Quick answer
Before you cancel Weebly, list every page and its address, check who controls your domain, save your text and images, build the new site, then redirect each old address to its new page with 301 redirects before switching the domain over. Keep Weebly running until the new site is live and tested, so nothing breaks.
Weebly was the first website for a lot of small businesses: easy to set up, cheap and good enough for years. Weebly is now part of Square, and many owners who built a simple site on it a decade ago find it no longer fits: they want a better design, more control, faster pages or features the plan does not offer. Moving is very doable. The risk is not the new site. It is losing search rankings, email or your domain on the way out, and those are entirely avoidable if you work in the right order.
Step 1: decide where you are going
Pick the destination before you touch anything. The main options:
| Option | Suits | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Square Online | Shops already using Square for payments | Another hosted platform with its own limits |
| Another site builder | Owners happy to keep doing it themselves | Monthly fees and the same ceiling, later |
| A custom WordPress site | Businesses that want a site built around them and owned outright | Needs a developer to build it |
| A one-page site | Very simple businesses that only need the essentials | Less room for service pages and search traffic |
If you are not sure, our guide to outgrowing a DIY website walks through the signs and the upgrade paths, with prices.
Step 2: audit what you have
Make a spreadsheet of every page on the Weebly site: its title, its full web address and what it is for. Then add:
- Your most visited pages. If the site is connected to Google Search Console or analytics, note which pages get traffic and which searches bring people in. These are the pages you must not lose.
- Forms and where their messages go.
- Blog posts, if you have them.
- Store products, if you sell online, with prices, descriptions and photos.
- Anything embedded: maps, booking widgets, reviews, videos.
Step 3: check who controls your domain and email
This step prevents most disasters. Find out where your domain name is registered: through Weebly or Square, or with a separate registrar. Log in to wherever it is and make sure the account is yours, with an email address you still use. If the domain was registered by someone else, such as a former web designer, sort that out first; our guide to domain names explains ownership and transfers.
Then check your email. If you have addresses at your domain, they may be hosted somewhere separate from the website, and moving the website must not break them. Note the existing mail settings (the MX records) before changing anything.
Step 4: save your content
Copy the text of every page into a document, and download every image at the best quality you can. Check Weebly Support for what your plan currently lets you export or download, but be prepared to copy much of it by hand. While you do, it is a good moment to rewrite thin pages and remove outdated ones. Our guide on planning website content helps you decide what each page should say.
Step 5: build the new site and map every address
Build the new site on a temporary address so you can check it before it goes live. Then create a redirect map: a list of every old Weebly address and the new address that replaces it. Check the exact format of your old addresses, because builders often use their own patterns.
| Old Weebly address | New address | Type |
|---|---|---|
| /services.html | /services/ | 301 |
| /kitchen-fitting.html | /services/kitchen-fitting/ | 301 |
| /blog/our-new-showroom | /news/new-showroom/ | 301 |
| /contact-us.html | /contact/ | 301 |
A 301 redirect tells browsers and search engines a page has moved permanently. Google’s guide to redirects and Google Search explains why a permanent redirect is the right signal for a move. Every old page that had traffic or links should point to its closest new equivalent, not to the home page.
Step 6: switch over, then test everything
Once the new site is approved and the redirects are set up on the new host, update your domain’s settings to point to it. Google’s guidance on site moves with URL changes sets out the checks it recommends. In practice:
- Visit a sample of old addresses and confirm each lands on the right new page.
- Send a test message through every form.
- Send and receive an email at your domain addresses.
- Check the site on a phone, including menus and buttons.
- Submit the new sitemap in Search Console.
Our website launch checklist covers the full list.
Step 7: watch the numbers, then cancel Weebly
Keep an eye on Search Console for a few weeks after the move. Some movement in rankings is normal while Google processes the redirects. A sharp, lasting fall usually means redirects are missing or pointing to the wrong pages; our guide to sudden traffic drops covers how to diagnose it. Only cancel the Weebly plan once you are confident the domain, email and redirects are all working, and keep a copy of your redirect map and old content.
Mistakes that make a move go wrong
- Cancelling Weebly before the new site and redirects are working.
- Redirecting every old page to the home page instead of its closest match.
- Changing domain settings without noting the email records first.
- Forgetting forms, so enquiries quietly go to an old inbox.
- Launching on a Friday afternoon, when nobody is around to fix problems.
What the move costs
The cost depends on the size of the site and who does the work. Our website migration cost guide breaks down typical prices. If you want the new site built properly, our custom WordPress website is £499 one-off for up to eight pages, hand-coded, mobile-first, with SEO foundations, contact forms connected to your inbox and 30 days of support, and you own the code. For the domain side, our guide to connecting a domain to a website explains the settings involved. All our prices are on the pricing page.
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Frequently asked questions
Will I lose my Google rankings if I move off Weebly? +
Not if you redirect properly. Map every old address to its closest new page and set up permanent 301 redirects before switching the domain. Some ranking movement is normal for a few weeks while Google processes the change. Lasting drops usually mean missing or wrong redirects, which Search Console helps you find and fix.
Can I keep my domain name when I leave Weebly? +
Usually, yes. Check where the domain is registered: through Weebly or Square, or a separate registrar. If it is with Weebly or Square, you can normally transfer it out or point it at your new host. Make sure the account is in your name and that you know how your email is set up before changing anything.
Can I export my Weebly site to WordPress? +
Not as a working copy. Check Weebly Support for what your plan lets you export, but expect to copy page text and download images yourself, then rebuild the pages on the new platform. It is a chance to improve the content and structure rather than move old problems across.
Should I cancel Weebly before building the new site? +
No. Keep Weebly running until the new site is built, the redirects are in place, the domain points to the new host and you have tested forms and email. Cancelling first can take the site offline and, if your domain is with Weebly, put the domain itself at risk.
