Move From Blogger to WordPress – Start to Finish Migration!

If you’d like to move your blog from Blogger to WordPress – welcome! This post is for you. It contains information on how to quickly setup your WordPress, how to redirect your posts from Blogger to WordPress, which plugins to use (and avoid) and other small details that will help you migrate confidently!

Perhaps the coolest thing about this migration tutorial is we’ve setup this guide so you don’t need to know any HTML/CSS coding or have any prior computer knowledge. This is totally beginner friendly stuff, like WordPress!

That said it is still a longer process. So let’s go over a few of the basic elements of migration to make sure we’re on the same page.

Please make sure to post a comment if you get stuck – most of us do at some point!

Trust Me, I’ve Been There Before

In order to begin your migration it often helps to know there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I migrated my first blog – Honest College – from Blogger to WordPress (the .org of course) software in fall of 2012. You can see proof of that in a second.

Why? The blog had a rapidly growing audience and was earning me a small monthly income. I always had dreams of blogging for a living, and when a friend warned me that Blogger can remove blogs without warning, that was pretty much it.

Moving from Blogger to WordPress for me was owning my work. Sure it’s a process that makes you want to pull your hair out and puke (a reader’s words, not mine) but when you’re done you will have a blog on the same software as Vogue and Forbes and you’ll actually know how to make a website too.

So what do you say? Let’s do it!

Quick Note: I have completed a successful migration in the video tutorial below, without losing any rankings, content, comments, social stats or anything else. I’ve also show how to migrate blogs whether you have a custom domain or a .blogspot domain. That said, mistakes happen! If you are worried about losing content, be very careful, and comment so I can help out. You blog is your most valuable asset. Most migrations go very smoothly but I just want you to know every step in the video is essential, so please follow closely.

Start to Finish Migration Video

In the video below I show you the .blogspot version of my first migrated blog (mentioned above) and then show you migration in action. We really get our hands dirty…enjoy!

If this video is too long you can also watch the quicker version.

Resources and Essential Tools from The Video Guide

In the order of their appearance, here are the very awesome but very user-friendly tools we’ll use to move from Blogger to WordPress:

1. WordPress.org
   Ya know, the web’s #1 CMS (Content Management System) You don’t need to download it from the WordPress site because we will install it easily through your new web host.
2. GoDaddy
   If you buy or bought a domain name through GoDaddy you’ll learn how to use it on your new blog.
3. HostGator (affiliate link)
   The web’s leading web host by number of users. Simple, beginner-friendly, inexpensive, and did I mention they have a cute mascot?

Please note, I earn a small commission for recommending HostGator’s services and offering you discount coupons to save on web hosting. I’ve used them since I started on WordPress and only recommend services I trust.

4. QuickInstall
   This is actually built into HostGator but I’ve put it here for the sake of completeness. QuickInstall is what people refer to when they said “1-click WordPress installation” because that’s what it accomplishes for WordPress and lots of other softwares too.
5. Blogger Importer
   Downloaded over 600,000 times and regularly updated, this plugin is the safest way to migration your posts, images and comments.
6. Maintain Blogger Permalinks
   A highly specific plugin we need to make sure your new links match your old links (and nothing breaks).
7. Blogger 301 Redirect
   One of the final plugins you will need, this basically shuts down your Blogger blog and makes sure everyone clicking on your old links ends up at the new post, page or wherever you intended. Sad, I know!

Please do you homework and check out all of these tools before beginner the migration process. Familiarizing yourself with the terms and features offered will give you more confidence once you begin!

There’s a Part 2!!

As per your requests I’ve setup a Part 2 where we learn how to design your new WordPress blog! Here ya go…

I hope that following this process reduces headaches and maximizes your glory in migration. Believe me when I say it’s one of the most satisfying processes ever in the end and you’ll wish you had moved from Blogger to WordPress sooner.

Are you stuck? Did it go well? Let us know in the comments and thank you for stopping by!