Move whole WordPress sites and networks safely

Four export types. Full website (the default), Database only, Files only, or Custom.

Custom export. Pick individual database tables, plugins, themes, the media library, must-use plugins and other wp-content folders.

Sensible default exclusions. Cache folders, other backup plugins' archives, temporary update files, debug.log, Wordfence runtime data, server-specific drop-ins and .git or .svn folders are left out, each with a stated reason and an untick option.

Your own exclusion patterns. Add patterns such as *.mp4 or uploads/2019, and every exclusion is recorded in the archive manifest.

Size estimate. The Export screen shows database, media, plugin and theme sizes and an estimated total before compression.

Archive naming. Name archives with a pattern using {site}, {date}, {time} and {mode}, with a random code always added so file names cannot be guessed.

Streaming .wptm format. An append-only container written and read in small, resumable steps with constant memory use and no dependency on ZipArchive.

SHA-256 on everything. Every database part and file has a checksum, and the manifest itself is checksummed.

Manifest. Records what is inside, what was left out and why, and the source site details, including network details on Multisite.

Text compression. PHP, CSS, JavaScript, JSON, SQL and similar files are compressed inside the archive, which can be turned off in Settings.

Guided six-step flow. Upload and validate, replace URLs, review and confirm, import, validate the site, and read the report.

Full validation first. The archive's structure, manifest, paths and every checksum are verified before anything on the site changes.

Server checks before import. Database privileges are tested on a throw-away table, and disk space is checked before files are staged.

Staging tables. The database is loaded into separate staging tables, so URL changes are previewed on the real data.

Typed confirmation. You type REPLACE, or IMPORT when adding a new site to a network, before the site is replaced.

Import from storage. Archives already on the server, including your exports, recovery backups or files copied by SFTP, can be imported without uploading.

Serialisation-safe rewriting. Serialised PHP values are rewritten token by token with every string length recalculated, without unserialising, so no object from an archive is ever created.

JSON and URL-encoded data. Escaped-slash JSON used by Elementor, Gutenberg blocks and many plugins, and URL-encoded values, are matched as well.

Boundary-aware matching. Replacing https://old.com leaves https://old.com.au and https://old.community untouched, and a single pass means a move to example.com/blog never produces /blog/blog.

Variants and extras. Handles http and https, www and non-www, the old server folder path, the bare domain if you enable it, optional GUID updates and your own extra search and replace rules.

Preview with counts. Shows the values that will change, rows affected, per-table counts, examples of changes and the exact search strings used.

Corrupted data left alone. Values that already look like broken serialised data are left unchanged and listed in the report.

No plugin size limit. Practical limits are disk space, hosting quotas and upload time rather than the plugin.

Chunked, resumable uploads. Archives are sent in pieces sized to the server's POST and memory limits, and an interrupted upload resumes when you select the same file again.

Short, saved steps. Work runs in slices that finish well within the PHP time limit, with progress saved after every step.

Background processing with fallback. Runs in background requests, and if the host blocks them, the open browser tab takes over automatically, with browser-driven and WP-CLI-only modes also available.

Crash recovery. After an out-of-memory or timeout crash, the step is retried with smaller batches.

Resumable downloads. Archive downloads support HTTP range requests.

Recovery backup before import. On by default, a backup of the destination is made first, covering the whole network or only the replaced site on Multisite.

One-click restore. Restore any recovery backup from Migration History or the Import screen.

Migration History. Every export, import, backup and restore is recorded with source, destination, tables, files, URLs replaced, status, warnings and a downloadable log, searchable by job, archive or URL.

History survives migrations. The plugin's own tables are never exported or replaced, so your history stays intact.

Retention and cleanup. Keep the last N recovery backups (5 by default), while your own exports are never deleted automatically and abandoned temporary files are cleaned up daily or on demand.

Email notifications. Optionally receive an email when a migration finishes or fails.

Network Admin only. The plugin is network-activated, runs in Network Admin for super admins, and cannot be activated on a single site of a network.

Export a network or one site. Export the entire network with every site, user and setting, or one site with its tables, members, uploads and the plugins and theme it uses.

Network into network. Replaces the whole destination network, lets you review and edit each site's new address, and converts between sub-domain and sub-directory networks.

Site into network. Add an archived site as a new site or replace one existing site, leaving the other sites untouched and keeping you signed in.

Site into single site. One site of a network becomes an ordinary standalone WordPress site, with media moved out of uploads/sites and network-activated plugins kept active.

User account merging. Accounts are matched by email address, and authors, comments, links, WooCommerce orders, customers, download permissions, API keys and webhooks are remapped to the right accounts.

Full command set. Commands for export, validate, import, sites, jobs, run, cancel, diagnostics and cleanup.

Dry run. import --dry-run validates, stages and previews replacements, then stops without changing the site.

Server-side archives. Import reads the archive in place, so multi-gigabyte files copied by SFTP never pass through a browser.

Administrators only. Requires manage_options on a single site or manage_network_options on a network, and every request checks permission and a security token, with rate limits on jobs and uploads.

Archives treated as untrusted. Paths are validated, and only plain CREATE TABLE and INSERT statements with literal values are executed, against staging tables only.

Private storage. Archives are stored outside the public web root where the server allows it, or in a protected folder that System Status tests.

Configuration never touched. wp-config.php, salts and database credentials are never exported or overwritten, and logs redact passwords, keys and salts.

Worker guard. An optional must-use plugin loads only WP Total Migrate during its own authenticated worker requests, so other plugins and the theme cannot interrupt a migration.