Use this website migration checklist when your practice changes host, platform or domain. Generic checklists focus on search rankings. For a practice, two other failures cost more: patient-request paths that quietly break (forms, tap-to-call links, Google listing links) and a gap in patient-data safeguards while one vendor hands off to the next. The steps below are sequenced so neither happens.
Searches show how common the worry is: "website migration" 480 a month (CPC $39.33), "website migration seo" 260, "website migration checklist" 140 and "domain migration" 110 (Google Ads Keyword Planner data via DataForSEO, US, 12-month average to Sep 2026).
Make it a cutover plan: copy every item below into a spreadsheet on a timeline (two weeks before, launch day, day 1, day 7, day 30) with an owner column for the practice and the vendor.
Platform, host or domain: which migration are you doing?
Name the move first. The risks and the Google tools differ.
| Move | What changes | Main risk | Google tool |
|---|---|---|---|
| New host, same URLs | Server only | Downtime, email records lost in DNS edits | None needed |
| New platform | Page structure and URLs | Broken links and lost pages | Redirects and a new sitemap |
| New domain | Every URL | Search history split across two domains | Change of Address tool, plus redirects |
Many practice moves are all three at once. If you're also redesigning, pair this list with the redesign checklist. For the bigger picture, see our medical website design guide.
Pre-migration inventory: URLs, forms, integrations and tracking
- Export the full URL list from your sitemap, Search Console and analytics. (Vendor)
- Record a four-week baseline: Search Console clicks, form submissions, call clicks and Google Business Profile website clicks. (Practice)
- List every form and where its submissions go today: email addresses, form tools, practice management system. (Practice)
- List integrations: booking, patient portal links, chat, review widgets, payment links. (Vendor)
- List tracking and ad tags, and note which ones run on pages with forms. (Vendor)
- Confirm who owns the domain and has the registrar login. (Practice)
Not sure what you have? Our free marketing audit reads your public site and flags privacy risks such as pixels on patient forms.
Build a redirect map for every old URL
Google's site move guidance (opens in a new tab) is direct: map old URLs to new ones, use permanent server-side redirects (301 or 308), and keep them "generally at least 1 year".
- One row per old URL in a spreadsheet: old URL, new URL, status. (Vendor)
- Closest match only. Don't send many old pages to the home page. (Vendor)
- No chains. Each old URL goes straight to its final destination. (Vendor)
- Include old PDFs and image URLs that patients or other sites link to. (Vendor)
- Test the map on a staging copy before launch. (Vendor)
Move forms and patient data without a gap in safeguards
A business associate is a vendor that creates, receives, stores or transmits patient information for you. Under 45 CFR 164.502(e) (opens in a new tab), the assurances it gives must be documented in a written agreement. Our guide to business associate agreements explains what that agreement must contain.
- Sign the new BAA before the switch. The new host or form processor that will store submissions signs before the first real one arrives. (Practice)
- Confirm the new host's setup for pages that handle patient data. See HIPAA compliant hosting. (Vendor)
- Document where historical submissions live: which vendor, which account, how far back. (Practice)
- Decide retain or delete. A business associate contract must require the vendor, at termination, to return or destroy the information (opens in a new tab) if feasible and keep no copies. Get it in writing. (Practice)
- Test every new form end to end with dummy data, never real patient details. (Vendor)
- Keep ad pixels off pages that collect health information on the new site. (Vendor)
DNS, email and SSL: the cutover plan
DNS (the domain name system) is the address book that points your domain at a web server and at your email provider. The web change is one record. The email records sit right beside it, and deleting them stops your practice's email.
- Export your current DNS records to a file before anyone touches anything. (Practice)
- Protect the email records: MX (where mail is delivered), SPF and DKIM (which prove your mail is genuine). Google notes that without a correct SPF record (opens in a new tab), your outgoing mail is more likely to be marked as spam. (Vendor)
- Lower the DNS TTL (how long other servers cache your records) to a few hours about a week before, as Google suggests in its guide to moving hosts (opens in a new tab). (Vendor)
- Confirm the SSL certificate is ready on the new host so the site loads on https from the first minute. (Vendor)
- Keep the old hosting running until its traffic reaches zero. (Practice)
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| Two weeks before | Inventory done, redirect map built, new BAA signed, DNS exported |
| One week before | DNS TTL lowered, forms tested on staging |
| Launch day | DNS switched, redirects live, every form and phone link tested |
| Day 1 | Sitemap submitted, Change of Address started if the domain changed |
| Day 7 | First Search Console and form-volume check against baseline |
| Day 30 | Full comparison; old hosting shut down once traffic is zero |
Update your Google Business Profile, directories and ads
- Domain changes only: start Google's Change of Address tool (opens in a new tab). It needs 301 redirects in place and the same Google account owning both Search Console properties, and its effects last 180 days. Don't use it for a host change or an http-to-https switch. (Vendor)
- Google Business Profile: update the website field and any appointment links in your business links (opens in a new tab). Our guide to Google Business Profile for practices covers the rest of the listing. (Practice)
- Directories and insurer listings that show your website. (Practice)
- Ad destinations in Google Ads and Meta, so ads don't land on redirects. (Practice)
Monitor the first 30 days
- Day 1: submit the new sitemap and inspect five key URLs. (Vendor)
- Day 7: compare Search Console clicks and form volume with the baseline. (Practice)
- Weekly: check indexing and crawl errors. Our guide to Search Console checks after launch shows which reports to open. (Vendor)
- Day 30: full comparison, then shut down old hosting once its traffic is zero. (Practice)
Google says visibility "may fluctuate temporarily during the move", and a medium-sized site can take "a few weeks or more" to show new URLs. If Medfy is the new provider, it rebuilds the site and hosts it on your own domain, so the domain stays the practice's.
Frequently asked questions
How long does a website migration take?
Plan on about two weeks of preparation before the switch, a launch day, and 30 days of monitoring after it. The DNS change itself can take hours to reach everyone, which is why Google suggests lowering your DNS TTL about a week ahead. When URLs change, Google says it can take a few weeks or more for a medium-sized site to show the new addresses in search.
Will I lose my Google rankings if I move my website?
A host change with the same URLs is low risk if the new server is fast and lets Googlebot in. When URLs or the domain change, Google says visibility may fluctuate temporarily. Map every old URL to its closest new page with permanent (301) redirects, keep them at least a year, use the Change of Address tool for a domain change, and watch Search Console weekly.
Do I need a new BAA when I change website hosts?
If the new host or form processor stores, receives or transmits patient information for you, yes: sign its Business Associate Agreement before the first real submission flows. Your old BAA covers the old vendor only. Also decide what happens to submissions the old vendor still holds; a BAA requires them to be returned or destroyed at termination where feasible, so ask for written confirmation.
Can I keep my domain name when I switch website providers?
Yes, as long as the domain is registered in your practice's name and you control the registrar account. Switching providers then means changing DNS records, not the domain. Check who the registrant is before you start; domains registered by a past agency are the most common snag. Medfy hosts the rebuilt site on your own domain, and the domain stays yours.