How to Migrate Joomla to WordPress (In 3 Simple Steps)

There’s no doubt that Joomla is a fantastic Content Management System (CMS), but some of you might still feel more at home using WordPress. The problem lies in how to migrate Joomla to WordPress.

Migrating a website is often challenging and time-consuming. Thankfully, in this case, we can use a simple plugin to migrate Joomla to WordPress painlessly.

In this article, we’ll explain the three most important steps to migrate Joomla to WordPress using one plugin, and what you need to do afterward. Before we start though, we need to cover a few bases. Let’s check them out!

What you should consider before the migration

Before you migrate Joomla to WordPress, you need to make sure that you have adequate hosting, a domain, and WordPress up and running. You may want to look into WordPress-specific hosting before making the jump, if you haven’t already, and also consult our website migration checklist to ensure a smooth process.

There are various hosting providers to choose from when you want to host a WordPress website. If you’re looking for a reliable WordPress hosting provider that offers great value for the price, consider checking out SiteGround (starting at just $2.99). With various hosting plans to choose from, SiteGround provides excellent performance and security features, as well as user-friendly tools to help you manage your website with ease.

Then, we can begin the migration process.

How to migrate Joomla to WordPress (in 3 simple steps)

As we stated earlier, migrating Joomla to WordPress shouldn’t be particularly challenging. However, if you run into any hiccups during the process, we recommend that you check out the below plugin’s Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section.

Step 1: Install the FG Joomla to WordPress plugin

FG Joomla to WordPress

Author(s): Frédéric GILLES

Current Version: 4.29.3

Last Updated: December 9, 2024

fg-joomla-to-wordpress.4.29.3.zip

94%Ratings 8,000+Installs WP 4.5+Requires

With your WordPress website ready to go, we need to install and activate the FG Joomla to WordPress plugin. Head into your WordPress dashboard and to the Plugins tab, then click on Add New. On the next screen, type the full name of the plugin and click on Install Now when it appears:

When the installation finishes, the Install Now button will be replaced by Activate. Click on it, and we’re ready to go!

For the next step, we need to head over to your Joomla installation, but keep your WordPress dashboard tab open in the meantime.

Step 2: Locate your Joomla database parameters

Login to your Joomla back end and find the System option at the top of the page, then click on Global Configuration:

Select the Server tab and find the Database Settings section within. We’re looking for the four fields right below the Database Type drop-down:

Keep that information handy, because we’ll need to use it in a minute. Switch to your WordPress tab now.

Step 3: Migrate your Joomla content into WordPress

Click on the Tools tab and select the Import option. If you ever checked out this section before, you might notice it includes a new option now: Joomla FG. That’s the tool we’re going to use to migrate Joomla to WordPress. Click on Run importer to start the process:

On the following page, you’ll find an Empty WordPress content option right near the top. It will remove all your posts, pages, categories, tags, and media files – if there’s anything you need to backup, do so before moving on. If there isn’t, select the Remove all WordPress content setting, then hit the corresponding button below:

The removal process will take a few moments, and afterwards, the WordPress database section above will reset to zero, as seen below:

Move down to the Joomla website parameters section and paste the URL of your Joomla site in the respective field:

Below, you’ll find several more fields under Joomla database parameters. Switch back to your Joomla tab, and copy each parameter into their respective fields. They all share the same names on both sections, so there shouldn’t be any confusion. Leave the Port field untouched, then click on Test the database connection button at the end of the section:

If the connection succeeds, a message saying so will appear right below. Afterward, head down to find the main import options.

The only settings you need to worry about are Archived Posts and Medias. For the first, select Not imported unless you want to do otherwise, and for the latter, select First content image as your Featured Image. Then enable the Import meta keywords as tags setting and hit Save settings below.

Next, click on the Start / Resume the import button and sit back while the plugin works its magic:

A success message will appear once the migration is complete.

Finally, we need to click on the Modify internal links option at the end of the page. That option will modify any internal links between your posts and pages to their new URLs:

All that’s left now is to customize your new WordPress website!

What to do once you’ve migrated your Joomla site to WordPress

Your site is ready to go, but there are still a few optional steps to get things in top shape before you shout it from the rooftops. Let’s take things one at a time.

Firstly, no WordPress website is ready without a great theme to accompany it. Find one that suits your needs, and install it from the Appearance > Themes tab.

The next step is to find any plugins you need to add new functions to your WordPress site. Once you’ve made your picks, follow these instructions to set them up.

Before wrapping things up, there are three additional steps you should consider: Working on your WordPress search engine optimization (SEO), tightening up your security, and applying some tricks to speed up your loading times. Those last three measures aren’t strictly necessary, but your WordPress experience will improve if you follow them.

Conclusion

Migrating a website is always a hassle – more so if you’re switching from one CMS to another. Thankfully, WordPress keeps the process simple thanks to its Import function and the plugin system. Here are the steps you need to follow to migrate Joomla to WordPress without a hitch:

1. Get your domain and WordPress web hosting ready.
2. Install WordPress and the FG Joomla to WordPress plugin.
3. Locate your Joomla database parameters.
4. Use the Import tool to migrate your Joomla content to WordPress.

Do you have any questions about our guide on how to migrate Joomla to WordPress? Share them with us in the comments section below!