The short answer: You can transfer web hosting safely by copying everything to your new host before you switch. Back up your website, databases and email. Set everything up on the new hosting and test it. Only then update your DNS – and keep your old hosting running for a few days. Do it in that order, keep the same domain and web addresses, and your visitors, emails and Google rankings stay put.
Below, we’ll walk through each step in plain English, explain what can go wrong, and show you how to avoid it.
Why businesses move web hosting
Maybe your website has become slow. Maybe support takes days to reply, or your renewal price jumped. Or perhaps you’d like your website hosted here in the UAE, closer to your customers.
Whatever the reason, moving host is common – and it doesn’t have to be stressful. Most problems come from doing the steps in the wrong order.
Web hosting transfer vs domain transfer
These are two different things, and it helps to know which one you’re doing.
- Transferring web hosting means moving your website files, databases and email to a new server.
- Transferring a domain means moving the registration of your domain name, such as yourbusiness.ae, to a new registrar.
You can do one without the other. Many businesses move their hosting first, then move the domain later when it’s due for renewal.
Tip: Moving a .ae domain to tasjeel.ae is free, you keep your existing expiry date, and it usually takes around 48 hours. Learn how to transfer a .ae domain.
What can go wrong – and how to avoid it
| Risk | What causes it | How to avoid it |
|---|---|---|
| Website downtime | Switching DNS before the new site is ready | Test everything on the new host first |
| Lost emails | Pointing email to the new host before mailboxes exist | Create every mailbox first and copy old messages across |
| Broken pages | Missing files, a database that wasn’t moved or old settings | Move files and databases, then check key pages |
| Security warnings | No SSL certificate on the new host | Install SSL before switching |
| Lost rankings | Changed web addresses, missing pages or long downtime | Keep the same domain and URLs, and redirect anything that changes |
Step 1: Take stock and back everything up
Before you touch anything, make a list of what you’re moving:
- Website files – everything in your site’s main folder, often called
public_htmlor the root directory. - Databases – most websites, including all WordPress sites, use a MySQL database.
- Email accounts – every address, plus any forwarders and aliases.
- DNS records – take a screenshot or export of your current records, especially your A records and MX mail records.
Then take a full backup. If your current host uses cPanel, you can create a full account backup in a few clicks. If not, download your files and export each database as an SQL file.
Step 2: Set up your new hosting
Choose a web hosting plan with enough storage and email accounts for what you’re moving. Check what’s included, too. Free SSL certificates, daily backups and a free migration service can save you a lot of time.
Don’t cancel your old hosting yet. You’ll need it running until the move is complete.
Step 3: Move your website files and databases
This is the heart of the move.
- Upload your website files to the new host, using the same folder structure.
- Create a new database and database user in your new control panel.
- Import your SQL file into the new database.
- Update your website’s settings so it connects to the new database. On WordPress, that’s the
wp-config.phpfile.
If you’re moving from cPanel to cPanel, restoring a full backup can do most of this in one go.
Built your site with a website builder? Platforms such as Wix – and some hosting companies’ own builders – don’t let you export your website to another host. In that case, you’ll need to rebuild the site on your new hosting. It’s worth knowing this before you plan your move.
Step 4: Recreate your email accounts
Create every email address on your new hosting, using the same names. Then copy your existing messages across. Most hosts can move mailboxes over IMAP, so your old emails and folders arrive intact.
Doing this before you change your DNS is what stops emails going missing during the move.
Step 5: Test before anyone else sees it
Now check that everything works on the new server while your visitors are still using the old one. Your new host can give you a temporary address or preview link, or you can use your computer’s hosts file to view the site on the new server.
Check the pages and features that matter most:
- Your homepage and main service or product pages
- Contact forms and checkout
- Logins, including your WordPress admin
- Images and downloads
Step 6: Install your SSL certificate
Make sure your SSL certificate is active on the new hosting. Without it, visitors may see a “not secure” warning – and that’s the fastest way to lose trust and sales.
Step 7: Point your domain to the new host
When you’re happy, update your DNS. You can either change your nameservers to your new host’s nameservers or update individual DNS records – your A record for the website and your MX records for email.
Tip: If you’re updating individual records, lower the TTL, or time to live, before you switch. This helps the changes spread faster.
DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to reach everyone, although most people see the new site much sooner. During that time, some visitors reach the old server and some reach the new one. That’s exactly why the old hosting needs to stay live.
Step 8: Keep your old hosting for a few days
Leave your old plan running for at least a few days after the switch. Check the old mailboxes for any final messages that arrived during the change and copy them across.
Once everything has settled, you can cancel the old hosting.
