¿Quieres trasladar tu blog de WordPress.com a WordPress.org?
Muchos principiantes empiezan con WordPress.com, pero pronto se dan cuenta de sus limitaciones y quieren pasarse a la plataforma autoalojada WordPress.org.
En esta guía paso a paso, le mostraremos cómo trasladar correctamente su blog de WordPress.com a WordPress.org.
¿Por qué cambiar de WordPress.com a WordPress.org?
WordPress.com permite a cualquiera crear un blog creando una cuenta.
Sin embargo, los principiantes pronto se dan cuenta de que hay un montón de limitaciones en su blog gratuito de WordPress.com, como la capacidad limitada para monetizar, no puede instalar plugins, anuncios de terceros que se muestran a sus usuarios, y mucho más.
Por eso los usuarios suelen pasarse a la plataforma de autoalojamiento WordPress.org, más potente y popular.
Para entender las diferencias entre las dos plataformas, consulte nuestra comparación completa de WordPress.com frente a WordPress.org.
Te recomendamos que utilices WordPress.org porque te ofrece la propiedad total de tu sitio web y la libertad de controlar todas sus características. Para saber más acerca de todas estas características, consulte nuestra completa reseña / valoración de WordPress con sus pros y sus contras.
Dicho esto, veamos cómo migrar tu blog de WordPress.com a WordPress.org correctamente.
Lo que necesita antes de empezar
Para empezar con WordPress.org autoalojado, necesitarás una cuenta de alojamiento de WordPress y un nombre de dominio.
Recomendamos utilizar Bluehost porque es una de las empresas de alojamiento más grandes del mundo y un proveedor de alojamiento de WordPress recomendado oficialmente.
También ofrecen a los usuarios de WPBeginner un nombre de dominio gratuito y un gran descuento en alojamiento web. Puedes empezar por 1,99 $ / mes (y esto también incluye SSL gratis).
Seguirás necesitando alojamiento web si tu sitio de WordPress tiene un nombre de dominio personalizado. Sigue adelante y regístrate en Bluehost, y en el paso de dominio, añade el dominio de tu blog.
En los pasos siguientes, le mostraremos cómo mantener el mismo dominio durante la transferencia de WordPress.com a WordPress.org sin perder posiciones en las búsquedas.
Minientrada a la cuenta de alojamiento, también necesitarás acceso a tu cuenta de WordPress.com para trasladar fácilmente tus entradas, páginas, imágenes, comentarios y otros datos a tu sitio WordPress autoalojado.
Oferta adicional gratuita: Como muchos de vosotros nos lo habéis pedido, ahora ofrecemos un servicio gratuito de migración de WordPress.com a WordPress.org como parte de nuestro servicio gratuito de instalación de blogs en WordPress. Durante esta transferencia guiada, uno de los miembros de nuestro equipo de expertos realizará toda la migración por usted (100% gratis). Esto significa que puede cambiar de WordPress.com a WordPress.org sin ningún riesgo.
Sin embargo, si te gusta aprender y hacer las cosas por ti mismo, puedes seguir nuestro tutorial paso a paso a continuación.
Tutorial en vídeo
Si prefiere instrucciones escritas, siga leyendo.
Paso 1: Exportar datos de WordPress.com
En primer lugar, debe acceder a su sitio WordPress.com e ir al escritorio de su cuenta.
En la columna de la izquierda, haga clic en el menú Herramientas ” Exportar y, a continuación, en el botón “Exportar todo”.
Esto le permite exportar su sitio WordPress. Una vez que el archivo de exportación esté listo, aparecerá un enlazar de descarga. Puede hacer clic para descargar el archivo zip en su ordenador.
WordPress.com también enlazará a tu dirección de correo electrónico.
Una vez descargado el archivo en tu ordenador, tienes que descomprimirlo.
En su interior, encontrarás un archivo XML con todas tus entradas, páginas, imágenes, comentarios, campos personalizados, categorías, etiquetas, menús de navegación y otros datos.
Paso 2: Establecer WordPress
Ahora que ha exportado los datos de WordPress.com, lo siguiente es establecer una nueva instalación de WordPress en su alojamiento web.
WordPress es muy fácil de instalar, y solo requiere unos pocos clics. Si te registraste con Bluehost como mencionamos anteriormente, entonces WordPress se instalará automáticamente para ti.
Como alternativa, si elige otro servicio de alojamiento, puede seguir nuestro tutorial paso a paso sobre cómo instalar WordPress en 5 minutos.
Una vez que haya instalado WordPress, es hora de importar su contenido a su nuevo sitio web autoalojado con WordPress.
Paso 3: Importar contenido a un sitio WordPress autoalojado
Para importar el contenido de su antiguo sitio WordPress.com a su nuevo sitio WordPress.org, deberá acceder al área de administrador de su sitio web WordPress recién instalado.
Desde aquí, tienes que visitar la página Herramientas ” Importar y hacer clic en el botón “Instalar ahora” debajo de WordPress.
WordPress instalará el importador de WordPress.
Una vez hecho esto, haga clic en el enlace “Ejecutar importador” para continuar.
Le llevará a una pantalla donde se le pedirá que suba el archivo XML de WordPress.com que descargó en el paso 1 de este tutorial.
Haga clic en el botón “Elegir archivo” para seleccionar el archivo y, a continuación, haga clic en el botón “Subir archivo e importar”.
Nota: Si el tamaño de su archivo es superior a 2 MB, tiene dos opciones. Una es pedir a tu empresa de alojamiento web que aumente ese límite temporalmente para que puedas continuar con el proceso. La otra opción sería dividir el archivo utilizando un divisor de archivos WXR.
Al iniciar la importación, puede asignar el contenido importado a un usuario existente o crear uno nuevo.
