How to Migrate from Bluehost

Why Leave Bluehost?

Bluehost is one of the most popular shared hosting providers, but many users outgrow it within 12-24 months. Common reasons for migrating include: renewal prices jumping from $2.95/mo to $10.99-$13.99/mo, slow TTFB averaging 380-650ms on shared plans, limited PHP workers causing timeout errors during traffic spikes, and restricted SSH/WP-CLI access on lower-tier plans.

Performance Ceiling

Bluehost's shared hosting caps your site at roughly 30-50 concurrent visitors before performance degrades. If your site regularly exceeds 50K monthly visitors or runs WooCommerce, you are likely hitting resource limits that no amount of caching can fix. Migrating to a host with better infrastructure (LiteSpeed, NVMe SSDs, or managed cloud) typically cuts TTFB by 40-60%.

Renewal Shock

Bluehost's introductory pricing is competitive, but renewal rates are among the highest in shared hosting. The Basic plan renews at $10.99/mo — more expensive than Hostinger's Business plan ($3.99/mo renewal) which offers better performance. If your initial term is ending, migrating before renewal saves $84-120/year.

Where Should You Migrate?

Your destination depends on your needs. For better shared hosting at lower renewal rates, consider Hostinger or ChemiCloud. For a performance upgrade, Cloudways ($14/mo) provides managed cloud infrastructure. For price-lock guarantee with no renewal surprise, InterServer ($2.50/mo forever) is the safest bet.

Pre-Migration Checklist

A successful migration starts with preparation. Rushing this step leads to downtime, broken links, and lost emails. Complete every item before touching your new host.

1. Full Backup (Files + Database)

Create a complete backup using one of these methods:

• cPanel Backup: Log into Bluehost cPanel → Backup → Download a Full Account Backup. This includes files, databases, email accounts, and DNS records.
• Plugin Backup: Install UpdraftPlus or All-in-One WP Migration. UpdraftPlus creates separate backups for files, database, plugins, and themes — easier to restore selectively.
• SSH/WP-CLI: Run wp db export backup.sql for the database, then tar -czf files.tar.gz public_html/ for all files.

2. Document Your Current Setup

Before migrating, record these details:

• PHP version (cPanel → MultiPHP Manager)
• Active plugins list (WP-CLI: wp plugin list --status=active)
• Custom .htaccess rules
• Cron jobs (cPanel → Cron Jobs)
• Email accounts and forwarders
• SSL certificate type (Let's Encrypt or paid)
• DNS records — screenshot your entire DNS zone

3. Set Up Your New Host

Purchase your plan on the new host, set up your account, and note the new server IP address, nameservers, and SFTP credentials. Do NOT change DNS yet — you will point the domain to the new server only after everything is tested and working.

4. Check Domain Lock Status

If you plan to transfer your domain away from Bluehost, unlock it first: Domains → My Domains → select domain → toggle Domain Lock to OFF. Request the EPP/authorization code — you will need this for the transfer. Note: domain transfers take 5-7 days, so plan accordingly or just change nameservers initially.

Step-by-Step Migration

Method 1: Plugin Migration (Easiest)

This method works for 90% of WordPress sites under 2GB.

1. Install migration plugin on Bluehost site: Use All-in-One WP Migration (free for sites under 512MB) or Duplicator Pro ($49.50/yr, no size limit). For this guide, we use Duplicator Pro.
2. Create a package: Duplicator → Packages → Create New. Select Full Archive. Wait for the build to complete (5-20 minutes depending on site size).
3. Download the package: Download both the installer.php and the archive.zip files to your computer.
4. Upload to new host: Connect to your new host via SFTP (FileZilla or your host's file manager). Upload both files to the root web directory (public_html/ or htdocs/).
5. Create empty database on new host: In your new host's control panel, create a new MySQL database and user. Grant ALL PRIVILEGES to the user on that database. Note the database name, username, and password.
6. Run the installer: Access http://your-new-server-ip/installer.php in your browser (use the IP, not the domain — DNS still points to Bluehost). Enter the new database credentials. Click Deploy.
7. Verify the site: Test the site using the server IP or a temporary URL provided by your new host. Check all pages, forms, and functionality.

Method 2: Manual Migration (For Large Sites)

For sites larger than 2GB or with complex setups:

1. Export the database: In Bluehost cPanel → phpMyAdmin → select your database → Export → Quick → SQL format → Go. Download the .sql file.
2. Download all files: Connect to Bluehost via SFTP. Download the entire public_html/ directory. For large sites, use SSH: tar -czf site.tar.gz public_html/ then download the archive.
3. Upload files to new host: Upload via SFTP or SSH. For archives: tar -xzf site.tar.gz on the new server.
4. Import the database: Create a new database on your new host. Import via phpMyAdmin (for files under 50MB) or SSH: mysql -u username -p database_name < backup.sql.
5. Update wp-config.php: Edit wp-config.php with the new database name, username, password, and host (usually localhost).
6. Update URLs if needed: If your temporary URL differs, use WP-CLI: wp search-replace 'old-url.com' 'new-url.com' --dry-run then without --dry-run to execute.

