Import

Note: Some of the instructions from this guide refer to the WP Admin dashboard. You can get to this dashboard by adding /wp-admin to the end of your site’s url (e.g.: example.wordpress.com/wp-admin)

You can import content to your site from another WordPress blog, and from many other kinds of sites, including Wix, Medium, Blogger, GoDaddy Go Central, Israblog, Movable Type, Squarespace, Tumblr, Typepad, Xanga and more. Before you can do an import, you’ll first need to export the other site’s content into a file you can upload to WordPress. When you have your file ready, head for the import page.

Table of Contents

1. The Import Page
2. Importing Content from Another Site
3. Importing Content from Another WordPress Blog
4. Migrating from a self-hosted WordPress site
5. The Alternative Import Page
6. Importing Content from Another Platform

The Import Page

Go to Tools > Select Import in the WordPress.com sidebar.

You’ll see a list of the importers you can use. The list should look like this. If you see a different style of list, please jump ahead to The Alternative Import Page.

Popular sites you can import content from.

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Importing Content from Another Site

The steps for importing are usually the same, no matter what kind of import you’re doing:

• Find the importer for the kind of site you’re importing from.
• Upload the export file to the importer and start the import.
• The importer may ask which user in your WordPress site you want to set as the author of the posts or pages it’s importing. Choose the author you want for the items.

That’s it! The importer will do the rest.

The next section shows you how to import content from another WordPress blog. But the steps are the same for other importers, so it’s a good example to follow.

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Importing Content from Another WordPress Blog

If you are importing content from another WordPress.com site, you’ll create an export file from the first site, and then import it to the second site using the steps below.

An export from WordPress is saved in an .xml file. (When you download it, it’s usually bundled in a .zip file.)

Click Start Import next to the WordPress importer. Drag your .xml or .zip file into the box, or click the box to browse to the file on your computer.

WordPress import screen

Once the importer has finished uploading, you’ll be asked to reassign the authors of the imported items to an existing user on the new site before pressing Start Import. If you’re importing content from a site that has multiple authors, it’s a good idea to create those users’ profiles in your new site first. This will streamline the import process further.

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Migrating from a self-hosted WordPress site

If you’re coming from a self-hosted WordPress site, you have an additional option of using our site migration tool to move all of your site’s content, plugins, and custom themes.

We’ve put together a step by step guide on how to use the Migrate from Self-Hosted option.

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The Alternative Import Page

Some sites have a WP Admin style import page:

Find the importer for the kind of site you want to import – for example, if you’re importing content from another WordPress blog, look for the WordPress importer.

If the importer you want isn’t installed on your site yet, you’ll see an “Install Now” link. Click it, and the importer will be installed in a few seconds. When the process is finished, you’ll see a “Run Importer” link.

Click the link, and you’ll see the upload form where you can upload the file you want to import. Click the “Choose file” button and browse to the file on your computer. Once you’ve selected your file, start the import with the “Upload file and import” button. You’ll be asked to reassign the imported items to a user on your WordPress site before the import gets going.

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Importing Content from Another Platform

Note: The instructions from this guide refer to the WP Admin dashboard. You can get to this dashboard by adding /wp-admin to the end of your site’s url (e.g.: example.wordpress.com/wp-admin)

If you don’t see an importer for the kind of site you want to import from in the main list, you can see a fuller list in the WP Admin dashboard. Log into your WP Admin dashboard, then go to Tools → Import, choose your platform and follow the instructions.

Don’t See a Specific Importer for Your Blog’s Service?

If we don’t have an importing tool for your particular platform, you’ll need to try and convert it into one of the accepted formats so that you can use the proper importer. This means you first convert your blog to one of the services mentioned above (such as Blogger), and then import your blog from Blogger to WordPress.com.

 

Also see our new comprehensive guide on moving content to WordPress.com here.

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