This post is going to show you exactly how to transfer your website from Bluehost to Siteground. As you may already know, Bluehost is a web hosting platform I definitely would not recommend. I’ve already made the problems with Bluehost well known so I’ll save you a long rant.
If you’re reading this, then maybe you’re fed up with Bluehost’s slow loading times and couldn’t-care-less customer service. The good news is that there’s a better way! Siteground is fantastic if you’re looking for a web hosting company that provides high-quality service and actually treats you like a person. I love Siteground so much I want to shout it from the rooftops. Let me show you exactly how to put your Bluehost nightmare behind you and transfer to Siteground today.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links as explained in my disclosure policy.
Why switch from Bluehost to Siteground?
Before we jump in, I want to show you why you’re making a great decision by switching to Siteground. Let’s take a look at what makes Siteground so amazing for web hosting.
Regular customers love Siteground
Siteground is consistently ranked #1 by regular consumers, the people you should paying attention to when shopping for a web host. Bloggers, including myself, get paid to promote web hosting services, so don’t just take our word for it. Web developers, small business owners, and online entrepreneurs overwhelming rank Siteground as the number 1 web hosting company. I did some digging on Facebook to learn about business owner’s preferred web host. Here’s what I found:
Siteground’s customer service will give you peace of mind
After dealing with Bluehost’s apathetic customer service, it was refreshing to find that Siteground actually cared about me as a customer! I’ve contacted Siteground support several times, and it has never taken more than one minute to get a hold of someone. Siteground offers both chat and phone support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The customer service reps are well-trained, professional, and….gasp…friendly!
Siteground’s security will protect your site from malware
Every week, I receive an email from Siteground with an update on my website’s security status. If there’s any malware on your site, they will send you a warning immediately. So far, almost all my weekly security scans have been problem-free. I received a malware warning about a week ago after I installed some corrupted code. Of course, Siteground helped me resolve the issue instantly. Siteground takes security seriously and goes above and beyond to keep your site secure! This, too, will give you so much peace of mind!
Siteground’s speed can boost your Google rankings
Did you know that your site’s speed affects your SEO? Yup, Google has indicated that site speed is one of the factors they use to determine how to rank your posts. At the end of the day, Google wants to provide users with a great experience. That means relevant content that they can access quickly. if you have a fast site, then Google’s bots can crawl and index your site quickly. That way, your posts will show up in search results sooner. If it takes forever for your pages to load, then Google’s bots will crawl fewer pages. All your hard work may not even show up on search results! Take a look below at how Siteground stacks up against other web hosts when it comes to loading times.
Let’s do a quick Bluehost vs Siteground comparison
Webhostinggeeks.com collects verified customer reviews and rates web hosting services on five criteria: user-friendliness, price, reliability, tech support, and software. Out of 748 reviewers, 57% gave Bluehost 1 or 2 stars. On the flip side, only 22% gave it 4 or 5 stars. Let that process for a minute. Almost 60% of customers were dissatisfied with Bluehost!
On the flipside, 788 customers rated Siteground on the same five categories as Bluehost. Here are the results: 92% gave Siteground 4 or 5 stars while only 4.5% gave it 1 or 2 stars. More than 90% of customers are satisfied with Siteground!
Here’s a side by side comparison of Bluehost and Siteground. The numbers don’t lie: Siteground is light years ahead of Bluehost in every single category.
The ugly truth about Bluehost
Why is Bluehost still in business with so many crappy reviews and dissatisfied customers? You see, top bloggers with massive audiences recommend Bluehost constantly. That’s how I fell for their trap in the first place. The truth is that Bluehost pays massive commissions to its affiliates – up to $200/sale in some cases. Bloggers aren’t necessarily recommending Bluehost because they think it is amazing. Many Bluehost recommenders don’t even use Bluehost! They’re in the business of making money and Bluehost is a major cash earner. Now, I’m not saying that every blogger who recommends Bluehost is a greedy schemer. I just want you to do your research and choose your web host wisely. Don’t just assume that if an experienced blogger recommends something, then it must be good.
Now let’s go over exactly how to switch from Bluehost to Siteground and take advantage of the superior service.
How to switch from Bluehost to Siteground
Here are the two simple steps to register for Siteground and securely migrate all your content from Bluehost. Signing up for Siteground is easy and quick.
Step 1: Create your Siteground account
Head over to Siteground and create your account by filling out basic details. There are three simple steps to create your account: choose a plan, choose a domain, and review/complete. Let’s go over them one by one.
1. Choose your hosting plan
Siteground offers three hosting plans. I currently use the GrowBig plan and think it’s the best value for your money if you’ve been blogging for 1 year or more. If you’re still a brand new blogger, you can go with the StartUp plan and then upgrade as you grow. Here’s a breakdown of the three plans and what they come with:
2. Choose your domain
Since you already have a domain, you won’t need to register a new one. Just select ‘I already have a domain’ as seen below. Then enter your domain name in the box provided.
3. Review and complete
This is the section where you’ll enter your personal and billing information. After that, you will have a hosting plan on Siteground ready to go.
Step 2: Generate a Migration Token to start the site transfer process
Once you have signed up for a Siteground hosting plan, you will need to migrate your site from Bluehost to Siteground servers. It’s like moving into a new house. You have to pack up your belongings and transfer them to your new address.
Siteground has implemented a new process to transfer your site seamlessly. It starts generating a migration token, a code that tells Siteground’s systems what folders and files need to be moved. You can generate a migration token when you log into your Siteground dashboard. There will be two options ‘Create New Website’ and ‘Migrate Website.’ You want to choose the latter.
Next, select ‘WordPress Automigration.’ This will prompt Siteground to create a unique Migration token for your transfer, which you will use in the next step. The migration token will look something like this:
Step 3: Finish up with Siteground’s WordPress Automatic Migrator plugin
The last step of the process is to install the Siteground Migrator plugin in the WordPress site you’re looking to transfer. Search for ‘Siteground Migrator’ under plugins and it should come up.
After the plugin has been activated, you will paste the token into the space provided and click the orange button that says ‘Initiate Transfer.’
That’s it. Siteground will automatically move your files over and notify you when the process is complete.
Should you have any questions along the way, you can easily contact Siteground’s support, which is available 24/7. I hope you’ve seen that switching to Siteground is ridiculously easy. It’s time to upgrade your web host for better customer service, faster speed, and greater peace of mind. Stop letting Bluehost nickel and dime you for crappy service!
If you have any questions about switching from Bluehost to Siteground, feel free to leave a comment below!
One more thing: if you found this post helpful, please share it!
