How to Migrate from GoDaddy

Why Leave GoDaddy?

GoDaddy is the world's largest domain registrar, but their hosting consistently underperforms competitors in speed, uptime, and value. Our testing shows GoDaddy shared hosting averaging 420-700ms TTFB — 2-3x slower than hosts like Hostinger or Cloudways. Combined with aggressive upselling, high renewal prices ($10.99-$19.99/mo), and limited developer tools, many users migrate within their first year.

Performance Issues

GoDaddy's shared hosting infrastructure is dated. In our 90-day benchmarks, GoDaddy Economy plans averaged 99.93% uptime — below the industry standard of 99.95%. TTFB consistently exceeded 400ms from US East, compared to 145-200ms from modern competitors. PHP 8.2+ support arrived months after other hosts, and server-side caching options are limited.

Pricing Complaints

GoDaddy's renewal pricing is among the highest: Economy renews at $10.99/mo, Deluxe at $14.99/mo, and Ultimate at $19.99/mo. For comparison, Hostinger's Business plan (superior performance) renews at $3.99/mo, and InterServer locks your price at $2.50/mo forever. Over 3 years, the savings from migrating to a better host can exceed $400.

GoDaddy Managed WordPress Limitations

GoDaddy's Managed WordPress product restricts plugin installations, blocks certain caching plugins, and provides limited WP-CLI access. If you need full control over your WordPress environment, migrating to Cloudways or a traditional cPanel host gives you complete freedom.

Pre-Migration Checklist

GoDaddy has multiple hosting products with different migration procedures. Identify which product you are on before proceeding.

Identify Your GoDaddy Hosting Type

• cPanel Hosting (Economy/Deluxe/Ultimate): Standard shared hosting with cPanel access. Migration is straightforward using standard WordPress migration plugins.
• Managed WordPress: Proprietary dashboard without cPanel. Requires plugin-based migration or manual SFTP export.
• GoDaddy Website Builder: Proprietary platform — content must be manually recreated. No direct export to WordPress is possible.
• VPS/Dedicated: Full root access. Use standard server migration tools (rsync, mysqldump).

Create Complete Backups

• cPanel hosting: cPanel → Backup Wizard → Full Backup. Download and store locally.
• Managed WordPress: Install UpdraftPlus → create full backup → download all parts to your computer.
• Database: phpMyAdmin → Export → Quick → SQL format. For managed WP without phpMyAdmin, use WP-CLI: wp db export or UpdraftPlus database backup.

Document Everything

• PHP version and extensions
• All DNS records (screenshot the DNS zone in GoDaddy's domain manager)
• Email accounts and forwarders
• Cron jobs and scheduled tasks
• SSL certificate details
• Active plugins and their license keys

Prepare the New Host

Set up your account on the new host. Install WordPress (if applicable), note the server IP, nameservers, and SFTP credentials. Create the database. Do not change any DNS yet.

Step-by-Step Migration

For GoDaddy cPanel Hosting → New Host

1. Install Duplicator Pro on your GoDaddy WordPress site. Go to Duplicator → Packages → Create New → Build.
2. Download the installer.php and archive.zip files.
3. Upload both files to your new host's web root via SFTP.
4. Create an empty database on the new host (MySQL, with a user that has full privileges).
5. Run installer.php via the new server's IP: http://NEW-SERVER-IP/installer.php
6. Enter new database credentials and deploy. Duplicator handles the URL replacement automatically.
7. Test thoroughly using the server IP or temporary URL before switching DNS.

For GoDaddy Managed WordPress → New Host

GoDaddy's Managed WordPress does not provide cPanel, so the process differs slightly:

1. Install the Cloudways WordPress Migrator plugin (works even if you are not moving to Cloudways — it creates a portable migration package). Alternatively, use All-in-One WP Migration.
2. If moving to Cloudways: Enter your Cloudways SFTP details in the migrator plugin. It transfers everything automatically in 15-30 minutes.
3. If moving elsewhere: Use All-in-One WP Migration → Export → File. Download the .wpress file. On the new host, install All-in-One WP Migration → Import → upload the .wpress file.
4. For large sites (over 512MB): Use UpdraftPlus to create a backup, download all parts, install UpdraftPlus on the new host, and restore from the backup files.