Extra checks for WordPress websites
WordPress sites need a few extra checks after a move.
Clear every cache
Caching plugins can keep showing old pages or broken links. Clear every cache once the site is running on the new host.
Re-save your permalinks
If your homepage works but other pages show “not found”, go to Settings → Permalinks and click Save. That will often fix the problem.
Match your PHP version
In your new control panel, choose the same PHP version as before, or a newer version that your theme and plugins support.
Check that your contact forms send
Some sites use a plugin to send email. Make sure its settings still work on the new host and submit a test enquiry through each important form.
Only change the site address if your domain changes
For a normal hosting move, leave the WordPress Address and Site Address exactly as they are.
Check whether you use Cloudflare
If you use Cloudflare, your DNS is managed in Cloudflare rather than at your registrar. Update your A record, and your MX records if email is moving, in Cloudflare instead of changing nameservers.
Your web hosting transfer checklist
| Stage | What to do |
|---|---|
| Before | List your files, databases, email accounts and DNS records. Take a full backup. Buy the new hosting but keep the old plan. |
| During | Upload files, import databases, create mailboxes, copy old email, install SSL and test the site on the new server. |
| Switch | Lower the TTL, then update your nameservers or A and MX records. Allow up to 48 hours. |
| After | Check key pages, forms and email. Watch Google Search Console for “not found” errors. Cancel the old hosting after a few days. |
How to keep your SEO safe when you move host
Here’s the good news: Google doesn’t care which company hosts your website. Changing host on its own won’t hurt your rankings. Problems arise when something else changes or stops working at the same time.
Google provides its own guidance for changing website hosting, but the main steps are straightforward.
Keep the same domain and URLs
If every page stays at the same address, Google can continue crawling and indexing the website as normal.
Redirect anything that changes
If a page’s address has to change, add a permanent 301 redirect from the old address to the new one.
Avoid downtime
Long outages can stop Google crawling your pages. Set up and test the new website before changing your DNS.
Monitor Google Search Console
Check Google Search Console for a few weeks after the move. Look for pages that suddenly show as “not found” and fix them quickly.
Compare speed before and after
A faster host can help, especially when your server is close to your visitors. You can also follow these practical steps to make your website faster.
We’ve seen this first-hand. When we moved our own website to a new address in 2025, our Google clicks dipped for about four days – then recovered. Every old address pointed to its new one, so Google followed the move.
Moving your website to UAE hosting
If most of your customers are in the UAE, hosting your website here can make it faster for them. There can be compliance reasons, too.
The UAE’s Personal Data Protection Law sets rules for sending personal data abroad. Some sectors go further: health data, for example, generally has to stay inside the UAE.
If your website collects that kind of information, UAE hosting keeps things simple. Our Dubai website hosting plans run in a Dubai data centre for exactly this reason.
Let us move it for you – free
Moving a website yourself is very doable. But if you’d rather not, our migration team can do it for you free of charge when you move to tasjeel.ae hosting.
Once your plan is active, open a support request or email [email protected] with:
- Your login details for your current host’s control panel, with SSH enabled if possible
- Your WordPress administrator login, if you use WordPress
- A list of the email addresses you’d like us to move
We’ll handle the files, databases and email. We’ll be honest, too: if your site was built on a platform that doesn’t allow exports, we’ll tell you upfront and help you plan the best way forward.
Frequently asked questions
How long does a website migration take?
Copying a typical small business website takes a few hours, not days. The part you can’t rush is DNS. Once you switch, it can take up to 48 hours for everyone to reach the new server. Plan your switch for a quieter day.
Will my email stop working during the move?
It shouldn’t. As long as every mailbox exists on the new host before you change your MX records, new emails should arrive safely.
Check your old mailboxes for a few days afterwards in case any messages land there during the switch.
Do I have to move my domain name as well?
No. Your domain can stay where it is. You only need to update its DNS to point at your new hosting. You can move the domain separately at any time.
Can you move my website from GoDaddy, Hostinger or another host?
In most cases, yes – as long as we can access your files, databases and email, usually through your current control panel.
The exception is a website built on a host’s own website builder. These websites often can’t be exported and have to be rebuilt.
Will my website go offline?
Not if you follow the steps in order. Until the DNS updates, visitors see the old site. Afterwards, they see the new one. Both versions remain live during the change, so nobody should see an empty page.
What happens to my SSL certificate?
Your old certificate stays with your old host. Your new host should issue a new one. At tasjeel.ae, SSL certificates are included free with every hosting plan.
Ready to transfer your web hosting?
Explore our web hosting plans, or chat with our team 24/7 about your migration.