Method 3: Host-Provided Migration

Many hosts offer free migration services:

• Hostinger: Free migration for all Business plans. Submit a request in hPanel, provide Bluehost cPanel credentials, and their team migrates within 24-48 hours.
• Cloudways: Free migration plugin (Cloudways WordPress Migrator). Install on your Bluehost site, enter Cloudways API credentials, and it handles everything automatically in 15-30 minutes.
• SiteGround: Free migration plugin (SiteGround Migrator) for all plans. One-click transfer.
• ChemiCloud: Free migration for all plans — submit a ticket with cPanel credentials.

DNS & Domain Transfer

Option A: Change Nameservers (Fastest)

This is the quickest way to point your domain to the new host without transferring the domain registration itself.

1. Log into Bluehost → Domains → My Domains → select your domain
2. Click the DNS tab → scroll to Nameservers
3. Switch from Bluehost default to Custom nameservers
4. Enter your new host's nameservers (e.g., Hostinger: ns1.dns-parking.com, ns2.dns-parking.com)
5. Save changes — propagation takes 2-48 hours (usually 2-4 hours)

Option B: Full Domain Transfer

If you want to move your domain registration away from Bluehost entirely:

1. Unlock the domain in Bluehost (Domains → Domain Lock → OFF)
2. Request the EPP/authorization code from Bluehost
3. Initiate the transfer from your new registrar (Cloudflare Registrar recommended — at-cost pricing)
4. Confirm the transfer via email
5. Wait 5-7 days for completion

Minimizing Downtime During DNS Switch

To achieve near-zero downtime:

• Lower TTL first: 24 hours before switching, change your DNS record TTL to 300 seconds (5 minutes) at Bluehost. This ensures faster propagation when you switch.
• Keep Bluehost active: Do NOT cancel your Bluehost account until DNS has fully propagated and your site is confirmed working on the new host. Keep it active for at least 72 hours after the switch.
• Monitor propagation: Use whatsmydns.net to check if DNS has propagated globally. Wait until 90%+ of locations show the new IP.

Email Considerations

If you use Bluehost for email hosting, changing nameservers will break email delivery. Before switching DNS:

• Set up email on the new host or a third-party service (Google Workspace $6/mo, Zoho Mail free for 1 user)
• Recreate all email accounts and forwarders
• Add MX records on the new host pointing to your email provider
• Test email delivery before switching DNS

Post-Migration Verification

Immediate Checks (First 24 Hours)

After DNS propagation, verify everything works:

• Homepage and key pages: Load your homepage, about page, contact page, and 5-10 blog posts. Check for broken images, missing CSS, or layout issues.
• SSL certificate: Ensure HTTPS works. Most hosts auto-provision Let's Encrypt within 1 hour of DNS propagation. If not, manually trigger SSL installation from your hosting panel.
• Forms: Submit a test entry on every contact form, checkout form, and newsletter signup. Check that emails are received.
• Admin access: Log into WordPress admin. Verify all plugins are active and no errors appear in the dashboard.
• Media files: Browse the Media Library and confirm images load. Check a few posts with galleries or embedded media.

Performance Comparison

Run before/after benchmarks:

• TTFB: Test with KeyCDN Performance Test from multiple locations. You should see improvement if you moved to a better host.
• GTmetrix: Run a full test and compare Largest Contentful Paint and Total Blocking Time against your Bluehost baseline.
• Uptime monitoring: Set up a free UptimeRobot monitor (5-minute interval) to track uptime on the new host.

One-Week Checklist

• Verify Google Search Console shows no crawl errors
• Check Google Analytics for any traffic drops (small dip is normal during propagation)
• Confirm automated backups are running on the new host
• Test cron jobs (scheduled posts, WooCommerce emails, cache clearing)
• Verify CDN is configured and serving assets (if applicable)

Cancel Bluehost

After 7-14 days with no issues on the new host, cancel your Bluehost account. Bluehost offers a 30-day money-back guarantee on new accounts, but for existing accounts, you may receive a prorated refund depending on your terms. Download a final backup from Bluehost before canceling as a safety measure.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

The Bottom Line

More guides: Hostinger Review 2026 • Cloudways Review 2026 • Best Cheap Web Hosting 2026 • Shared to VPS Migration Guide