At some point most businesses need to move their website. You might be changing host, switching to a new domain after a rebrand, moving to HTTPS or rebuilding on a new platform. Whatever the reason, the worry is the same: will we lose our Google rankings?

You do not have to. Site migrations go wrong for predictable reasons, and almost all of them can be avoided with a bit of planning. This checklist walks you through what to do before, during and after a move.

What counts as a site migration?

A site migration is any change that significantly affects how Google finds and understands your website. The common types are:

• Hosting migration: same website and domain, new server.
• Domain migration: moving to a new domain name, for example after a rebrand.
• Protocol migration: moving from HTTP to HTTPS.
• Platform migration: moving from one system to another, such as Wix or Squarespace to WordPress.
• Structure migration: changing your URLs or site structure, often as part of a redesign.

The more of these you combine at once, the higher the risk. Where you can, make one big change at a time so that if something does go wrong, it is easy to work out why.

Before the move

1. Benchmark your current performance

Record your organic traffic, top landing pages and keyword positions from Google Analytics and Google Search Console. Save a copy. This is how you will know whether the migration has worked.

2. Crawl and export every URL

Use a crawling tool to list every page, image and file on your current site. Add in URLs from your XML sitemap and from Search Console, as crawlers can miss pages that are not linked internally.

3. Find your most valuable pages

Flag the pages that bring in the most traffic, enquiries or sales, and the pages that other websites link to. These are the pages you cannot afford to lose, so they get checked first and checked twice.

4. Build a redirect map

A redirect map is a simple spreadsheet with two columns: old URL and new URL. Every old URL should point to its closest equivalent on the new site using a permanent 301 redirect. Avoid sending everything to the homepage, and avoid redirect chains where one redirect leads to another.

5. Take a full backup

Back up your files and database before anything changes. If something goes badly wrong, you want to be able to roll back quickly.

6. Build and test on a staging site

Set up the new site somewhere private first and block it from search engines so Google does not index it early. Test forms, checkouts, menus and tracking before anyone outside the team sees it.

How to move a WordPress site

WordPress is the most common platform we move websites to and from, so it is worth a quick note on the practical side. Moving a WordPress site to a new host normally involves:

1. Backing up the WordPress files and the database
2. Copying them to the new host, either manually or with a migration plugin
3. Updating the database connection details in wp-config.php
4. Running a search and replace on the database if the domain is changing
5. Testing the site on the new server before switching the domain over
6. Updating your DNS to point to the new host

Migration plugins make this easier than it used to be, but they are not foolproof. Large sites, WooCommerce shops and sites with lots of custom code are worth handing to someone who has done it before. If you are moving from a different platform entirely, our CMS to CMS migration guide covers that process in more detail.

On migration day

• Pick a quiet time, such as early in the week rather than before a busy weekend
• Lower your DNS TTL a day or two in advance so changes take effect quickly
• Put your 301 redirects live at the same moment as the new site
• Remove any “discourage search engines” or noindex settings from the staging site
• Check that HTTPS works on every page with no security warnings
• Test a sample of old URLs to confirm they land on the right new pages
• Check your analytics, tracking codes and contact forms are working

After the move

Tell Google

Submit your new XML sitemap in Google Search Console. If you have changed domain, verify the new domain and use the Change of Address tool so Google knows the move is intentional.

Crawl the new site

Run a fresh crawl to find broken links, 404 errors, redirect chains and pages missing titles or descriptions. Update internal links so they point straight to the new URLs rather than relying on redirects.

Monitor for the next few months

Check Search Console regularly for crawl errors, indexing problems and drops in clicks. Compare against your benchmark. A short wobble while Google catches up is normal. A sharp drop that does not recover usually means something was missed, and the earlier you spot it the easier it is to put right.

Keep your redirects in place

Leave your 301 redirects live for the long term. Removing them too soon is one of the most common ways rankings are lost months after an otherwise successful migration. If you are moving domains, keep the old domain registered too.

Common site migration mistakes

• No redirect map, or redirecting everything to the homepage
• Launching with the site still blocked from search engines
• Forgetting images, PDFs and other files that have their own URLs
• Losing page titles, meta descriptions and structured data
• Changing domain, design, platform and content all at once
• Not checking analytics, so problems go unnoticed for weeks

Need a hand moving your website?

A migration is one of those jobs where a small mistake can be expensive. At Delivered Social we plan migrations carefully, map every redirect and check everything after launch, so your new website keeps the rankings you have earned.

If your move is part of a wider rebuild, read our guide on how a website redesign affects SEO, explore our SEO services, or get in touch and we will talk it through.