How to Migrate WPEngine to Kinsta: Complete Guide
If you’ve decided to migrate WP Engine to Kinsta, the good news is that it’s a lot less painful than most hosting migrations. Kinsta handles the heavy lifting for free, there’s a clear process to follow, and the main risks are manageable with a bit of preparation.
This guide covers everything: the free managed migration, the manual route if you’d rather do it yourself, what to watch out for with WP Engine-specific features, and how to go live without downtime.
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Who This Is For
This guide is mainly aimed at site owners and developers who are already on WP Engine and actively considering a switch. You might be here because of pricing, because you want a cleaner dashboard, or because WP Engine’s recent WordPress.org controversy pushed you to reassess your options.
If you’re still comparing the two platforms before committing, it’s worth reading a more detailed Kinsta vs WP Engine comparison first. This guide assumes you’ve already made the call.
It’s also worth noting: if you’re running a standard WordPress install, the free managed migration is the right path for almost everyone. The manual process only really makes sense if you’re technically comfortable or have unusual server requirements.
Option 1: Let Kinsta Do It for Free
Kinsta offers free migrations from any host, including WP Engine, on all plans. There’s no site limit on the offer. You’re not limited to a single free migration if you’re moving multiple sites.
The process is handled by Kinsta’s team rather than an automated plugin. That distinction matters. Plugin-based migrations sometimes miss files, create database collisions, or fall over on larger sites. A human-handled migration catches those edge cases. In 2025, Kinsta’s team completed over 12,000 free migrations.
Step 1: Sign Up for a Kinsta Plan
You’ll need an active Kinsta plan before you can request a migration. Choose a plan based on the number of sites you’re moving and your expected monthly visits. If you’re unsure, you can always upgrade later.
Step 2: Handle Two-Factor Authentication on WP Engine
This catches people off guard. If 2FA is enabled on your WP Engine account, Kinsta can’t access your hosting environment without a workaround. The recommended approach is to add Kinsta’s migration team as a user on your WP Engine account using the email address migrations@kinsta.com and grant them the necessary permissions.
This is a WP Engine-specific quirk. Do it before you submit the migration request or you’ll end up with delays.
Step 3: Lower Your DNS TTL
Around 12 to 24 hours before you expect to go live on Kinsta, log into your DNS provider and reduce the TTL (time to live) value on your domain to 300 seconds (5 minutes). This means DNS changes will propagate quickly when you eventually point your domain to Kinsta. If you’re using Cloudflare, you don’t need to do this — Cloudflare handles it automatically.
Once the site is live on Kinsta, increase TTL back to 3600 seconds.
Step 4: Submit the Migration Request
In MyKinsta, go to Sites and select Add Site, then Request Migration. You’ll be asked for:
- Your WP Engine account details (or user credentials if you’ve added the migration team as a user)
- Your domain name
- WordPress admin URL and credentials
- Whether your site uses HTTPS
- Whether it’s an ecommerce, membership, or multisite install
There’s also a special instructions field. Use it. If your site uses WP Engine’s LargeFS feature, any redirect rules you’ve configured, or a reverse proxy setup, mention it here. These things don’t transfer automatically and need to be handled manually.
Step 5: Wait and Test
Standard migrations take between 1 and 3 hours, followed by a testing window. Most migrations complete within a business day. Kinsta will send you confirmation when it’s done, along with a staging URL so you can test before going live.
Test thoroughly. Check your forms, any payment flows if you’re running WooCommerce, internal links, and SSL. Don’t update DNS until you’re satisfied everything is working.
Step 6: Update DNS and Go Live
Once testing is complete, update your domain’s DNS records to point to Kinsta. Kinsta will provide you with the exact values to use. Because you lowered your TTL earlier, propagation should be fast. For most sites, it’s under an hour. Technically it can take up to 48 hours, but it’s rare for standard configurations.
Keep your WP Engine account active during propagation so visitors who hit the old servers still see a working site.
Option 2: Manual Migration
The manual path takes more time but gives you full control. It’s the better choice if you’re technically confident, if you have a tight deadline, or if Kinsta’s migration team is backed up and you need to move fast.
The core steps are: export your files and database from WP Engine, create a new site on Kinsta, upload everything, update the database credentials, test, then cut over DNS.
Export Files from WP Engine
Log into WP Engine and create a snapshot (backup) of your environment. Download it. Your files should include everything in wp-content (themes, plugins, uploads) plus any custom configuration files. WP Engine will package this into a downloadable archive.
Export the Database
In WP Engine’s dashboard, open phpMyAdmin for your install. Select your database, then export all tables using the Export function. Make sure to select the “Drop tables” option so that when you import to Kinsta, you’re not getting table conflicts.
Create a New Site in MyKinsta
In MyKinsta, create a new site and select the option to install WordPress. Choose your preferred datacenter. Pick one geographically close to your primary audience.
Upload Files via SFTP
Kinsta uses SFTP only, not FTP. Connect to your new site using your SFTP credentials from MyKinsta (found under Sites > sitename > Info). Upload your wp-content folder to replace the default one on the new install.
Import the Database
From MyKinsta, open phpMyAdmin for your new site. Import the database file you exported from WP Engine.
Update wp-config.php
Connect to the Kinsta site via SFTP and open wp-config.php. Update the database name, username, and password to match the credentials listed under Sites > sitename > Info > Database Access in MyKinsta. Make a backup of the file before you edit it.
Run Search and Replace
If your old site was running HTTP and your new one will use HTTPS (it will), or if there are any URL differences, you’ll need to do a search and replace on the database. The easiest way is to use the Search and Replace tool in MyKinsta under Tools, or to use WP-CLI via SSH.
