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Import Site ​

InstaWP lets you quickly and easily import WordPress websites from a backup or a live site into its environment. You can upload WordPress backup files up to 1 GB and handle everything from your local computer for smooth staging site management.

In this documentation, we will explore how to import a WordPress site from the following backup sources:

Let’s get started 🚀

🎥 Watch: How to Manually Import Your Live WordPress Site to InstaWP

How to Import a Site ​

Go to Sites and click Import Site. A modal opens with two ways to bring a site in:

  • From a Backup (Manual): upload a backup you already have. This is the flow covered on this page, and it supports InstaWP, WP Playground, UpdraftPlus, Duplicator, WordPress Studio, and Local WP.
  • From a Live website (Automated): enter your live site’s URL and InstaWP securely connects and migrates it for you. See Import Site to InstaWP from a live website (automated).

Import Site modal, the “From a Live website (Automated)” tab

The manual (backup) import is a two-step flow:

Step 1: Upload files ​

On the From a Backup (Manual) tab, pick your Backup Source from the dropdown, then upload the backup file(s) for that source. Backups up to 1 GB are supported.

Import Site modal, Step 1: choose a backup source and upload your files

Step 2: Configure site ​

Click Next: Configure site, set the options below, including your site plan, and then click Import Site. The installation runs automatically, and the new site appears under Sites when it’s ready.

FieldDescription
Site nameEnter a name, or leave it blank to generate one randomly.
Site planChoose the plan for the new site (Sandbox, Starter, Plus, Pro, Turbo, or Elite).
Server LocationSelect a server location: US, UK, Germany, Canada, or Singapore.
WordPress versionSelect the WordPress version for the new site.
PHP versionSelect the PHP version for the new site.

The site plan is chosen on this Configure site step (Step 2), not on the upload step. The steps below cover how to prepare a backup from each source before Step 1. The Configure step is the same for all of them.

InstaWP ​

Import from an InstaWP backup. Need to grab a backup of an existing InstaWP site first? See View and Manage Backups on InstaWP.

Step 1: In the Import Site modal, select InstaWP as the Backup Source. Upload both your Database Backup (.zip or .sql) and your WordPress Backup (.zip or .tgz). Both files are required for InstaWP backups.

Import from an InstaWP backup: upload the database and WordPress files

Step 2: Click Next: Configure site, choose your site plan and the other options (see the Configure site table above), then click Import Site. Your site installs automatically and appears under Sites when it’s ready.

WP Playground ​

It is an interactive environment for quickly setting up WordPress in a browser, allowing developers to experiment and test features without complex setups.

Step 1: Click here to access and open WP Playground. Find the scanner icon and click on the vertical ellipsis.

Step 2: Click on the Download as .zip option.

Step 3: Go back to your InstaWP dashboard, open Import Site, and select WP Playground as the Backup Source. Upload the ZIP file you exported from WP Playground.

Import from a WP Playground export

Step 4: Click Next: Configure site, choose your site plan and the other options (see the Configure site table above), then click Import Site. When the import finishes, the new site appears in the Sites section of InstaWP.

UpdraftPlus ​

It is a popular WordPress plugin for backing up and restoring WordPress websites. It allows users to schedule automatic backups, store backups on remote locations such as Dropbox or Google Drive, and easily restore backups when needed.

Get backup files from UpdraftPlus ​

Step 1: Add the UpdraftPlus plugin to your site from the WP Admin Panel. Activate and find the Backup Now button. Click on it.

Step 2: Check the options and click Backup Now from the box.

Step 3: Once the backup is ready, click on the files (Database, Plugins, Themes, Uploads, Others). Download options will appear for each of the files. Click on Download to your Computer for all the backup files to download.

You must download all backup data files (Database, Plugins, Themes, Uploads & Others) for your WordPress site.

Import to InstaWP ​

Step 1: Open the Import Site modal and select UpdraftPlus as the Backup Source. Upload your UpdraftPlus database export into the Database Backup zone and your remaining site files (Plugins, Themes, Uploads, Others) into the WordPress Backup zone.

Import from an UpdraftPlus backup: upload the database and WordPress files

Step 2: Click Next: Configure site, choose your site plan and the other options (see the Configure site table above), then click Import Site. The installation starts automatically.

Duplicator ​

It is a powerful and easy-to-use WordPress backup and migration plugin. It enables users to migrate, copy, move, or clone sites and serves as a simple backup utility, handling serialized and base64 serialized replacements.

Step 1: Add the Duplicator plugin to your site from the WP Admin panel. Activate and go to plugin settings. Click Allow and Continue.

Step 2: Using the Duplicator plugin, create a new package and download the archive file. To step ahead, click Create New. Then, name the package and click Next.

Step 3: Check the options and click on the Build button.

Step 4: Click Archive to download the file.

You only need to download the archive file from your package files to import the site into InstaWP.

Step 5: Open the Import Site modal and select Duplicator as the Backup Source. Upload the Duplicator archive file into the WordPress Backup zone.

Import from a Duplicator archive

Step 6: Click Next: Configure site, choose your site plan and the other options (see the Configure site table above), then click Import Site. The installation starts automatically.

WordPress Studio ​

Step 1: Go to Sites, click Import Site, and select WordPress Studio as the Backup Source. Upload your WordPress Studio export file.

Import from a WordPress Studio export

Step 2: Click Next: Configure site, choose your site plan, set the site name and server location (see the Configure site table above), then click Import Site. Site installation starts automatically.

Local WP ​

Step 1: Go to Sites, click Import Site, and select Local WP as the Backup Source.

Import from a Local WP export

Step 2: Upload your Local WP export file, then click Next: Configure site.

Step 3: Choose your site plan, set the site name and server location (see the Configure site table above), then click Import Site. Site installation starts automatically.

💡 Did you know? You can also import WordPress websites from your local computer into LocalWP for development and testing, improving workflow productivity for developers. Learn about importing a site into LocalWP.

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