How to Export a WordPress Site (3 Methods)

Looking to safeguard or move your WordPress site? Start by exporting it the right way. Here’s a quick and simple guide to help you get started.

Exporting a WordPress site is simple once you know what type of export you need. In WordPress, exporting can mean two different things: exporting only your site content or exporting the entire website.

If you only want to move posts, pages, comments, categories, and tags, you can use the built-in WordPress export tool. It downloads your content as an XML file, which you can import into another WordPress site. However, this method does not create a complete copy of your website. It does not fully export your theme, plugins, plugin settings, uploads folder, or database.

If you want to move your entire WordPress site to a new host or domain, create a backup, or set up a staging version, you need a full-site export method. This usually means using a WordPress migration plugin, your hosting provider’s backup tool, or manually downloading your site files and database.

In this guide, we’ll explain the different ways to export a WordPress site and help you choose the right method based on your goal.

Before exporting your site, it is important to understand what WordPress export actually includes. The term “export” can mean different things depending on the method you choose.

For example, the built-in WordPress export tool only exports your site content, such as posts, pages, comments, categories, and tags. It may also include media references, but it does not create a complete copy of your media library. This method is useful when you want to move content from one WordPress site to another.

However, exporting content is not the same as exporting your full website. A complete WordPress site export should include your database, themes, plugins, uploads, settings, and other site files. To export all of these, you will need a full-site export method, such as a migration plugin, hosting backup tool, or manual FTP and database export.

Here is a simple comparison:

Export method	Content	Media	Database	Themes and plugins	Settings
WordPress built-in export	Yes	Partial	No	No	No
Migration plugin	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Manual FTP + phpMyAdmin	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes

The key point is that the built-in WordPress export tool does not export your entire website. It mainly creates an XML file of your content. If you want a complete backup or migration-ready copy of your site, choose a method that exports both your website files and database.

Before getting into how to export your WordPress site, it helps to understand why you’re doing it. The reason matters because it decides which method you should use.

For example, if you’re moving your entire website to a new host, you’ll need a full copy of everything: your files, database, themes, plugins, and settings. But if you just want a backup of your blog posts, a simple XML export will do.

Choosing the wrong method can either make things more complicated than necessary or leave you with an incomplete site. Here are the most common situations where you might need to export your WordPress site:

1. Moving to a New Hosting Provider

This is the most common reason people export their WordPress site, and also where mistakes happen most often.

When you switch hosts (for better speed, pricing, or support), you need a complete copy of your site. That includes your database, theme, plugins, media files, and settings.

If you only export your content using WordPress’s built-in tool, you’ll end up with just your posts and pages. Your design, plugins, and custom settings won’t come along, and you’ll have to rebuild everything manually.

The easiest way to avoid this is by using a full-site export method, like a migration plugin.

2. Creating a Backup Before Major Changes

Making big changes to your site, like updating WordPress, switching themes, or installing new plugins, can sometimes break things.

Creating an export before you make those changes gives you a restore point you can fall back on if something goes wrong.

Think of it as a checkpoint. You know your site is working fine right now, so you save that version before trying anything new.

3. Setting up a Staging Site

A staging site is a copy of your live website where you can safely test changes without affecting real visitors.

To make staging useful, it needs to be an exact copy of your live site. That means the same content, database, theme, plugins, and settings.

The easiest way to do this is to export your full site and import it into a staging environment, either on a subdomain, another server, or a local setup.

4. Moving From WordPress.com to WordPress.org

If you’re switching from WordPress.com to a self-hosted WordPress.org site, exporting your content is part of the process.

WordPress.com lets you export your posts, pages, and media. But it doesn’t carry over everything, like your theme setup or plugin data. After importing the content into your new site, you’ll need to rebuild your design and set up plugins again.

5. Migrating From Another Platform

If you’re moving from platforms like Wix, Squarespace, or Blogger, the process is a bit different.

These platforms don’t export data in a format WordPress can use directly. You’ll usually need a combination of export tools, import plugins, and some manual work.

Content like blog posts can often be transferred, but your design and layout will need to be rebuilt in WordPress.

6. Exporting Specific Content

Not every export needs to be a full-site migration.

Sometimes you just want to move a few blog posts, a category, or a set of pages. In this case, the built-in WordPress export tool works perfectly.

It lets you filter content by post type, category, author, or date, so you can export exactly what you need.

Which Method Do You Need?

The right export method depends on your situation. Here’s a quick way to match your use case with the best approach:

Situation	What you need to export	Recommended method
Changing hosting provider	Full site	Method 2 — Migration plugin
Backup before updates	Full site	Method 2 — Migration plugin
Setting up staging	Full site	Method 2 — Migration plugin
WordPress.com → WordPress.org	Content + media	Method 1 + Method 2
Wix / Squarespace → WordPress	Content only	Platform-specific importer
Archiving specific content	Selected posts/pages	Method 1 — Built-in export
Full control / large sites	Full site	Method 3 — FTP + phpMyAdmin

If you’re unsure, a good rule of thumb is this:

If you need your entire website, go with a full-site method. If you only need content, the built-in export tool is usually enough.