También tendrá la opción de importar archivos adjuntos. Debe marcar / comprobar esta casilla para que sus archivos de imagen se importen correctamente.
Paso 4: Importar los enlaces de su Blogroll
Si ha estado utilizando la característica Enlaces en su blog WordPress.com para almacenar el blogroll u otros enlaces, entonces necesita seguir estas instrucciones para importarlos. Los usuarios que no utilizaban esta característica pueden omitir el paso 5.
WordPress no es compatible con la característica de blogroll de forma nativa. Si no tiene demasiados enlaces en su blogroll, consulte nuestra guía sobre cómo añadir enlaces de blogroll en WordPress sin usar un plugin.
Sin embargo, si tiene demasiados enlaces o desea mantener la funcionalidad del blogroll, siga leyendo.
Los enlaces del blogroll se exportan en formato OPML. Es un formato XML que le permite exportar e importar sus enlaces y categorías de enlaces. Tus enlaces de WordPress.com tienen un archivo OPML enlazado en una dirección como esta:
http://example.wordpress.com/wp-links-opml.php
Sustituya el ejemplo por el subdominio de su blog WordPress.com.
Si utiliza un dominio personalizado con su sitio web WordPress.com, podrá acceder a su archivo OPML visitando una URL como esta:
http://www.example.com/wp-links-opml.php
Su archivo OPML se abrirá en la ventana de su navegador, y deberá guardarlo en su escritorio. Pulsa CTRL+S (Comando+S en Mac) para guardar el archivo en tu ordenador.
Ahora que tienes una copia de seguridad de tus enlaces de WordPress.com, el siguiente paso es importarlos a WordPress. Sin embargo, WordPress auto-alojado no tiene un gestor de enlaces activado / activo por defecto.
Tendrás que instalar y activar el plugin Link Manager. La página del plugin dice que no ha sido actualizado en muchos años. Eso es porque no ha necesitado actualización, y puedes instalar este plugin con confianza.
Una vez activado, el plugin añadirá un nuevo elemento / artículo en su barra de administrador de WordPress llamado ‘Enlaces’.
A continuación, debe instalar y activar el plugin OPML Importer. Este plugin activa una nueva herramienta de importación que le permite importar enlaces de blogroll.
Para activarlo, debe visitar la página Herramientas ” Importar y hacer clic en el enlace “Ejecutar importador” situado debajo del importador de Blogroll.
En la página del importador de Blogroll, deberá subir el archivo OPML que guardó anteriormente.
Haga clic en el botón “Elegir archivo” para seleccionar el archivo y, a continuación, haga clic en el botón “Importar archivo OPML” para continuar.
WordPress importará sus enlaces y categorías de enlaces desde el archivo OPML.
Podrá ver el progreso y, al finalizar, verá el mensaje de correcto.
Paso 5: Establecer su blog de WordPress.com como privado
Ahora, si no quieres redirigir a tus antiguos usuarios a tu nuevo sitio, este será tu último paso.
En primer lugar, visita el escritorio de WordPress.com de tu antiguo blog. En el menú de la izquierda, haz clic en Ajustes “ Menú general y desplázate hasta la sección “Privacidad”.
A continuación, selecciona la opción “Privado” y haz clic en el botón “Guardar ajustes”.
Esto hará que tu antiguo blog de WordPress.com sea privado, y solo será visible para ti o para otros usuarios conectados que apruebes.
Atención: Si llevas tiempo escribiendo y tienes un público fiel, no tiene sentido dejarles colgados.
Además, si su blog lleva tiempo en la red, es probable que esté indexado en Google y otros motores de búsqueda.
Puede mantener todas las posiciones en los motores de búsqueda y redirigir fácilmente a sus antiguos usuarios a su nuevo blog siguiendo el paso 6 (muy recomendable si su sitio está establecido).
Paso 6: Redirigir a los visitantes y preservar el SEO
Redirigir a los usuarios a la nueva ubicación con la cabecera 301 es una solución estándar para mantener los rankings de búsqueda mientras se traslada un sitio de un lugar a otro.
Dado que no tiene acceso al archivo .htaccess de WordPress.com, no puede realizar ningún cambio para conservar la posición en los motores de búsqueda.
Sin embargo, WordPress.com ofrece una característica de actualización de pago llamada “Redirección del sitio”, que proporciona esta funcionalidad.
Sólo tiene que ir a la página Redireccionamiento del sitio. Si tiene varios sitios en WordPress.com, se le preguntará a cuál desea redirigir.
En la siguiente pantalla, se le pedirá que indique el nombre de dominio al que desea redirigir a los visitantes. Introduzca el nombre de dominio de su nuevo sitio WordPress.org y haga clic en el botón Ir.
Nota: La redirección del sitio es una actualización de pago y cuesta 13 $ al año. Añadirá una redirección 301, que redirige a los visitantes de tu blog WordPress.com y a los motores de búsqueda a tu nuevo sitio.
Algunos se preguntarán: ¿durante cuánto tiempo debo seguir pagando por esta característica de redirección fuera del sitio web?
La respuesta es todo el tiempo que quiera. Sin embargo, dos años sería tiempo suficiente para que tus antiguos usuarios memorizaran tu nuevo nombre de dominio.
Si va a cambiar de dominio, otra cosa que debe hacer es actualizar todas las URL de las entradas. Si alguna vez enlazaste tus entradas, esos enlaces deben ser actualizados. Puede utilizar nuestro artículo sobre cómo actualizar las URL al mover su sitio de WordPress.
Si tienes un dominio personalizado en WordPress.com, no tienes que preocuparte de nada. Simplemente cambia el registro DNS a tu alojamiento y conservarás todas las ventajas SEO.
