. Cancelling it early is the one step you cannot undo if something was missed.

For prices, renewal rates and limits of these four hosts, see WordPress hosting prices: promo vs renewal rates and the managed WordPress hosting shortlist. Product pages: Kinsta, Hostinger, SiteGround, Cloudways.