How to Move GoDaddy Website Builder Site to WordPress

“I’m stuck with GoDaddy’s Website Builder and can’t grow my business.” That’s something we hear from small business owners almost every week.

We know exactly how that feels — struggling with limited features, rigid design options, and no real way to scale.

Since then, we’ve helped hundreds of businesses move from GoDaddy Website Builder to WordPress. With the right approach, this transition doesn’t have to be complicated or risky.

In this step-by-step guide, we’ll show you how to move your GoDaddy site to WordPress without losing content or confusing your visitors.

Whether you’re a complete beginner or somewhat tech-savvy, you’ll find everything you need to make the switch smoothly.

Note: This article has many manual steps, which can be time-consuming depending on the size of your website. There is no export tool to move your site from GoDaddy Website Builder, so just be aware that the process can be pretty complicated.

Step 0: Getting Started

GoDaddy’s Website Builder and WordPress use completely different systems. That means you can’t install WordPress on the same plan you’re currently using — you’ll need a new hosting account to make the switch.

If you already have GoDaddy’s regular hosting (not Website Builder), then yes, you can use it for your WordPress site. But if you’re starting fresh or moving away from GoDaddy altogether, we recommend choosing a better WordPress hosting provider that makes WordPress easier to manage.

We’ve helped thousands of beginners set up their WordPress sites using Bluehost. It’s one of the most beginner-friendly options out there and comes with WordPress pre-installed, so you don’t have to worry about technical setup.

They’re also offering WPBeginner readers a generous discount — starting at just $1.99/month — plus a free domain name and SSL certificate. That’s helpful if you’re ready to move your site to a new URL too.

Now that you’ve picked your hosting plan, let’s walk through the steps to move your site from GoDaddy Website Builder to WordPress.

Here is an overview of the steps you’ll take to switch from GoDaddy Website Builder to WordPress:

Step 1: Save Your Content and URLs from GoDaddy Website Builder

One thing we appreciate about WordPress is how flexible it is. It supports a variety of tools that make it easier to move content from other platforms.

There are importers available for services like Blogger, Tumblr, LiveJournal, and even for moving from platforms like Weebly or Shopify.

But when it comes to GoDaddy Website Builder, there’s no automated importer. That means we need to take the manual route.

It might take a bit more time, especially if you have lots of content. But we’ve helped people do this before, and we’ll walk you through it step by step.

Backing Up GoDaddy Website Builder Content

Since GoDaddy doesn’t offer export tools, you’ll need to save everything manually to your computer.

Option 1. Download Images and Content Manually

If your site has just a few pages, this is the easiest option. You can save each image and copy the text into text files.

To save an image, right-click on it and choose ‘Save image as…’

Do this for each image you want to move to WordPress.

For text, just highlight the content and copy it. You can paste it into a text file or Word document.

Another method is to open each page in your browser and press CTRL+S (Command+S on Mac).

Select ‘Webpage, Complete’ as the format when saving. This will grab images and text together.

Repeat for every page. It takes a bit of time, but it works.

Once you’ve saved everything, disconnect from the internet and open the files to double-check them.

Option 2. Download All Pages Using HTTrack

HTTrack is a free website copier tool for Windows. It lets you download an entire website to your computer.

It works well for text-heavy sites, but GoDaddy hosts images on CDNs, which makes them harder to grab using HTTrack.

If your site doesn’t rely heavily on images, this option can save you a lot of time.

Don’t have a Windows PC? You can use a friend’s computer and then transfer the files to your own using a USB or cloud storage.

Once HTTrack is installed, start a new project. Choose a name and pick a folder to save your website.

Click ‘Next,’ then click ‘Add URL’ and enter your website address (like https://yourdomain.com).

Click ‘Next’ again to start the download process.

When it’s done, HTTrack will show a confirmation message.

You can then click ‘Browse Mirrored Website’ to view your downloaded site.

Note: Be sure to double-check that you’ve copied everything. Once GoDaddy Website Builder is turned off, you won’t be able to access your old site.