Preguntas más frecuentes (FAQ)
Escribimos la primera versión de este artículo en enero de 2013. Desde entonces, hemos recibido montones de preguntas fantásticas. Hemos respondido a muchas de ellas por correo electrónico o en comentarios, así que hemos pensado que estaría bien recopilar las más populares en un solo lugar donde todo el mundo pueda verlas.
¿Qué ocurre con mis suscriptores de WordPress.com?
Afortunadamente, WordPress.com te permite migrar tus suscriptores con una condición. Debes utilizar su plugin Jetpack, que añade la misma funcionalidad de suscriptores que tenías en WordPress.com.
Una vez que instales y actives el plugin Jetpack, tendrás que ponerte en contacto con el equipo de WordPress.com y pedirles que migren los suscriptores por ti. Esperamos que en las versiones posteriores de Jetpack esto sea más fácil y los usuarios puedan hacerlo por sí mismos.
¿Pueden ayudarme a pasar de WordPress.com a WordPress.org de forma GRATUITA?
Por supuesto. Ofrecemos la migración desde WordPress.com como parte de nuestro servicio gratuito de instalación de blogs en WordPress. Si necesitas nuestra ayuda, sólo tienes que acceder. Es gratis 
¿Cuáles son los costes de cambiar a WordPress.org?
WordPress es gratuito. Sin embargo, existen unos costes mínimos de alojamiento web. Le recomendamos que lea este artículo sobre: ¿Por qué WordPress es gratis? ¿Cuáles son los costes y cuál es el truco?
Ya he pagado a WordPress.com. ¿Puedo obtener un reembolso?
Sí que puedes. Si has adquirido recientemente un dominio personalizado o un plan de pago de WordPress.com, puedes solicitarles un reembolso completo.
Nota: Los registros de dominio pueden cancelarse en las 48 horas siguientes al registro. Los planes y otras compras pueden cancelarse en los 30 días siguientes a la compra.
¿Se romperán mis imágenes?
No, no lo harán. Al transferir utilizando el archivo de importación, se descargan todas las imágenes adjuntas y se actualiza el enlace.
Sin embargo, hay una advertencia que hemos notado. Si la URL de tus imágenes empieza por archivos.wordpress.com, no se convertirán. Si adviertes que la URL de la imagen no ha cambiado y sigue apuntando a WordPress.com, te recomendamos que utilices el plugin de importación de imágenes externas, que se encargará de ello.
He registrado mi dominio a través de WordPress.com. Todavía puedo mover?
Pues sí. WordPress cree en la capacitación de los usuarios y en darles el control total de su contenido. Si ya tienes un nombre de dominio a través de WordPress.com, lo único que necesitas es una cuenta de alojamiento web.
Te recomendamos que lo establezcas con Bluehost o cualquiera de estos otros proveedores de alojamiento WordPress. Durante la fase de registro, se te preguntará si tienes un dominio o quieres registrar uno nuevo.
Sólo tienes que seleccionar la opción “Tengo un nombre de dominio” e introducir el dominio que registraste en WordPress.com.
Lo siguiente que tendrá que hacer es cambiar los servidores de nombre para que apunten al proveedor de alojamiento. Podemos ayudarle con esto como parte de nuestro servicio de configuración gratuito. También puede pedir soporte a su proveedor de alojamiento web.
¿Se caerá mi sitio web al cambiar?
Si lo hace correctamente, entonces NO. El método que hemos sugerido anteriormente asegurará que su sitio web nunca se caiga. Si está preocupado, sepa que estamos aquí para ayudarle. Puede utilizar nuestro servicio de configuración gratuito en cualquier momento.
¿Puedo añadir una tienda online a mi sitio web WordPress.org?
Sí, puedes añadir fácilmente una tienda online a tu sitio web WordPress.org autoalojado sin ningún coste adicional. Dado que Bluehost y otros alojamientos web populares ofrecen certificados SSL gratuitos, basta con instalar un plugin de comercio electrónico de WordPress para añadir una tienda online.
¿Cuáles son los plugins de WordPress imprescindibles que recomienda?
Ahora que ha cambiado a WordPress.org autoalojado, puede instalar tantos plugins como desee.
Aquí está nuestra selección recomendada:
- AIOSEO – para mejorar el posicionamiento SEO de su sitio web (utilizado por 3 millones de sitios).
- WPForms – para añadir un formulario de contacto inteligente en su sitio web (utilizado por 6 millones de sitios).
- SeedProd – para personalizar fácilmente sus páginas de destino con arrastrar y soltar maquetador – funciona con todos los temas de WordPress.
- MonsterInsights – para ver cómo la gente encuentra y utiliza tu sitio web. Es imprescindible para blogueros y propietarios de pequeñas empresas.
- PushEngage – para conectar con los visitantes después de que abandonen su sitio web.
- Duplicador – para crear copias de seguridad diarias de su nuevo sitio web en caso de emergencia.
- OptinMonster – para ayudarle a conseguir más suscriptores de correo electrónico y tener éxito en su viaje de blogging.
Minientrada, también te recomendamos que eches un vistazo a nuestra selección de plugins para WordPress y herramientas útiles para gestionar y hacer crecer tu blog.
Puedes instalar todos estos plugins desde tu escritorio de WordPress. Hemos creado una guía paso a paso sobre cómo instalar un plugin de WordPress.
Quiero cambiar el tema de WordPress de mi sitio, ¿puedo hacerlo?
Sí, puedes cambiar tu tema de WordPress en cualquier momento. Otra gran ventaja de cambiar a WordPress.org es que dispones de opciones de personalización adicionales y de una mayor colección de temas entre los que elegir.
En la barra lateral del administrador de WordPress, haga clic en el menú desplegable Apariencia y seleccione “Temas” para instalar un tema.