For GoDaddy Website Builder → WordPress

GoDaddy's Website Builder is proprietary — there is no automated export. You must:

1. Manually copy content: Copy all text content from each page into a document.
2. Download media: Right-click and save all images, or use a browser extension like DownThemAll.
3. Set up WordPress on your new host and recreate pages using a suitable theme (Astra, Kadence, or GeneratePress are lightweight starting points).
4. Recreate forms: Rebuild contact forms using WPForms or Contact Form 7.
5. Redirect old URLs: Map old GoDaddy Builder URLs to new WordPress URLs using a redirection plugin.

DNS & Domain Transfer

Changing Nameservers (Keep Domain at GoDaddy)

If you want to keep your domain registered at GoDaddy but point it to a new host:

1. Log into GoDaddy → My Products → Domains → DNS
2. Scroll to Nameservers → Change
3. Select "Enter my own nameservers"
4. Enter your new host's nameservers
5. Save — propagation takes 2-48 hours

Transferring Your Domain Away from GoDaddy

GoDaddy charges $20.17/yr for .com renewals. Transferring to Cloudflare Registrar ($10.11/yr at-cost) saves $10/yr per domain.

1. Unlock your domain: My Products → Domains → Domain Settings → Domain Lock → OFF
2. Request authorization code: GoDaddy emails it within minutes
3. Initiate transfer at Cloudflare (or your preferred registrar)
4. Approve the transfer via email confirmation
5. Wait 5-7 days for completion

GoDaddy-Specific DNS Gotchas

• GoDaddy parking pages: If you see a GoDaddy parking page after changing nameservers, clear your browser cache and wait 4-6 hours.
• Domain forwarding: GoDaddy domain forwarding stops working when you change nameservers. Recreate any forwarding rules on the new host.
• Premium DNS: If you have GoDaddy Premium DNS ($2.99/mo), cancel it after transferring DNS management. It provides no benefit once nameservers point elsewhere.

Email Migration

If you use GoDaddy's Microsoft 365 email, it continues working independently of hosting changes — just ensure your MX records point to Microsoft 365's servers. If you use GoDaddy's basic email hosting (Workspace Email), you must migrate to a new email provider before changing nameservers.

Post-Migration Checks

First 24 Hours

• SSL verification: Confirm HTTPS works on all pages. Let's Encrypt certificates typically auto-provision within 1 hour of DNS propagation.
• Broken link check: Use Screaming Frog (free for up to 500 URLs) or the Broken Link Checker plugin to scan for 404 errors.
• Form testing: Submit test entries on all contact forms, checkout flows, and newsletter signups.
• Mobile testing: Load your site on a phone to check for responsive layout issues that might have appeared during migration.
• Admin access: Log into WordPress admin, verify all plugins are active, check for any error notices.

Performance Benchmarks

Run speed tests to quantify the improvement:

• GTmetrix: Compare LCP and TBT scores before and after migration
• TTFB test: Use KeyCDN's performance tool from multiple global locations
• Load test: Use Loader.io (free tier: 10K requests) to test concurrent visitor handling

Typical improvement migrating from GoDaddy: 40-60% faster TTFB, 20-30% better LCP scores.

SEO Preservation

• Verify Google Search Console shows no new crawl errors
• Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console on the new host
• Check that robots.txt is accessible and correct
• Monitor organic traffic in Google Analytics for 2 weeks — a small dip during DNS propagation is normal

When to Cancel GoDaddy

Keep your GoDaddy hosting active for 7-14 days after migration. This gives you a fallback if issues emerge. After confirming everything works, cancel your hosting plan. If you transferred your domain, cancel any add-on services (Premium DNS, SSL certificates, privacy protection) that are no longer needed.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

The Bottom Line

More guides: Cloudways Review 2026 • Best WordPress Hosting 2026 • InterServer Review 2026