Announcing Duplicator WP-CLI Commands (And How They Speed Up Backups)
Looking for a smarter way to manage site backups? Explore Duplicator's new features, including customizable WP-CLI commands and permission settings!
Announcing Duplicator WP-CLI Commands (And How They Speed Up Backups)
Joella Dunn
Joella Dunn
John Turner
John Turner
Are you looking for the best WordPress importer plugin?
A WordPress importer plugin can help you easily move all of your posts, pages, and other site content into another location. This can be useful if you’re moving to a new server or domain name.
In this post, I’ll round up my favorite WordPress importer plugins. This way, you can easily migrate any type of website data!
Here’s a quick overview of the best WordPress importer plugins!
| Importer Plugin | Free Version? | Pricing | Best For |
| Duplicator Pro | ✅ | $49.50/yr | Migrating an entire WordPress site, specific files, or databases to a different location |
| SeedProd | ✅ | $31.60/yr | Importing and exporting theme files |
| Shopify to WP | ✅ | Free | Moving an online store from Shopify to WooCommerce |
| WP All Import | ✅ | $99 | Importing XML, CSV, or Excel files |
| Customizer Import/Export | ✅ | Free | Exporting and importing changes made in the WordPress Customizer |
| Product Import Export for WooCommerce | ✅ | Free | WooCommerce imports |
| Widget Importer & Exporter | ✅ | Free | Migrating custom widgets to another site |
| WP Ultimate CSV Importer | ✅ | $149 | Importing data from XML or CSV files |
WordPress has a built-in import and export feature that allows you to move data without a third-party plugin. It can import content from another WordPress site or a different publishing platform like Blogger or Joomla.
To start moving your site’s data, go to Tools » Export. You can choose to export all your content, or just pages, posts, or media files.
Then, download your content. This will give you an XML file that you can upload to another WordPress installation.
To do this, go to Tools » Import. If you’re transferring content between two WordPress sites, hit Install Now next to the WordPress option.
Next, click on Run Importer. Now you can simply upload the XML file you saved earlier.
When moving your Media Library, for example, the importer will only transfer the links to your media files. Once you delete the original files on the old site, these image links will break.
Plus, it’s easy for the import to time out. To migrate a WordPress site, your compiled file will have a lot of data. Ultimately, the native import tool isn’t well-equipped to process large files over 300MB.
You may also need to export widgets, plugins, or other important WordPress data. The WordPress importer won’t be able to handle this type of migration.
A WordPress importer plugin is a tool that helps you migrate website data from one WordPress installation to another. Depending on the plugin, you’ll be able to migrate your entire site, or just posts, pages, widgets, and other specific data.
The WordPress import feature can be useful for transferring blog posts or pages to a new site. However, you may run into problems when you try to move your entire website.
Since the exported file will be large, you could exceed your web host’s PHP memory limit. In this case, it’s time to install a WordPress migration plugin, otherwise known as an importer plugin.
Here’s what you should look for in a WordPress importer plugin:
The best WordPress importer plugins will have a user-friendly interface that makes site migrations easy. You’ll be able to save all of your website’s data into one file and transfer it to a different location.
Below, you’ll find a list of my favorite WordPress importer plugins! You’ll be sure to find a tool that simplifies site migrations so you can easily move to a new domain, host, or server.
Duplicator Pro is the best WordPress importer plugin. This flexible tool can build backups of your site and smoothly move them to any location.
Rather than being limited by the native WordPress import/export feature, Duplicator can help you migrate your entire website.
Using Duplicator, you can customize exactly what data you want to transfer to the new location.
Simply expand the Backup section and select what components to include or exclude. For example, you could choose to only back up active plugins and themes to remove any unnecessary tools during the move.
After you build and download the backup, open your new website and find the Duplicator Import Backups page. You can import files by dragging and dropping them here.
Then, Duplicator’s installation wizard will walk you through the import process! In my experience, it takes less than 5 minutes to completely import the old site into the new one.
Unlike other plugins, Duplicator is well-equipped to import large sites. You’ll be able to back up a lot of data into a single zip file without overloading your server and causing time-out issues.
On top of this, Duplicator is much more than an importer tool. Here are some other features you can look forward to:
Pricing: Duplicator is available for free on WordPress.org. If you want drag-and-drop imports and a step-by-step migration wizard, you can upgrade to Duplicator Pro starting at just $49.50 per year.
Duplicator Pro is the best importer plugin for moving entire sites to different locations. It can help you back up your site, migrate it to a new host, set up staging sites, and much more.
As a freelancer or designer, you may want to export your custom WordPress theme and use it on another website. Using SeedProd, you can do just that.
SeedProd is a drag-and-drop page builder that allows you to easily design every part of your website. It comes with landing page templates, professional blocks, animations, and much more. You can even start with a theme template kit to start developing your WordPress theme without coding experience.
When you’re ready, go to SeedProd » Import/Export and hit Export Theme Files.
You can then open a blank WordPress installation and install SeedProd. Visit the same Import/Export page and import the theme you just downloaded. Your theme will automatically be applied!
Additionally, you may want to just reuse small sections of your page design. With SeedProd, you can simply copy and paste sections from your old site onto a different website.
Key features of SeedProd:
Pricing: There is a completely free version of SeedProd. To start importing and exporting theme files, it’s important to select a premium subscription. These start at $31.60 yearly.