Test on Kinsta’s Staging URL
Before you touch DNS, use Kinsta’s Site Preview to review the migrated site. Check everything. Don’t update DNS until you’re confident it’s all working.
Go Live
Add your domain in MyKinsta and follow the steps to verify it. Then update your DNS records at your domain registrar to point to Kinsta. The process is the same as the managed migration from this point.
WP Engine-Specific Things to Move Manually
A couple of WP Engine features don’t transfer automatically, regardless of which migration method you use.
Redirect rules. WP Engine has its own redirect rules manager at my.wpengine.com/installs/{install-name}/redirect_rules. These are stored outside of WordPress itself, so they won’t be in your database export. You’ll need to recreate them in Kinsta’s Redirects section manually.
Caching exclusion rules. Any custom caching exclusions you’ve configured in WP Engine need to be moved to Kinsta’s caching setup.
SSL certificates. WP Engine doesn’t give you access to your SSL certificates, so you can’t transfer them. You’ll need Kinsta to issue new ones via Let’s Encrypt once the domain is pointing to Kinsta. This is usually seamless, but it’s worth knowing in advance.
After the Migration
A few things to check once you’re live on Kinsta.
The Kinsta MU (must-use) plugin should be installed automatically, but verify it’s active. It handles server-level caching and performance features specific to Kinsta’s infrastructure.
Review your caching settings in MyKinsta. WP Engine and Kinsta handle caching differently. The defaults on Kinsta are generally sensible, but if you were using specific cache exclusions or rules at WP Engine, you’ll want to recreate them.
Check your email deliverability. Neither WP Engine nor Kinsta includes outbound email hosting by default. If you were relying on WP Engine’s default mail setup, you’ll need to configure an SMTP service on Kinsta.
For performance-sensitive sites, Kinsta’s Core Web Vitals setup is worth reviewing after migration. Kinsta runs on Google Cloud’s C3D virtual machines, which reportedly deliver significantly better performance on compute-heavy operations compared to older infrastructure.
Comparison: Managed vs Manual Migration
| Factor | Managed (Free) | Manual |
|---|---|---|
| Time required from you | Low | High |
| Risk level | Low | Medium |
| Suitable for complex sites | Yes (with notes in request) | Depends on skill level |
| Turnaround | 1 business day (standard) | As fast as you can execute |
| Cost | Free | Free |
| WP Engine-specific handling | Yes, if flagged | Manual work required |
What Can Go Wrong
Most migrations go smoothly. The problems that do come up tend to fall into a few categories.
URLs not updating. If your database still has the old WP Engine staging URL (yoursitename.wpengine.com) in any records, internal links will break. A search and replace on the database fixes this. In Kinsta, this is a one-click operation under MyKinsta > Tools > Search and Replace.
Plugin conflicts after migration. Occasionally a plugin that worked fine on WP Engine doesn’t behave on Kinsta. Usually a PHP version mismatch. In MyKinsta, you can switch PHP versions under Tools. Try matching the PHP version you were running on WP Engine first, then upgrade once everything is confirmed stable.
SSL not applying. If you update DNS before Kinsta has issued the SSL certificate, visitors will hit a security warning. Kinsta generates SSL via Let’s Encrypt once the domain is verified. The safest approach is to verify everything on the staging URL before switching DNS.
Batch migrations hitting SSL rate limits. If you’re moving multiple sites at the same time, Let’s Encrypt has rate limits on certificate issuance per domain. This is a documented issue with bulk migrations from any platform. Stagger your DNS updates to avoid hitting the ceiling.
FAQ
Does migrating from WP Engine to Kinsta cause downtime?
Not if you follow the process correctly. The migration creates a copy of your site on Kinsta’s infrastructure while your WP Engine site stays live. You only cut over once you’ve tested and are satisfied. The window where downtime could theoretically occur is during DNS propagation, but with a properly lowered TTL that’s typically under an hour.
Is the Kinsta free migration really free for all plans?
Yes. Free migrations are available on all Kinsta plans regardless of the number of sites. There’s also an expedited migration option for $49 if you need it completed within 8 hours (refundable if Kinsta misses the deadline).
Do I need to cancel WP Engine before migrating to Kinsta?
No. Keep your WP Engine account active until your site is fully tested and live on Kinsta, and DNS has fully propagated. Cancelling too early means your old server goes down before the new one is ready, which creates a window of downtime.
What happens to WP Engine’s LargeFS feature?
LargeFS is a WP Engine-specific feature for handling large file storage. Kinsta doesn’t have a direct equivalent, so you’ll need to mention this in the special instructions when requesting a migration. Kinsta’s team will advise on the best approach for your setup.
Can I migrate a WordPress multisite from WP Engine to Kinsta?
Yes, but it requires additional steps. Each subsite in a multisite network needs to be migrated individually. If your multisite uses subdirectories rather than subdomains, you’ll need to contact Kinsta’s support team to enable the necessary server configuration before the migration.
What about WP Engine’s redirect rules?
These are stored outside WordPress and won’t transfer automatically. You’ll need to recreate them in Kinsta’s Redirects section after migration. Before removing your WP Engine account, export or save a copy of your redirect rules from the WP Engine dashboard.
If you’ve been sitting on this decision for a while, the migration process itself probably isn’t the reason to delay. It’s straightforward, free, and well-supported. The harder question is usually whether Kinsta’s pricing makes sense for your situation. You can also review Kinsta’s current plans to see where you’d land.
For anyone running agencies or managing sites for clients, the lack of per-migration fees and the quality of Kinsta’s migration team is a significant operational advantage. That’s often what tips the decision.