Hemos seleccionado algunos de los mejores temas para ayudar a los usuarios a evitar la parálisis de la elección. Consulta nuestra guía sobre los mejores temas gratuitos para blogs y los mejores temas polivalentes para WordPress.
También puede consultar nuestra guía sobre cómo cambiar correctamente un tema de WordPress.
Esperamos que este artículo te haya ayudado a trasladar correctamente tu blog de WordPress.com a WordPress.org. También puedes consultar nuestra lista de las cosas más importantes que debes hacer después de instalar WordPress y nuestra guía definitiva para aumentar el tráfico de tu blog.
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
Syed Balkhi says
Hey WPBeginner readers,
Did you know you can win exciting prizes by commenting on WPBeginner?
Every month, our top blog commenters will win HUGE rewards, including premium WordPress plugin licenses and cash prizes.
You can get more details about the contest from here.
Start sharing your thoughts below to stand a chance to win!
Tobias says
Hey, if we go with your discount, do they charge monthly or do I need to pay the full sum right away?
Regards
WPBeginner Support says
Unless I hear otherwise, it is a one time fee rather than monthly charges. You would want to reach out to the host for clarification
Administrador
ol says
Hi, I’m wondering if you could help. We migrated from .com to .org and followed the instructions for moving the subscribers/followers. Note, we have the domain name registered with .com.
For some reason, even after the .org site is set up, subscribers are still showing up in the .com version and not the new site. I’ve spoken to .com and they can’t figure it out. I’m wondering should we shut down the .com site completely? Move the domain name over to our new host and cut ties with the old blog? I personally feel like jetpack is getting its wires crossed. Have you ever come across this issue?
WPBeginner Support says
If you’re still getting subscribers, they could be from the WordPress.com reader if you’re not using the site redirect from WordPress.com and it is allowing them to see the old site’s posts through that method.
Administrador
scolastica says
Great Post ! Just bought my domain and registered with .com. After reading your post and all the comments I’ve decided to move before I gets traffic. I don’t want to do redirects. Will my new post be directed to the old .com ? What’s the way forward.
Thanks.
WPBeginner Support says
If you move your site to WordPress.org then the new posts would appear on your WordPress.org site rather than back on the WordPress.com site.
Administrador
ol says
should we just shut down this old wordpress.com site and transfer the domain over to the new host? do you know if that would affect anything on the new site if we did that?
WPBeginner Support says
You can certainly do that and it shouldn’t affect your new site if you remove the old site.
Rose says
would’ve been nice if you had mentioned all the name-server stuff. I have been on chat with both bluehost and wordpress for 2 hours because of all the confusion
WPBeginner Support says
Apologies for the confusion, we will certainly look to clarify it in the article.
Administrador
Researcher says
So I have a challenge or kinda a weird problem. I have a wordpress.com (e.g example.wordpress.com) site that I later upgraded to example.com still hosted at wordpress under the personal plan. Then I realized I can’t upload themes or plugins that I want. With the lack of flexibility and costs for upgrading at worpress.com, I decide to migrate to another host using (worpress.org) so that I can take advantage of what I am missing. In my wp admin, I am stuck. I don’t know why example.com/wp-admin/ is still pointing to wordpress.com instead my new wordpress.org admin. My website is now marked as “parked” and I am losing clients. I wish your guide would cover transfers of websites including example.wordpress.com and example.com, hosted at wordpress.com.
Hoping to see a reply soon.
WPBeginner Support says
For that issue, you would want to take a look at the end of step 6. You would need to change the DNS or nameservers to point to your hosting provider. If you reach out to your new host they can let you know the nameservers/DNS records to update to.
Administrador
Priscilla says
I’m new to worpress.com. I started using wordpress.com free plan and only have 7 published posts along with photos. My blog is still set to private since I’m not ready to publish the blog. I have 7 more posts in my drafts. I realized I want to monetize my blog in the future and want to use wordpress.org. I was planning on signing up with Bluehost basic plan and I can do that through here, I’d like to take advantage of your free service of exporting my content to wordpress.org. I’m so new at this, I just want to get the blog going and not have to stress over technical details! I have a domain already. Is it easy to sign up my existing domain with Bluehost? Since I’m more comfortable of using wordpress.com, is the interface similar with wordpress.org? I’m hoping it’s easy to use. Are there free layout themes I can choose from until I’m ready to purchase a theme? Thanks for your help!
WPBeginner Support says
After selecting your plan you can let BlueHost know you own a domain already, the admin interfaces in the wp-admin area are very similar, and the themes under Themes>Add New are free
Administrador
Phahli says
I am in South Africa, I want to start a blogg, a friend of mine suggested that I use wordPRESS. Can you kindly tell me the costs per month for acquiring or for using this.
WPBeginner Support says
To understand the costs of WordPress you would want to take a look at our article here: https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/why-is-wordpress-free-what-are-the-costs-what-is-the-catch/
Administrador
Rahel says
HI
I’m not sure if I have a .org or a .com site :/ if I had WordPress host my site would it then say “WordPress” in the Websitename?
WPBeginner Support says
If you purchased hosting through a host such as BlueHost then you would be a WordPress.org site. You would have a WordPress.com site if you built your site through the WordPress.com website.
Administrador
Nathan Corliss says
Hi there,
I recently migrated my site, from WordPress.com to WordPress.org using Blue Host. Thanks for giving me the confidence to do it. Great article!
I’m now having some minor acct issues – for instance, the WordPress.com app seems to override posting in my blog – my blog doesnt communicate back to the app. Do I need to stop using the app?
Jetpack is linked to my WordPress.com acct and I think that might be causing the issue. The other thing is that my /wp-admin page if giving me the option to login through WordPress.com – is this possibly related to the jet pack connection?