This part might feel a bit tedious, but it’s worth doing carefully.

GoDaddy doesn’t make this easy for a reason. But you’re choosing freedom by switching to WordPress, and that’s a smart move.

Backing Up Your Link Structure

You’ll also want to save your site’s URL structure. This helps you set up redirects later so visitors don’t land on broken pages.

If your site is small, you can copy each page URL and save it in a text file.

For larger sites, use a tool like Link Klipper for Chrome to extract and save all URLs at once.

Don’t worry if you miss one or two pages. We’ll show you how to catch missing pages using WordPress 404 tracking tools later in the guide.

Step 2: Set Up GoDaddy Hosting for Your WordPress Site

This step is only for users who plan to use GoDaddy’s hosting service for their WordPress website.

If you’re using a different host like Bluehost, SiteGround, or Hostinger, you can skip ahead to the next step.

Disable GoDaddy Website Builder

To install WordPress on your domain, you’ll first need to turn off the GoDaddy Website Builder.

Log into your GoDaddy account. Click on the ‘My Products’ tab under your username.

You’ll see your website listed under the Products section.

Click the three-dot menu next to your site. Then select ‘Edit your plan.’

This opens a popup with your Website Builder options.

Go to the ‘Overview’ tab and look for a link to cancel your account.

Once you cancel the Website Builder plan, your domain will be free to use for WordPress.

This process may take up to an hour before everything is fully deactivated.

Adding Hosting to Your Domain

Now that your domain is available, you need to assign hosting to it.

From your GoDaddy dashboard, click ‘Web Hosting’ under Account Manager. Then click the ‘Manage’ button next to your hosting account.

This will take you to your hosting account’s cPanel dashboard.

Scroll down to the Domains section and click on ‘Addon Domains.’

Enter your domain name in the provided field.

The system will fill in the subdomain and document root automatically.

Make sure to check the option to create an FTP account. Set a username and password for it, then click the ‘Add Domain’ button.

That’s it! You’ve disconnected your domain from Website Builder and added hosting for your new WordPress site.

You can now jump to Step 4 to learn how to install WordPress and continue the migration.

Step 3: Point Your GoDaddy Domain to a Different WordPress Host

This step is for you if your domain is registered with GoDaddy, but you’re hosting your WordPress site elsewhere. That could be Bluehost, SiteGround, or another provider.

To get started, log into your GoDaddy account. Click on ‘My Products’ under your username in the top-right corner.

On the products page, find your domain name. Then click the three-dot menu next to it.

Select ‘Manage DNS’ from the dropdown menu.

Scroll down to the ‘Nameservers’ section. Click the ‘Update’ button next to it.

This is where you’ll point your domain to your WordPress hosting account.

When the popup appears, click the link that says ‘Enter my own nameservers.’

Your hosting provider will give you two nameservers. They look something like ns1.bluehost.com and ns2.bluehost.com.

Enter both nameservers into the fields provided.

Click the ‘Save’ button when you’re done. That tells GoDaddy to start pointing your domain to your new host.

DNS changes usually go live in a few hours. In some cases, they can take up to 24 hours to fully update across the internet.

Once your domain is pointing to your new WordPress host, you’re ready to move on to the next step.

Step 4: Installing WordPress

At this point, your domain should now be connected to your hosting account. You’re finally ready to install WordPress!

Whether you’re using GoDaddy, Bluehost, or another host, the installation process is basically the same.

WordPress is known for its famous 5-minute install. And most hosting providers make it even easier with one-click installers built right into your hosting dashboard.

If it’s your first time or you’d just like some guidance, we’ve put together a full step-by-step WordPress installation tutorial for beginners.

Step 5: Add Your GoDaddy Website Content to WordPress

As we mentioned earlier, GoDaddy Website Builder doesn’t offer an export option. So there’s no automatic way to import your content into WordPress.

This means you’ll be adding your content manually. We’ve done this for several sites before, and once you get the hang of it, it’s a long but smooth process.