SeedProd is a great option for designers or agencies that need to export themes and use them on multiple websites. It can also import and export smaller parts of a web page as reusable elements.
When you first start an online store, you might prefer Shopify because it is a fully hosted ecommerce platform that comes with less maintenance. However, WooCommerce is a better alternative if you want more flexibility and fewer transaction fees.
If you’re moving your Shopify site to WooCommerce, we’d recommend using Shopify to WP. This importer tool is specifically designed for this type of migration. Plus, it avoids the need to hire an expensive migration service.
All you’ll need to do is create a WordPress website. Then, paste your website’s URL and your email into Shopify to WP. You’ll be redirected to your Shopify store, where you can start downloading your data for the migration.
When you import this file into WordPress, Shopify to WP will automatically convert your Shopify products into WooCommerce products. This can be a huge time-saver as you’re setting up your first WooCommerce store.
Pricing: Shopify to WP is free to use.
You should use Shopify to WP if you’re planning on transitioning from Shopify to WooCommerce. It instantly makes your Shopify data compatible with WordPress.
Another powerful import plugin is WP All Import. You can use this tool to import any XML, CSV, or spreadsheet file into your WordPress site. Plus, it’ll work with large files and shared hosting plans.
With WP All Import, you can migrate WordPress posts, categories, image galleries, custom post types, and more. The plugin will automatically detect any custom fields and taxonomies. Plus, you’ll even be able to set up scheduled imports if needed.
Key features of WP All Import:
Pricing: The basic plugin is free and the premium plans start at $99. You can also package WP All Import with WP All Export. Together, these plugins cost as little as $199.
WP All Import is a popular importer plugin that makes it easy to upload XML, CSV, or Excel files to your WordPress site.
One way you can customize your WordPress theme is by making changes in the Customizer. If you plan on using the same custom theme again, you won’t want to manually redo these edits. In this case, the Customizer Import/Export plugin may be the right choice for you.
Customizer Import/Export is a free tool that does exactly what you’d expect. After you install it, you’ll see an option to export WordPress Customizer settings. This will download files for your custom theme.
On the new site, make sure you have the same theme activated. Then, open the Customizer and import your custom theme file. Customizer Import/Export will apply the same changes you added to your first website.
Key features of Customizer Import/Export:
Pricing: You can download Customizer Import/Export for free.
Customizer Import/Export is best for WordPress Customizer users who want to export their custom theme changes.
As you’re planning the migration of your ecommerce site, you might be overwhelmed by the thought of manually exporting product information. Product Import Export for WooCommerce is a plugin that was designed to make this process easier.
With this tool, you can export your WooCommerce products as a CSV file. This can then be uploaded to another WooCommerce site, allowing you to import products in bulk.
Key features of Product Import Export for WooCommerce:
Pricing: Product Import Export for WooCommerce is a free WordPress plugin.
With this plugin, WooCommerce store owners will find it easy to export and import their products into another store.
Widgets are pieces of WordPress content that can be added as a site’s sidebar or footer. Since these have custom information like social icons or calendars, you might want to transfer them to another website. If you only want to migrate widgets, Widget Importer & Exporter can be a useful tool.
Essentially, Widget Importer & Exporter allows you to back up your custom widgets and move them between WordPress sites. After you upload a file, the plugin will explain that your widgets were imported, already existed in the widget area, or weren’t supported by the current theme.
Key features of Widget Importer & Exporter:
Pricing: You can download Widget Importer & Exporter for free.
This plugin is best if you want to move your custom WordPress widgets to another site.
WP Ultimate CSV Importer works by using your old database as a source of information for a new website. When you import a file, you’ll have the exact same pages, posts, and categories that existed on your original site.
Using WP Ultimate CSV Importer, you can import many different types of content from XML and CSV files. This includes blog posts, WooCommerce products, comments, media files, and more.
Key features of WP Ultimate CSV Importer:
Pricing: The basic plugin is free, along with add-ons to import users and WooCommerce products. There is also a premium version that supports scheduled imports and bulk image uploads. This starts at $149.
WP Ultimate CSV Importer extends the native functionality of the WordPress importer.
Duplicator is the best WordPress importer plugin. You can use it to export custom backups of your WordPress site. Then, simply drag and drop this backup into another location.
If you want to quickly and easily move your website, you need a WordPress importer plugin. A tool like Duplicator Pro can streamline migrations and minimize downtime. There are also specific importer plugins for moving widgets, WooCommerce products, and other data.
You can import pages and posts into WordPress using Duplicator Pro. Simply install it and create a backup of your blog. Then, open the WordPress dashboard for your new site and drag and drop the archive file into it.
A WordPress import takes only a few minutes with the right tools. Using a plugin like Duplicator Pro, you can easily download your whole site and transfer it to a new location. Ultimately, this saves you hours of work spent manually importing your WordPress website.
You can upload an entire website to WordPress using Duplicator Pro. After installing the plugin, create a backup of your site. Then, go to the new WordPress site and find Duplicator Pro » Import Backups. Drag and drop your backup file here to start importing your old content.
We hope this guide helped you find the best WordPress importer plugin for your goals.
While you’re here, you may also enjoy these extra WordPress tutorials and guides:
Are you ready to import your site into a different WordPress installation? Download Duplicator Pro to move your entire website in just a few minutes!
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