Generate a key on the new site
Open SwiftMigrate → Receive a site and click Generate migration key. The key holds the site address and a one-off secret, and expires after 24 hours.
Free WordPress plugin
Move a whole WordPress site to a new server, directly.
SwiftMigrate sends your files and database straight from the old server to the new one. Every chunk is checked on arrival, URLs are rewritten for the new address, and the previous version of the new site is kept so you can roll back with one click. Nothing is downloaded to your computer.
Parallel transferSmall files packed together, large files split into chunks.
Verified on arrivalAnything missing or damaged is sent again before restore.
Rollback keptThe new site’s previous state stays until you delete it.
How a migration runs
Four steps, two sites, one key.
Install SwiftMigrate on both sites. The new site can be a fresh WordPress install on any host or domain.
Paste it on the old site
Open SwiftMigrate → Send this site, paste the key and connect. A pre-flight check compares both servers before anything moves.
Choose what to move and start
Database, media, themes, plugins, WordPress core and other root files. Close the tab at any time; the migration resumes where it stopped.
Restore, check, keep or roll back
After every chunk is verified, restore with one click. Log in with the old site’s details, check the site, then delete the rollback copy or roll back.
What happens under the hood
Built so a migration can’t half-finish.
The database is imported into temporary tables first, so the live site on the new server keeps running during the import. Site addresses and server paths are rewritten inside those tables, including serialized, JSON-escaped and URL-encoded data that a plain search-and-replace would break.
Plugins, themes and WordPress core are moved into place in one pass, and all database tables are switched in a single step straight after. Visitors see either the old site or the new one, never a mix.
- Direct server-to-server transfer with parallel streams
- SHA-1 checksum on every file and chunk, rejected if it doesn’t match
- Every chunk confirmed before restore; gaps are resent automatically
- Different table prefixes handled automatically
- Extra find-and-replace pairs for old CDN or email domains
- One-click rollback of files and database
- Full, downloadable log of every migration
Security
Only someone with the migration key can write to the new site. Every request between the two servers is signed with HMAC-SHA256, carries a timestamp and can be used only once, so a captured request can neither be changed nor replayed. Keys expire and are revoked when the plugin is deactivated.
Your files and database go only to the site whose key you paste. SwiftMigrate uses no third-party service and sends nothing to Organic Reach.
Good to know
Never transferred: wp-config.php, .htaccess, .user.ini, php.ini and web.config stay as they are on the new server, so its database login and server rules keep working.
Requirements on both sites: WordPress 6.2 or later, PHP 7.4 or later, a writable wp-content folder and a reachable WordPress REST API.
Not supported: multisite networks. Avoid editing content on the old site while a migration runs.
Free in the WordPress.org directory
Get SwiftMigrate
The quickest way: in WordPress go to Plugins → Add New Plugin, search for SwiftMigrate, then click Install Now and Activate. Do this on both the old and the new site. Installing from WordPress.org gives you automatic updates.
Need the ZIP file, for example for a site that cannot reach WordPress.org? Use the form and we will email you the same version.
Prefer a ZIP? Download 1.0.1
Same plugin as WordPress.org. Upload it in Plugins → Add New Plugin → Upload Plugin.
Migration guides
Planning a move? Start here.
Step-by-step guides written by the plugin’s developer, covering every method, not only SwiftMigrate. All guides
New host
Migrate WordPress to a new host
Methods compared, the right order of steps, testing before DNS and common errors.
Large sitesMigrate a large WordPress site
Upload limits, timeouts, what to remove first and how chunked transfers get through.
New domainMove WordPress to a new domain
Serialization-safe URL rewriting, 301 redirects and Google’s Change of Address tool.
ChecklistWordPress migration checklist
Every check before, during and after the move, in the order it needs to happen.
Questions, answered
Before you migrate.
Still stuck? Email hello@organicreach.agency.
On the new site (the destination). Install SwiftMigrate there, generate a migration key, then paste that key into SwiftMigrate on the old site and start the migration from the old site.
Yes. When you restore, the destination’s database, themes, plugins and media are replaced by the incoming site. Its wp-config.php and .htaccess are kept. With “Keep a rollback copy” switched on (the default), one click undoes the switch.
The username and password from the old site. The new server now holds the old site’s database, including its users.
From the official WordPress.org plugin directory. In WordPress, go to Plugins → Add New Plugin, search for “SwiftMigrate” and click Install Now, on both sites. Installing from WordPress.org also gives you automatic updates.
No. Files and database content go only to the WordPress site whose migration key you paste. SwiftMigrate uses no third-party service and sends nothing to Organic Reach. Over HTTPS the transfer is encrypted by TLS; if the new site has no HTTPS, SwiftMigrate encrypts every request and response itself with the migration key (XChaCha20-Poly1305).
A security plugin or the host firewall on the new site is usually blocking the WordPress REST API. Turn on “Firewall-friendly mode” in SwiftMigrate’s settings on the old site, or allow POST requests to /wp-json/swiftmigrate/v1/transfer on the new site. SwiftMigrate checks the signature of every request itself.
Yes. Progress is saved on the server. Open SwiftMigrate → Send this site again and press Resume.
No. Both sites must be single-site WordPress installs.
Yes. Large files are split into chunks that fit the new host’s limits, and during the restore the old address and server paths are rewritten everywhere, including serialized, JSON-escaped and URL-encoded data. See our guides to migrating a large WordPress site and moving WordPress to a new domain.
Nothing. SwiftMigrate is free and licensed under the GPL (version 2 or later), like WordPress itself. If it saved you time, a review on WordPress.org helps other people find it.