Is there away I can continue to publish to the free version of WordPress.com? Or should I do away with that account entirely?
Any ideas for a friend on this are appreciated.
Thanks for the help!
– Nate
WPBeginner Support says
You normally would want to recreate your site’s connection with the app to clear up errors with connecting after moving. The option to log in using WordPress.com is something added through Jetpack that you should be able to disable through Jetpack’s settings if you like.
You could continue to publish on both sites but we would normally recommend focusing on your new site if you transferred it to WordPress.org.
Administrador
Nicole says
Hi, I just got started and have nothing written or designed yet in my blog and want to transfer from wordpress.com to .org. Do I need to follow all the same steps here, or is it simpler because I have no content? Please advise. I’m a total newbie, obviously, and clueless! Thank you!
WPBeginner Support says
If you don’t have a domain name set on WordPress.com then you could set it up as if it was a brand new site. If you do have a domain name, you would need to transfer the domain or point the nameservers to the new host to see your new site.
Administrador
Dawn says
one more question?? Should I sign up with Siteground or Bluehost with the NEW domain name I want to use, and then you can help migrate the old domain from wordpress.com to the new one?? Thanks for your help!
WPBeginner Support says
You can certainly do that if you’re wanting to change your domain name
Administrador
Helen says
Hi there,
Thank you for all this wonderful information. Will this still work and is the offer still available even though I am on a premium wordpress.com site?
Thanks!
WPBeginner Support says
Yes and yes
Administrador
Dawn says
Hi there. I am wanting to move my wordpress.com site to wordpress.org. I also want to change the domain name. I currently have already purchased a new domain name thru NameCheap. I am planning to use siteground to host. If I use your link to sign up for siteground, is your migration service able to migrate to the new domain name??
Thanks so much!
WPBeginner Support says
Our migration service can certainly help you change the domain
Administrador
Jennifer says
I reciently made the same mistake as many others and purchased a subscription thru wordpress.com. I moved the church web page from Wix to WordPress but now understand that I should move to the .org version of WordPress. I transferred the domain from Wix to WordPress.com. Do I follow the same steps and move from .com to .org and will my domain name move along with it?
WPBeginner Support says
You would want to follow the steps in the article for moving the content over, for your domain if you no longer want to pay WordPress.com you would want to manually transfer the domain to your new hosting provider rather than changing the DNS/nameservers.
Administrador
Sridhar says
Hi,
I like to thank WPbeginner.com for providing this valuable information. It helped me move to self-hosted website. Good work.
However, when I did do all the export and backups (XML files) on my system and later set up new domain and imported all content, things did not work as expected. I fully respect your hard work and expertise but I do belive WordPress has changed thier systems or made some changes thats making the process difficult.
I hoped to have about 85-90% of the contents and stuff restored. However, in reality it wasn’t. I tried redoing all steps again only to find all contents (blog posts) being restoed, but the themes, layouts, etc got messed up.
Now I had two options – either I waste time researching how to restore or gradually put the missing pieces back.
Fortunately my website is just one month old so I decided to restore by redoing the themes, widgets, layouts, etc. In the process I could do some improvements too w.r. to social plugins, showing recent posts, sharing options, etc.
Given that you are an expert in this field I request your honest feedback. Please take a look at my webiste above and share your feedback on its layout, design, etc. It is a blog, but I’m working hard at curating content to make sure its of high quality and presentation-ready. I’d appreciate your thoughts on this too.
Thank you.
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Sridhar,
The WordPress importer successfully imports your content. It does not import themes, widgets, design settings, subscribers, etc. This is why after the import your new self hosted site looks different than your WordPress.com blog.
Good luck with your new site, it looks alright.
Administrador
Sridhar says
Thanks Syed for the clarification. Okay I get it – wordpress imports just the content, so the other components need to be redone anyway.
Wish you and the team a Happy New Year and good luck.
Godwin Ihagh says
Dear Admin,
I have to appreciate you for such a clear and informative post. I have been blogging on wordpress.com for almost 2 years, but want to migrate to wordpress.org.
The part of the post I got a bit confused with is “Step 4: Importing Your Blogroll Links”: Were you referring to the links some bloggers, like myself, place within and at the bottom of our articles/posts? I have never used the Links feature (on my wordpress.com blog) to store blogroll or any other links. So I would like to know the difference between placing links within/at the bottom of posts, and using the Links feature: do they go hand in hand?
One question I want to ask is: if I’m exporting my posts, will the links I placed within/at the bottom of my post be moved to together along with my posts, or do I have to follow your instructions and export blogroll (which I don’t think I have because I’ve never used it directly) in OPML format?
Thank you and regards.
WPBeginner Support says
If you were not using the links feature on WordPress.com then you won’t have to worry about setting it up on your new site. The links that were manually added at the bottom of your posts should remain
Administrador
Nikhil says
Hi,
I am using bluehost shared server. I have installed wordpress. But the problem is I am not able to import data. I can see downloaded images, but i can’t see any posts. Chorme console shows err_incomplete_chunked_encoding 200. Can you please guide me how to resolve this?
Thanks
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Nikhil,
Try the importer again. It is smart enough not to import duplicate content. If that doesn’t work, then try creating a new export file from your older install.
Administrador
Nikhil says
Hi,
I have tried this multiple time, with different browsers. Still no luck. My xml file size is around 4MB. I think it’s something related to the size. Is there any other way?
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Nikhil,
You can open the export file in a plain text editor and try to break it into two. However, to do this you will need to understand the format of the xml file.