WordPress has a default export tool that allows you to export your site content. This is the easiest method if you only want to move posts, pages, comments, categories, tags, or other content types.

You do not need to install any plugin for this method.

• Go to the WordPress admin panel.
• Navigate to Tools > Export.
• Select the All content option.

All Content option exports all the posts, pages, comments, custom fields, categories, tags, navigation menus, and custom posts.

• Click on Download Export File.

A copy of your site gets created in an XML format.

Once you have the export file, you can use the Import feature in the new WordPress site to upload the content and restore it.

If you want to export not just your database, but also your themes, plugins, media files, and everything else that makes up your WordPress site, you’ll need to use one of the following methods.

• 1: Exporting with the WordPress migrator plugin
• 2: Exporting manually with FTP and phpMyAdmin

The WP Backup and Migration plugin from WebToffee will make your WordPress import and export operations quick and easy. With a single click, you can backup and migrate the WordPress site’s media files, plugins, and themes, as well as the database.

Steps to export using the plugin:

1. Install and activate the plugin.
2. From the WordPress admin panel, click on WordPress Migration > Backup & Migration.

As you can see from the above screenshot, the plugin supports both manual one-click export and scheduled export of your WordPress site.

One-Click Export

Upon clicking the ‘Backup Now’ button, all your WordPress files and database will be exported as a zip file that you can download to keep offline.

However, if you only need to export the selected content and want to store it in a third-party location, you can configure this using the plugin under the Configuration options.

Configuration Options

For more control over your export, the plugin offers configuration settings that let you:

• Select specific content to export
• Choose a backup destination
• Adjust export speed based on your server’s performance

Let’s explore each option in more detail:

What to Backup

By default, both the WordPress files and the database are selected for export. You can customize this by:

• Deselecting either option if you don’t want to export both
• Choosing specific folders or files for export:
  • A folder list appears on the right-hand side
  • Click a folder to expand it and select individual files to include in the export

Where to Backup

This section is for choosing the export location of your WordPress website content. Other than local storage, which is the default export location, you can export to third-party storage platforms such as:

• Google Drive
• Amazon S3
• FTP/SFTP

The content will be exported to the chosen location. For authentication and connection purposes of the third-party services, you can visit the settings section of the plugin from the WordPress sidebar.

Advanced Options

This section is for advanced users who have knowledge of their server performance to adjust the data processed during each request. If you have a high-performing server you can increase the amount of data and number of database records accordingly. This will speed up the export process. If you are not, you can leave it to the default values.

Once you are done with all the configurations, you can click the export/backup button to complete the export process.

For more details, refer to WordPress Backup & Migration – User Guide.

Manual export using FTP and phpMyAdmin is another way to back up your WordPress site. While it requires a bit more technical involvement, it’s a reliable option when done carefully.

Step 1: Connect to Your Server via FTP

To get started, you’ll need:

• An FTP client (we’re using FileZilla in this example)
• Your FTP credentials (host, username, password, and port), which are typically available in your hosting account

Steps:

1. Open FileZilla.
2. Enter the FTP credentials in the top input bar.
3. Click Quickconnect.
4. Once connected, you’ll see folders appear on the right-hand side of the interface (server view).

Step 2: Locate and Export Your Site Files

1. Locate the site’s root folder. Generally labeled as public_html (or as site’s domain name). All your site’s files are stored here.
2. Drag and drop the required folders or files from the right (server) to the left (your local computer) to complete the download.

Exporting WordPress Plugins, Themes, And Media Files

To export, all your plugins, themes, and media files:

• Drag and drop wp-content. All the required data will get downloaded.

To migrate or back up the entire site:

• Highlight everything in the public_html directory.
• Drag the same to your local computer.

All your site’s files will get exported.

Steps To Export Database in phpMyAdmin

To complete your site export, you’ll need to download the WordPress database via phpMyAdmin. Here’s how:

1. Log in to phpMyAdmin from your hosting control panel (like cPanel or Plesk).
2. In the left sidebar, select your WordPress database.
3. Click on the Export tab at the top.
4. Select the export method: Quick or Custom
5. Set the format to SQL.
6. Click Go to download the database file to your computer.

Exporting your WordPress site—whether for migration, backup, or staging—is super important for keeping your website in good shape and secure. It ensures your data is safe and can be restored or moved whenever you need it, without any fuss. Whether you’re tackling a technical issue, planning a redesign, or switching to a new domain or hosting provider, having a full export gives you peace of mind.

While you can manually export using FTP and phpMyAdmin, the smartest and most user-friendly option is to use our WordPress migration plugin. It makes the whole process easier, saves you time, and cuts down on the risk of errors—no need for technical know-how.

If you have any questions or run into any issues, feel free to drop your thoughts in the comments below. Our team is always here to help and will respond as quickly as we can.