confirming migration and bandwith before purchasing Premium package

  • Unknown's avatar
    chaindlkcom · Member ·

    Hello,

    I would like to purchase the PREMIUM PACKAGE and host my currently self-hosted WP site on WordPress.com.

    I have 3 questions:

    1. the page https://wordpress.com/support/import/import-an-entire-wordpress-site/ says you provide free migration. Is this correct and true for the Premium pacakge? and what info do you need to do the migration?
    2. I own my domain and pay for my own hosting. Can I keep the domain where it is and point the DNS to WordPress.com so that I can host my Premium pacakge wtih you but keep the domain name with its current registar? or is there an advantage to moving the domain name to WordPress.com? And if so how much does it cost to move the domain name and how much extra per month or year will it be to renew the domain?
    3. the page https://wordpress.com/business/ says that bandwidth is unlimited – is this correct and true for the Premium package or is the bandwidth limited on the Premium package?

    thank you

  • angeloflores1056 · Staff ·

    Hello!

    Thank you so much for reaching out and for your interest in moving your site to WordPress.com. We would love to have you join our community!

    To help you make the best decision for your website, here are the answers to your three questions:

    1. Free Migration on the Premium Package

    Yes, that is absolutely correct! We offer one free automated migration for our Premium, Business, and Commerce plans.

    What we need to get started: Our automated tool makes this very simple. You won’t need to send us files manually. Instead, you will just need to provide:

    • Your current site’s URL.
    • Your current site’s WP-Admin username and password.
    • The SSH or FTP credentials from your current host (this helps ensure a smooth transfer of all your content and media).

    2. Domain Management: Keeping vs. Moving your Domain

    You can certainly keep your domain with your current registrar! This is called Domain Mapping. You simply point your DNS records to WordPress.com, and your site will load under your domain while being hosted by us.

    Is there an advantage to moving (transferring) the domain to us? The main advantage is simplicity. Having your hosting and domain billing in one place makes management easier. Additionally, most of our annual plans include a free domain credit for one year, which can be used to cover the cost of a domain transfer or a new registration.

    Costs:

    • To move (Transfer): If you have an annual plan, the first year of the transfer is often covered by your free domain credit. If not, the cost depends on the domain extension (e.g., .com, .net, .org).
    • Renewal: Renewal prices are very competitive (typically $18–$20/year for a .com). We do not charge extra monthly fees for domains; it is a once-a-year registration fee.

    3. Bandwidth on the Premium Package

    You’ll be happy to hear that bandwidth is unmetered (unlimited) on the Premium package, just like it is on our Business plan.

    Whether you are on the Premium or Business plan, we do not charge you based on how much traffic you receive or how much data your visitors consume. The main difference between the plans regarding “size” is the Storage Space (the Premium plan currently offers 13GB of storage for your files and media, while Business offers 50GB).How to get started:

    1. Purchase the Premium Plan: You can do this through your WordPress.com dashboard.
    2. Start the Migration: Once purchased, go to Tools → Import and select the “WordPress” option to begin the automated migration.
    3. Connect your Domain: Go to Upgrades → Domains to add your existing domain name. Our system will then provide you with the Name Servers to update at your current registrar.

    If you run into any hitches during the migration, our Happiness Engineers are standing by to help you every step of the way!

    We look forward to seeing your site live on WordPress.com!

  • Unknown's avatar
    chaindlkcom · Member ·

    Thank you for your thoughtful and detailed answers to my questions.

    My only 5 follow up questions are:

    1. how long does the migration take and what if there re issues with the migration?
    2. will we have FTP and cPanel access to our Premium package hosting plan or is this plan ONLY for wordpress backend access?
    3. we currently use a mixture of forwarding emails and pop3/impa emails, will those be transfered as well or do we loose the email inboxes?
    4. if I purchase the Premium Package and I run out of the 13Gb of space, can I buy extra space without having to move to the Business plan?
    5. if I purchase the Premium Package with unlimited bandwidth, is there ANY kind of throttling, bandwidth limitaton or other limitation applied to the site?
  • angeloflores1056 · Staff ·

    Hello!

    It’s great to hear back from you. Those are excellent follow-up questions. Transitioning from a self-hosted environment to a managed platform like ours does involve a few changes in how you manage the “under the hood” aspects of your site.

    Here is the breakdown of how those features work here:

    1. Migration Timeframe & Support

    • Timing: Most automated migrations take anywhere from 30 minutes to a few hours, depending on the size of your database and media library.
    • Troubleshooting: If the automated tool encounters an error, don’t worry. You can find comprehensive troubleshooting steps in our Migration Support Guide. If you get stuck, our Happiness Engineers are available to help guide you through the process.

    2. FTP and cPanel Access

    • The Experience: WordPress.com is a managed hosting environment, so we don’t use cPanel. We provide a streamlined dashboard for all your site management needs.
    • Access Levels: The Premium Plan is designed for users who want to manage everything through the WordPress admin dashboard. It does not include SFTP or Database access.
    • Power Users: If you require SFTP or direct database access to manage your files, you may want to consider the Business Plan, which is our first tier that unlocks those specific developer tools.

    3. Email Accounts and Inboxes

    • What is moved: Our migration tool focuses specifically on your website content (posts, pages, media). It does not migrate email inboxes or existing messages.
    • Keeping your Email: Since you are keeping your domain with your current registrar, your email service can stay exactly where it is! You just need to ensure your MX records remain pointed to your current email provider when you update your DNS to point the website to us.

    4. Storage Limits

    • Plan Limits: The 13GB of storage on the Premium plan is fixed. We do not offer “add-on” storage space as a separate purchase.
    • Scaling Up: If you find you need more than 13GB, you can upgrade your plan to the Business tier at any time, which provides 50GB of storage.

    5. Bandwidth and Performance

    • No Throttling: We do not throttle your site or apply “hidden” limits based on traffic. Whether you have 100 visitors or 100,000, our infrastructure is built to scale automatically to handle the load.
    • Unmetered: Your bandwidth is truly unmetered. We want your site to be as successful and high-traffic as possible without you having to worry about overage charges or performance dips.

    For a step-by-step walkthrough on any of these topics, our Support Documentation is a fantastic resource to have open while you perform your migration.

    We’re excited to see your site up and running here!

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