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Get it wrong and your site can lose visibility because search engines don’t know where your content and authority have gone.</p>\n<p>An <a href=\"https://edge45.co.uk/services/search-engine-optimisation/website-migrations/\">SEO website migration</a> protects your rankings, traffic and visibility while your site evolves.</p>\n<p>This SEO migration checklist reflects how our technical SEO and content strategy teams manage the SEO side of website migrations, from early strategy to post-launch performance reviews. Follow it closely to make sure your visibility moves with you.</p>\n<p>Fixing a migration after it’s gone wrong is far more costly and time-consuming than getting it right the first time. If your migration has gone wrong, or you want to avoid that risk entirely, <a href=\"https://edge45.co.uk/contact/\">get in touch</a> and we’ll help you put it right.</p>\n<p><em><a href=\"/static/19212e502a220959a83753c5452edcde/SEO-Migration-Checklist.pdf\"><strong>Download our SEO Migration Checklist (PDF)</strong> </a>to use on your next project.</em></p>\n"},{"__typename":"WpBlog_AcfPagebuilder_PageBuilder_BasicFullWidthImage","caption":null,"image":{"altText":"Site Migration Analysis by Mike Edge45","localFile":{"childImageSharp":{"fluid":{"base64":"data:image/jpeg;base64,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","aspectRatio":1.2339331619537275,"src":"/static/4a8775b0d3c4a5796fab03ea5eeac881/d8255/Site_Migration_Analysis_by_Mike_Edge45.jpg","srcSet":"/static/4a8775b0d3c4a5796fab03ea5eeac881/9104c/Site_Migration_Analysis_by_Mike_Edge45.jpg 480w,\n/static/4a8775b0d3c4a5796fab03ea5eeac881/a6352/Site_Migration_Analysis_by_Mike_Edge45.jpg 960w,\n/static/4a8775b0d3c4a5796fab03ea5eeac881/d8255/Site_Migration_Analysis_by_Mike_Edge45.jpg 1920w,\n/static/4a8775b0d3c4a5796fab03ea5eeac881/4a461/Site_Migration_Analysis_by_Mike_Edge45.jpg 2560w","srcWebp":"/static/4a8775b0d3c4a5796fab03ea5eeac881/25f09/Site_Migration_Analysis_by_Mike_Edge45.webp","srcSetWebp":"/static/4a8775b0d3c4a5796fab03ea5eeac881/61be4/Site_Migration_Analysis_by_Mike_Edge45.webp 480w,\n/static/4a8775b0d3c4a5796fab03ea5eeac881/1fb14/Site_Migration_Analysis_by_Mike_Edge45.webp 960w,\n/static/4a8775b0d3c4a5796fab03ea5eeac881/25f09/Site_Migration_Analysis_by_Mike_Edge45.webp 1920w,\n/static/4a8775b0d3c4a5796fab03ea5eeac881/ab8d3/Site_Migration_Analysis_by_Mike_Edge45.webp 2560w","sizes":"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px"}}}},"notFullWidth":null,"removeBottomMargin":null},{"__typename":"WpBlog_AcfPagebuilder_PageBuilder_BasicTextBlock","addDividerLine":null,"removeBottomMargin":null,"text":"<h2>Types of Website Migration</h2>\n<p>This SEO migration checklist supports migrations including:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Website domain changes</li>\n<li>URL structure changes</li>\n<li>Site design changes</li>\n<li>UI/UX design changes</li>\n<li>Content changes (adding or removing pages)</li>\n<li>Platform switches or CMS upgrades</li>\n<li>Migrations from HTTP to HTTPS</li>\n</ul>\n<h2>SEO Checklist for Website Migration</h2>\n<p>Here&#8217;s our simply step-by-step checklist for website migrations.</p>\n<h3>Phase 1: Strategy &amp; Scope</h3>\n<p>What does success look like? Define this early, before anything changes.</p>\n<p>This phase sets the direction for the entire migration and helps identify the biggest opportunities (and the biggest risks).</p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Agree on the migration type: </strong>Confirm whether this is a domain change, URL restructure, redesign, CMS upgrade, HTTPS migration, or a combination of these.</li>\n<li><strong>Identify organic growth opportunities and risks: </strong>Understand which parts of the site are currently driving visibility and where change could introduce risk.</li>\n<li><strong>Conduct a content performance audit:</strong> Review how existing content performs to work out what needs protecting, improving or consolidating.</li>\n<li><strong>Create a project plan: </strong>Set realistic objectives, timelines and responsibilities so every stage of the SEO migration process is accounted for.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Dig deeper into <a href=\"https://edge45.co.uk/insights/what-is-the-first-step-in-any-website-migration-project/\">website migration strategy and scoping with our dedicate blog on the first steps of a migration</a>.</p>\n<h3>Phase 2: Pre-Launch Preparation</h3>\n<p>Take a snapshot of your site, data and benchmarks. This phase ensures nothing important is lost before development and testing begins.</p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Benchmark current SEO performance: </strong>Record baseline rankings, organic traffic and priority pages so post-migration performance can be compared.</li>\n<li><strong>Prepare an SEO specification for the new site: </strong>Define key SEO requirements such as URL structure, CMS functionality and how metadata should be handled.</li>\n<li><strong>Conduct a full website crawl: </strong>Capture the existing site’s structure, URLs and key SEO signals to support accurate testing and migration planning.</li>\n</ul>\n<h3>Phase 3: Pre-Launch Testing (Staging Website)</h3>\n<p>Test the new site in a controlled environment before launch. This is where SEO is validated on a staging version of the site.