Saba says
Hello,
To follow up on my just posted question — my website just went down! Is that because of the order of things ? I signed up with bluehost, then exported from current wordpress.com, then redirected the servers, then went immediately to wordpress.com and cancelled the premium subscription, then went back in to try and import the site but got stuck… should I have waited the 48hrs to let it re-direct?
To clarify my previous question – will I be able to get to the wp-admin area of my new wordpress.org site once 48 hrs have passed?
Thanks!
Kat says
I have followed each step and most of my content seems to have transferred, however it has been over a week and my domain name is still temporary. I have tried everything and don’t know how to move my custom domain name that I had at WP.com to my new WP.org site (powered by Bluehost). Do I need to delete my old site? Or do I need to transfer domain to a different registrar? Please can you assist so that my domain name transfers to my new site. Also, what happens to my premium WP.com plan? Will my custom domain need to be upgraded when the plan expires?
Kind wishes,
Kat
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Kat,
After you login to WordPress.com dashboard click on the ‘My Site’ link at the top left corner of the screen.
On the next page, from the left column scroll down and click on the “Domains” menu. You will see your domain name listed there. Click on it to open its settings and then click on the “Name Servers and DNS” option.
Now you will see a toggle next to “Use WordPress.com” name servers. You need to turn it off. When you do that you will see the option to add ‘Custom Name Servers’. You need to add your name servers like this:
ns1.bluehost.com
ns2.bluehost.com
After that click on the ‘Save custom name servers’ button to store your changes.
If you run into trouble at any time, please contact WordPress.com support and they will be able to help you.
As for your premium plan, you can cancel it. The domain name is yours as it is already registered for an year. When the time comes you will need to login to your WordPress.com dashboard to renew your domain name. At that time you will only pay the domain renewal fee. You can also choose to transfer the domain name to another registrar or your hosting provider.
Administrador
Saba says
Hello – following up on this same general question…
a. Are the Custom Name Server names you have listed here ‘ns1.bluehost.com’ actually the accurate ones if I have bluehost (which I do?) or these are just examples? If examples, then where do I find the server names on bluehost to re-direct my wp.com site to?
and
b. If I have re-directed the servers to bluehost correctly, where do I find the wp-admin area in my new wordpress.org site? I have been typing in ‘www.mywebsite.com/wp-admin’ and it takes me to my old wordpress.com control panel
Thanks, Saba
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Saba,
These are actual Bluehost nameservers and you can use them if your site is hosted with Bluehost
Kat says
Hello and thank you for your response and all your help!
I have done both those steps over a week ago, however when I try to open my new website, it keeps coming up with the message “A new WordPress site coming soon”.
I have checked all the steps and transferred the domain name to Bluehost, however my site is still down and has been for weeks.
Is there any way I can trouble shoot it to figure out where the problem is?
Thanks in advance for your help.
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Kat,
Please contact Bluehost support and WordPress.com support. They would be able to point you in the right direction.
Ken says
Hi, Your article tell how to move content.
What if you have custom files, plugins and themes your want moved from WordPress.com? They don’t seem to ahve an option for that and do not allow FTP access. Any thoughts on this?
Thanks
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Ken,
All plugins are also available for self-hosted WordPress.org websites. After you move your content you can install them one by one. Most WordPress.com themes are also available and you can install them and then set them up.
The importer tries to import all your attached media files. However, if it fails to import some files, then you can manually download those files from your WordPress.com dashboard.
Administrador
Kat says
Hello,
I have followed your instructions and moved my site from com to org, but it has been more than 48 hours and my new WordPress.org website is still blank with a temp domain. However all my followers and content is gone from the old .com site. Is this normal? How long should I wait for the WordPress.org site to be up and running? I had a custom domain.
Kind wishes,
Kat
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Kat,
48 Hours is enough and your site should be up by now. You need to login to your WordPress.com dashboard and see that your domain name is pointing to correct DNS nameservers of your new host.
Administrador
Kat says
Hello,
I have tried to move from .com to .org. I had a custom domain name so I was wondering if you could explain the last step to me – how do change the DNS record to my host?
Kind wishes,
Kat
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Kat,
First you need to find out the DNS nameservers used by your host. After that you will need to edit your domain settings under WordPress.com account and point your domain to your new host’s nameservers.
Administrador
Igor says
Hello guys
I’m stuck up.
I’ve got a domain registered on website wordpress.com, but I would like to move the domain to wordpress.org.
On the page is nothing at the moment, so I don’t need to export and import.
But I can’t find any informations how to move the domain from com to org.
Could you please help me? Thank you
Asmita says
I read it and tried doing this. .but I am stuck up.
I purchased Hosting from Hostgator .
I already have a domain purchased in wordpress.com .
I installed WordPress on Hostgator but it’s taking me to wordpress.com where I want wordpress.org
I created separate account in wordpress org with same domain .
I did export from wordpress com
But I don’t know how I can access dashboard in wordpress.org
Nothing working out.
I can just see my Old site
Please help
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Asmita,
You will need to point your domain name to your WordPress.org hosting provider. Please see the domains section in your WordPress.com dashboard. There you will need to edit the Nameserver settings.
Administrador
Annabel Potter says
I moved over my wordpress.com blog to .org about 4 months ago and have now set up site redirect. Thank you for your clear tutorial, should have read your blog earlier!
The permalink structure includes the date but I would like to change that to just post name. Will site redirect still work and handle this change?
Do I need to do anything to redirect new posts I’ve written and are there any other problems I should be aware of?
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Annabel,
Please contact WordPress.com support for questions about site-redirect addon. You can continue writing new blog posts on your WordPress.org website. If everything went smoothly, there shouldn’t be any issues.
Administrador
Ad van der Neut says
On September 18 I opted for your free migration service from WordPress.com to WordPress.org as part of your free WordPress blog setup service (I also took a hosting account with Blue Host). Up to now, I didn´t hear from you, not even a reply mail that you received my application and that you will get back to me a.s.a.p., within two weeks, or something like that. Is this your normal procedure or did something go wrong?