WordPress uses two main types of content: posts and pages. If you’re not sure which to use, here’s a quick guide on the difference between posts and pages.

Now, go ahead and create new pages or posts inside WordPress. Then copy and paste your content from your old GoDaddy site into each one.

Adding content in WordPress is beginner-friendly. You will see an intuitive editor with an add (+) button to insert different content element blocks like images, lists, columns, tables, and more.

If you’re new to it, check out our tutorial on how to add a new post in WordPress and explore all the built-in features.

You can copy and paste the content you saved from your GoDaddy website. Don’t worry about appearance at the moment, you can always customize it later.

Once you have added content for all the pages and posts, you can move on to the next step.

Step 6: Setting up Redirects

If you have the list of links from the old website builder site, then you can go right ahead and set up redirects.

We’ll show you two methods to set up redirects, and you can choose one that suits you.

Method 1. Set up Redirects Using All in One SEO (Recommended)

This method is recommended as it is more flexible and user-friendly.

For this method, we’ll be using All in One SEO for WordPress.

It is the best WordPress SEO plugin on the market and allows you to easily improve your website SEO to get more traffic from search engines.

First, install and activate the All in One SEO for WordPress plugin. For more details, see our step-by-step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon activation, you will see the setup wizard, which will walk you through the initial setup. Simply follow the on-screen instructions to continue.

Next, you need to visit the All in One SEO » Redirects page to set up redirects.

Simply enter the old URL under the ‘Source URL’ field and the new URL of that page in the ‘Target URL’ field.

Click on the ‘Save’ button to add this redirect.

Repeat the process to add redirects for all other links, and then visit the old URLs to make sure that they are redirecting properly to the new URL on your WordPress website.

AIOSEO’s ‘Redirect Manager’ also lets you track how many times your old link is redirected to your new one, which can help you keep track of your traffic sources.

Method 2. Set up Redirects Using Simple 301 Redirects

For this method, we will be using a free WordPress plugin with fewer features, but it will get the job done.

The first thing you need to do is install and activate the Simple 301 Redirects plugin. For more details, see our step-by-step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon activation, you need to visit the Settings » 301 Redirects page. Enter your old URL under the ‘Request’ field and enter the new WordPress URL for that page in the ‘Destination’ field.

Click on the ‘Save changes’ button to store this redirect. Repeat the process for all other URLs.

For more detailed instructions and other ways to set up redirects, take a look at our beginner’s guide to creating redirects in WordPress.

Step 7: Customizing Your WordPress Site

WordPress comes with thousands of beautiful themes, both paid and free. Take a look at our guide on selecting the perfect theme for WordPress.

However, the most powerful feature of WordPress is its extensibility, which comes from plugins. There are thousands of WordPress plugins that allow you to do almost anything imaginable.

Take a look at all the plugins we are using on this site in WPBeginner’s Blueprint, or see our expert pick of must-have WordPress plugins for business websites.

🎁 Bonus: Useful Resources for Your New WordPress Site

Now that you’ve moved your site to WordPress, it’s time to make the most of everything it has to offer. Here are some helpful guides to get you started on the right foot.

• Must-Have WordPress Plugins for Business Websites – The real power of WordPress comes from its massive library of plugins. Think of them like apps that add new features to your website.
• Best Free WordPress Business Themes – Want a fresh new look? Here are some of our favorite free themes that work great for business sites.
• Ultimate WordPress SEO Guide for Beginners – Many users switch from GoDaddy due to SEO limitations. Now that you’re on WordPress, use this guide to boost your search rankings.
• The Ultimate WordPress Security Guide – WordPress is secure out of the box, but this step-by-step guide will help you lock things down even more.

These tutorials will help you build a site that’s faster, more secure, and optimized for growth. We’ve used them ourselves to train thousands of new WordPress users.

We hope this article helped you move your GoDaddy Website Builder site to WordPress. You may also want to see our comparison of the best drag-and-drop page builders for WordPress to build your new website or our guide on how to create an email newsletter the right way.

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