I’ve been working with WordPress for years and moving a site from your local machine to a live server can be a bit of a head-scratcher especially if you’re new to the game.

But it doesn’t have to be a nightmare.

There’s a few different ways to do it and I’ve learned a thing or two along the way.

Ready to ditch the local development headache and launch your WordPress site to the world? 🚀 This blog post has got you covered with all the tips and tricks you need. Read it now and get your site live in no time! 🤘

Table of Contents

Developing Locally: A Smart Move

Before we dive into the migration process let’s talk about why you’d even want to develop locally in the first place.

It’s actually a really good practice trust me.

Think of it like building a house – you wouldn’t just start hammering away on the foundation in your neighbor’s yard would you? You’d build it on your own property where you have control before moving it to its final location.

Developing locally gives you a safe space to experiment make mistakes and try out new features without worrying about affecting a live website.

You’re essentially in a sandbox and it’s a lot less stressful than messing around with a live site.

And let’s be honest sometimes those mistakes can be pretty big!

Here’s the deal developing locally helps you:

Avoid breaking your live site: You’re free to test new plugins themes and code snippets without the risk of crashing your live website. It’s like a safety net.
Work offline: No need to worry about a slow internet connection or server downtime. You can work anywhere anytime.
Control your environment: You can customize your local development environment to match your exact needs.

Local Development Environments: Picking the Right Tool

There are a bunch of different local development environments out there and it’s important to choose the one that’s right for you.

Think of it like choosing a power tool for a specific job.

You wouldn’t use a chainsaw to trim your hedges right? So take some time to figure out what’s best for your workflow.

I’ve tried a few different options over the years and I’ve settled on Local by Flywheel as my go-to.

It’s super user-friendly even for beginners but it also gives you the flexibility to customize things if you’re more advanced.

Plus they have some great features that are specifically designed for WordPress which makes life a lot easier.

Two Paths to Live: Manual Migration vs. Plugins

now we’re ready to move our WordPress site from our local environment to a live server.

There are two main approaches: the manual route and the plugin route.

The Manual Migration: A DIY Adventure

The manual migration is like hiking through the wilderness.

It takes a bit more effort but you have complete control and learn a lot along the way.

It’s not for the faint of heart though.

Be prepared for a few bumps in the road.

Here’s the general process:

SFTP is Your Ally: You’ll need an SFTP (Secure File Transfer Protocol) client to move your website files from your local machine to your live server. Think of it as a digital moving van. I use FileZilla it’s free and does the job just fine.
Moving the Files: Open your SFTP client connect to your server using the credentials provided by your hosting provider and drag and drop your website files from your local machine to the public directory on your server (usually called public_html or www).
Database Export: Time to take a backup of your local database using phpMyAdmin (or a similar tool like Adminer). Think of this as packing up all your website’s data.
Database Import: Now you need to create a new empty database on your live server and import your backup. You can do this through your hosting control panel.
Update wp-config.php: Open your wp-config.php file in a text editor and update the database credentials to match your new live server settings. This connects your website to your database.
Permalinks & URL Replacements: Make sure your site URL is updated correctly in the WordPress database. This might involve flushing your permalinks or even using a tool like Better Search Replace to replace any outdated URLs.

Important Notes on Manual Migration:

Backups Backups Backups: Before you do anything make sure you have a backup of your entire site. And I mean a full complete backup. Don’t just rely on your hosting provider’s backups.
Be Patient: Manual migrations can take a bit of time especially if you have a large website. Don’t rush it!
Be Careful: Make sure you understand what you’re doing before you start tinkering with your database. One wrong move and you could lose your data.

The Plugin Migration: A Smoother Ride

If you prefer a more streamlined approach migration plugins can be lifesavers.

Think of them like a GPS guiding you through the migration process making it much easier to navigate.

One of the most popular options is the Duplicator plugin.

Here’s how it works:

Create a Package: The Duplicator plugin packages up your entire WordPress website including files and the database into a convenient file that you can easily download.
Upload the Package: Use your SFTP client to upload the package file and the installer.php file to your live server.
Install the Package: Open the installer.php file in your browser. It will walk you through the installation process asking for your new database credentials.
Final Touches: Once the installation is complete you might need to flush your permalinks and make sure your site URL is updated in the WordPress database just like with the manual migration.

Plugin Migration Pros & Cons:

Easier: The plugin method is typically much easier than manual migration. Less room for error!
Automated: The plugin handles a lot of the heavy lifting so you don’t have to worry about all the little details.
Sometimes Challenging: While plugins make things easier they may struggle with very large websites or complex setups.

Testing Backups and Performance

Once you’ve successfully moved your site to a live server it’s crucial to test everything thoroughly.

This ensures a smooth launch and avoids any surprises for your visitors.

Thorough Testing: Don’t Skip This!

Check All Pages: Go through all your pages and posts to make sure they’re working properly. Look for broken links image errors and any other issues.
Test Forms: Make sure your contact forms comment forms and other forms are still submitting properly.
Verify Site Speed: Now that you’re on a live server you can test your site’s speed using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights. A fast site is crucial for a good user experience.
Check Analytics: Set up Google Analytics or a similar tool to track your site’s traffic and see how visitors are interacting with your content.

Regular Backups: A Crucial Habit

Once your site is live make sure you’re backing it up regularly.

This is like having insurance for your website.

In case anything goes wrong – a hack a plugin conflict or a simple mistake – you can restore your site from a backup and avoid losing any data.

There are a lot of great backup plugins out there but I’m a big fan of Jetpack Backup.

It automatically backs up your website’s files and database and stores them securely off-site.

You can set up backups to run daily weekly or even hourly so you can rest assured that your data is always safe.

Performance Optimization: Speed Up Your Site

A fast site is a happy site.

And it’s essential for both user experience and SEO.

You can speed up your site by:

Caching: Caching plugins like WP Super Cache or W3 Total Cache can store static versions of your website’s pages so they can be loaded quickly for visitors.
CDN (Content Delivery Network): A CDN can deliver your website’s content from servers closer to your visitors reducing loading times. Jetpack CDN is a great option and it’s free!
Image Optimization: Optimize your images to reduce their file size without compromising quality. Plugins like ShortPixel or EWWW Image Optimizer can help with this.

The Bottom Line: Choose Your Path

Whether you opt for the manual or plugin migration the key is to choose the approach that best suits your skill level and the complexity of your website.

Be sure to take plenty of backups test thoroughly and focus on performance.

Remember your website is a reflection of you and your work.

Make sure it’s running smoothly looks great and loads quickly!

How to Move a WordPress Site from Localhost to a Live Server