Regards, Ad
WPBeginner Support says
Hello,
Thank you for reaching out. Our team replied to your request the same day but didn’t hear back from you. Can you please check spam folder? If you cannot find the email, please drop us another message using the contact form. Our support team will try to reach out again.
Administrador
Harriet C says
Thankyou for this help (love wpbeginner) but I just have one issue and im not sure how to fix it.. I chose to only import my posts from my old wordpress.com site, which is has done, however it has not brought across the pictures on each post etc. Why is that? what can I do? many thanks
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Harriet,
You can importer again. It will not create duplicate content and may be able to import missing images.
Administrador
Justin says
I have a small question about the redirecting to the new site. If I am keeping the domain name the same and simply moving it over to Bluehost instead of wp.com, why would I need to redirect anybody? Shouldn’t my domain name be the same?
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Justin,
If you had a custom domain name, then you don’t need to redirect. However, a lot of WordPress.com users don’t have a custom domain name, those users will need to purchase site redirect to properly setup redirects.
Administrador
Marsa says
Hi! Can anyone tell me if my comments will automatically follow if I move from wordpress.com to .org? I really don’t want to lose them as my blog has been like a personal journal.
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Marsa,
Yes your comments will be moved when you transfer data from WordPress.com to WordPress.org
Administrador
Cammi says
I’m trying to migrate my blog from wordpress.com to wordpress.org, and after I run the importer then try to import my content, I get an error saying that it doesn’t appear to be a WXR file? I have no idea what that means and have had no luck finding answers. Can you help?
Courtney says
Hi Cammi. I realize you posted about a month ago, but I am just now doing this myself & wanted to offer some insight…
I was also receiving the same error. When you downloaded the file from WordPress.com, it was a zipped file, you have to extract it in order to import it into WordPress.org
I hope this helps!
Andrea says
Hi I have a personal plan with WP so I have a custom domain. I am now planning to migrate to Bluehost to start monetize. According to Bluehost they only deal with .org accounts, does that mean I would need to have it transferred to a .org account first, if I do that will I still be billed for my custom domain? Thank you!
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Andrea,
Bluehost meant WordPress.org not just the .org which is a popular domain name extension used by millions of websites. If you have custom domain on WordPress.com (regardless of what domain extension you are using) you can move it to Bluehost and start using WordPress.org.
Administrador
Mario Manlupig Jr says
I went through the post and it’s very helpful. I need a little help with mine, though. I might sound a little stupid but just to be sure before I transfer my domain
I have a Bluehost-hosted site and it runs on WordPress.com. I wanted to transfer it to WordPress.org. I’ll use the same domain name. Would that be fine?
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Mario,
We are not sure we understand your question, but we will try to answer it.
You can keep a domain on WordPress.com and still have a WordPress.org website on Bluehost using the same domain name.
Administrador
Dave Mount says
Apologies if this is covered elsewhere, but I didn’t see it in a search.
I transferred my WordPress.com blog to Bluehost, and it has finally propagated. I had my own domain on the .com version, and it’s staying the same for the new version. So the url for the two blogs is the same.
Is it enough to make the .com version of the blog private, or should I actually delete it? Some folks online recommend the latter, saying it can affect SEO.
Thanks!
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Dave,
Once you have moved your website and pointed your domain to your new Bluehost website, you can make it private.
Administrador
Dave Mount says
Just wondering how long it usually takes for a migrated blog to “propagate” to Bluehost. I did the migration about an hour ago. It seemed to go smoothly (thanks!) but I still have a “temp.domains” url.
The WP blog I migrated already had its own domain name.
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Dave,
DNS changes can take upto 48 hours to propagate across the internet.
Administrador
Dave Mount says
Okay, I’ll be patient. Thanks for the quick response!
Dave Mount says
I came across this Help page in Bluehost about how, when migrating a domain you already own, you need to point the name servers to Bluehost manually:
My domain is currently registered with WP, and I just went in and changed the name servers. Should I have? And it sounds like now I’ll have to wait another 48 hours, potentially?
If this is correct, it might be worth adding to your instructions, although maybe it’s in there somewhere and I just missed it.
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Dave,
This time to update servers is an estimate, normally your domain will start pointing to Bluehost way earlier. During this time your domain will still show your old WordPress.com site in regions where your DNS has not propagated yet.
Christopher says
i have three Questions
(1) pls can I ask for a refund from WordPress. com and then register for the WordPress. org.
(2) since my domain registration is more than 48hrs in WordPress with no refund can I still use it to register for WordPress. org.
(3) and pls which is more easier, is it to switch from WordPress. com to WordPress. org OR to ask for refund and start a fresh registration under WordPress. org Since I registered my site a week ago and I have more than 3,000 visitors with just three posts.
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Christopher,
The domain you registered is yours and you can point it to any self-hosted WordPress.org website without migrating it.
If you purchased WordPress.com premium plan, then you can request a refund. Please contact WordPress.com support for details.
If your website is already getting traffic, then it would be best to properly transfer your website so that you don’t lose traffic.
Administrador
Roger McCartney says
I am still waiting a reply. Since it does not show my question I will ask it again.
When I go to tools at wordpress.com and click Export, it does not give me the option for an XML file. It appears to be a Zip file but I do not know where it goes. All I am trying to do is transfer my blog from WordPress.com to WordPress.org.
Please help!
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Roger,
You can download the ZIP file and extract it on your computer by right clicking on the file and then select extract. Inside, you will find one or more XML files. These files contain your WordPress.com data and you will need to import them on your new WordPress.org website.