</p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Review page templates and content: </strong>Ensure key SEO elements are present and, at a minimum, match the previous website.</li>\n<li><strong>Review internal linking and site structure: </strong>Check that navigation and internal links support crawlability and a logical page hierarchy.</li>\n<li><strong>Conduct a technical SEO review: </strong>Validate core technical signals such as indexability, mobile setup and structured data at a high level.</li>\n<li><strong>Set up analytics tracking: </strong>Ensure GA4 is configured correctly so performance can be monitored from day one.</li>\n</ul>\n<h3>Phase 4: Launch Day Spot Checks</h3>\n<p>Validate everything as the site goes live. Launch day is where issues most commonly surface, so checks need to be fast and focused.</p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Crawl the new website: </strong>Run initial checks to surface obvious errors or unexpected changes.</li>\n<li><strong>Spot-check crawlability and indexing signals: </strong>Confirm search engines can access the site and nothing critical is blocked or marked noindex.</li>\n<li><strong>Validate redirects and migrated content: </strong>Ensure old URLs resolve correctly and that metadata, copy and internal links have migrated as planned.</li>\n<li><strong>Complete final content checks: </strong>Sense-check priority pages to confirm content displays correctly in the live environment.</li>\n</ul>\n<h3>Phase 5: Post-Migration Checks</h3>\n<p>Monitor stability during the critical early period. The first couple of weeks after launch are the most important for catching issues early and protecting visibility.</p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Monitor indexation and crawl behaviour: </strong>Track how search engines process the new site and address errors or anomalies quickly.</li>\n<li><strong>Track ranking and traffic movement: </strong>Watch for unexpected drops or gains and assess whether they relate to technical changes or natural reprocessing.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>This stage effectively acts as your post-migration SEO checklist, helping stabilise performance after launch.</p>\n<h3>Phase 6: Performance Review</h3>\n<p>Measure impact and confirm long-term stability. Review performance against your pre-migration benchmarks to gauge success.</p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Compare performance against baseline: </strong>Review rankings, visibility and organic engagement to confirm the migration has been successful.</li>\n<li><strong>Identify next optimisation opportunities: </strong>Use insights from the migration to inform ongoing SEO and content improvements.</li>\n</ul>\n<p><strong>Download our SEO Migration Checklist</strong> to use on your next project.</p>\n<h2>Need help managing a site migration?</h2>\n<p>We focus on the SEO side of website migrations: protecting rankings, traffic and visibility while your developers handle the build.</p>\n<p>Our team combines deep <a href=\"https://edge45.co.uk/services/search-engine-optimisation/technical-seo-services/\">technical SEO</a> expertise with <a href=\"https://edge45.co.uk/services/content-marketing/\">content strategy</a> to manage website migrations safely and methodically, without risking the visibility you’ve worked hard to build.</p>\n<p>If you’d like support managing your SEO site migration, <a href=\"https://edge45.co.uk/contact/\">get in touch</a> and we’ll talk you through the next steps.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n"}]}}},"pageContext":{"id":"cG9zdDo3NTA2","slug":"seo-migration-checklist","color1":"#f86600","color2":"#eab63e","featuredImage":{"customFeaturedImage":{"altText":"Migration checklist","localFile":{"publicURL":"/static/45ee377314331aca3cf07c821ad48119/Migration-checklist.png","childImageSharp":{"fluid":{"base64":"data:image/png;base64,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","srcWebp":"/static/45ee377314331aca3cf07c821ad48119/58556/Migration-checklist.webp","srcSetWebp":"/static/45ee377314331aca3cf07c821ad48119/61e93/Migration-checklist.webp 200w,\n/static/45ee377314331aca3cf07c821ad48119/1f5c5/Migration-checklist.webp 400w,\n/static/45ee377314331aca3cf07c821ad48119/58556/Migration-checklist.webp 800w,\n/static/45ee377314331aca3cf07c821ad48119/cc834/Migration-checklist.webp 1024w","originalImg":"/static/45ee377314331aca3cf07c821ad48119/a8378/Migration-checklist.png","originalName":"Migration-checklist.png"},"original":{"height":500,"width":1024}}}}},"title":"SEO Migration Checklist","author":{"node":{"avatar":{"url":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/3af8cabde30209a5c99b7e65941777f0?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"name":"Mike Gomez","firstName":"Mike","uri":"/author/edge_mike/"}},"date":"8th April 2026","unformattedDate":"2026-04-08T09:28:49","blogCats":{"nodes":[{"slug":"seo","link":"/blog/seo/","name":"SEO"}]},"schema":"{\"@context\":\"https://schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"/insights/seo-migration-checklist/\",\"url\":\"/insights/seo-migration-checklist/\",\"name\":\"SEO Migration Checklist | Edge45\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https://edge45.co.uk/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-08T08:28:49+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-08T08:59:46+00:00\",\"description\":\"Planning a website migration? 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