If you have already connected your domain to your WordPress.com site, you can transfer the registration without interrupting your domain connection. This guide will show you how to transfer your domain registration to WordPress.com to manage your site and domain in the same place.
In this guide
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Ask our AI assistantWhen adding a domain to your WordPress.com site, you can choose to connect it (the domain remains registered at another company but displays your WordPress.com site) or transfer it (the domain registration moves from the other company to WordPress.com). Learn more about the differences between connecting and transferring a domain.
If you connected the domain, you can now safely transfer the registration to your WordPress.com account so that all settings (including billing) will be managed in your WordPress.com account. The domain will no longer be associated with the other company (known as the ‘registrar’) after transferring it.
When transferring your connected domain to WordPress.com, keep the following in mind:
- Domain registration transfers typically take 5–7 days.
- Your domain will remain connected while the registration transfer is in progress, and visitors to your site will not experience any interruption.
- Your domain must be eligible for transfer.
- Upon completion of the transfer to WordPress.com, your domain will receive privacy protection free of charge.
- Do not cancel your domain registration at any point in this process. Your current provider will remove it automatically after the transfer to WordPress.com is done.
To transfer your connected domain’s registration to WordPress.com, follow these steps:
- Visit your site’s dashboard.
- Navigate to Upgrades → Domains (or Hosting → Domains if using WP Admin).
- Click the ⋮ icon next to your domain and select the “Transfer to WordPress.com” option:
- Click the “Start setup” button to confirm that you wish to begin transferring your domain from another provider to WordPress.com.
- Next, log into your account on your domain registrar’s website to take the following actions:
- Unlock your domain: Domain providers lock a domain as a security measure to prevent unauthorized changes like transfers. This is typically referred to as a registrar lock or transfer lock.
- Obtain a transfer code: This code is commonly known as an EPP code, but your domain provider might also refer to it as a transfer code, authorization key, or auth code.
Instructions for common domain providers (click to reveal)
These guides from popular domain companies will show you how to unlock your domain and obtain the transfer code:
If you don’t know where your domain is registered, look it up in the Site Profiler.
- Back on WordPress.com, enter the domain authorization code you received from your domain provider. The code is case-sensitive, so take care to copy and paste rather than type the code manually. Make sure no additional spaces are being added.
- Click the “Check readiness for transfer” button to validate the authorization code and ensure your domain is eligible for transfer to WordPress.com.
- On the checkout screen, verify your contact information and provide payment details. You will not be charged if you are entitled to a free domain (included with any annual plan).
Your current registrar may email your domain’s contact email address within 24 hours of initiating the transfer from your current provider. Check these emails, as some registrars may require you to click a confirmation link in the email to approve or expedite the transfer to WordPress.com.
At this point, your domain transfer to WordPress.com is now in progress and should be completed in five to seven days. When the transfer to WordPress.com is completed, your domain’s expiry date will be extended by an additional year (even if you recently renewed your domain).
You will also receive an email from WordPress.com when the transfer to WordPress.com completes or fails.
To check the status of your domain transfer to WordPress.com, visit your WordPress.com dashboard and navigate to Upgrades → Domains (or Hosting → Domains if using WP Admin). Your domain will be listed here, displaying the current status of the domain transfer.