Administrador
Jenn M says
Hi, thank you so much for this article! For some reason when I do the import, when complete, it directs me to my blog page and it just tells me the page is not found. There are other posts however so it’s the correct page and there’s a page customized…
Mary Beth says
Hello,
I want to change from wordpress.com to wordpress.org. However, I have a domain and hosting through bluehost…If I make the switch, will my custom theme and all posts switch over fine? Thank you!
Chisom Vincent says
Thanks a lot for the tip. I’m actually on a free hosting on WordPress.com and would love to migrate to. org.
I have a domain name but not gotten a hosting site so how do o go about it. Do I register with bluehost before migrating Or I can migrate before hosting with bluehost.
and what are the costs of self hosting on WordPress.org
thanks
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Chisom,
You can sign up for hosting and add your domain name later. You can point your existing domain name to your new hosting account on Bluehost. After that, you can go ahead and migrate your free WordPress.com website.
Administrador
Navpreet says
Hey I wish to move my account from .com to.org. and i want you to do.it for me.please assist
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Navpreet,
Please see our free blog set up service for details.
Administrador
Mairon says
Hi! Thank you for the useful information. I followed your instructions and installed WP in a wordpress sudbirectory in my Godaddy hosting.
When I run the importer I get this error message: Before you can upload your import file, you will need to fix the following error:
Unable to create directory uploads/2018/05. Is its parent directory writable by the server?
Would you be able to tell me what’s going on? Thanks in advance
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Mairon,
It seems that your subdirectory does not have correct permissions for the wp-content folder. Please see our article on how to fix file and folder permissions error in WordPress
Administrador
Chloe says
I’m having trouble doing this using my ipad! I have exported my .com site, purchased the domain via godaddy and now need to move it across- however I seem to be blocked at actually making the .org site at all as the app constantly redirects me to my original version! Because I have the same email address, trying to make a new account is taking me in circles and I’m having to do deep calming breaths to not throw the whole thing out the window…. any advice? Do I need to find a computer and install the WordPress software to get started?
Jake Doran says
I need some help setting up my wordpress.ORG site. I purchased a domain from wordpress.COM and transferred it to a self-hosting site and installed wordpress.ORG. However, when I try to access my domain I get sent back to wordpress.COM instead of being able to create a wordpress.ORG site?
Really need to sort this out. Is there any way to fix this or do I need a new domain name…?
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Jake,
You need to change your domain name settings. Login to your WordPress.com account and go to the Domains page. For more help please contact WordPress.com support.
Administrador
Donna says
Is there a more simplified way to this? I’m trying to read each instruction, open up separate screens and desktop and do what instructions say. I’m confused on all this. Is there no short-cut version of these instructions? I only want to change from .com to .org.
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Donna,
You can take advantage of our free blog set up offer.
Administrador
Ilal jude says
Hi. I want to move to self hosted. But I want to ask if I should migrate first before designing my blog to my taste. Thanks.
WPBeginner Support says
Hello,
It is up to you, you can migrate your site and then work on the design or you can first set up your design and then import your .com content.
Administrador
Mandy Naglich says
Ok I feel like a dumb dumb here. BUT i will ask anyway. So I started on wordpress.com bought a couple domains etc. But I haven’t even posted yet because I realized I should be on .org. SO I got an account with siteground and transferred my account. Now I realize I’m just on site ground but still with a .com (somehow!?) do I need to delete wordpress from my siteground account and re-install? Or delete my whole site? I’m so confused!
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Mandy,
You will need to visit your WordPress.com account and under your domain settings change DNS settings and point them to SiteGround. Please contact SiteGround or WordPress.com support and they will help you point your domain to your new hosting provider.
Administrador
Denise says
Thank you for all of this valuable information! What if my domain name is hosted by WordPress.com? Do I cancel and get a new host like Bluehost? Or is there a way to keep it as is (on WP.com)?
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Denise,
If it is a custom domain name (like wpbeginner.com) then you can use it on Bluehost.
If it is a WordPress.com domain name (like example.wordpress.com), then no you cannot bring it to self-hosted WordPress.org website.
Administrador
Denise says
Thank you for letting me know. Do I have to cancel my custom domain with WordPress before I sign-up with Bluehost? Or is there an option to transfer it over during the migration process?
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Denise,
You can transfer your domain and you can also keep it on WordPress.com and simply point it to your Bluehost servers.
chris edozie says
Wow….
I will surely purchase a new domain name from Bluehost following your guides
I have one question though, can I equally export my free WordPress.com site to WordPress.Org or is it possible with a paid WordPress.com site?
.
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Chris,
You can export your free WordPress.com site.
Administrador
Awomojure Oluwaseyi says
Dear Sir,
I need your professional help, initially when i developed my blog in wordpress, it was on free plan and the domain name was . i later bought domain name from godaddy which was and also upgraded to personal plan on wordpress. But i noticed that i could not add new theme nor able to install plugins accept i upgrade to Business plan and the money involved is huge. So, i decided to purchase Godaddy hosting plan and installed wordpress on their server may be having access to Cpanel will enable me to upload themes and plugins either through FTP or File Manager but i noticed that after several attempts to upload those files even the original theme files that has Styles.css, it never appeared in the dashboard>Appearance>theme. I became worried until i come across your content that being in wordpress.com can not give access to any of these features until one migrates to wordpress.org.
So, with my already hosted wordpress.com site by Godaddy, I want to migrate to wordpress.org to be able to develop the site. How can you assist me on me this?
Mansa says
Hi… I followed all the steps from your wonderful article to export my content from wordpress.com and import to self hosted site. First I got an error on importing. So I retried it but then I got an error that those files already exist. But I dont see them anywhere. No pages or posts or media files. What am doing wrong?