First Things First: What Counts as a “Website Migration”?
A website migration isn’t just switching platforms. SEO can be impacted anytime you change:
- Platforms (WordPress → Webflow, Squarespace → Webflow, etc.)
- URLs or site structure
- Page templates or CMS logic
- Domains or subdomains
- Design systems that affect content hierarchy
If any of that sounds familiar, this checklist is for you.
Pre-Migration SEO Checklist (Don’t Skip This Part)
This is where most mistakes happen—because people rush straight to design and development.
1. Crawl Your Existing Website
Before touching anything, you need a snapshot of how your site currently exists.
Make sure you:
- Export all existing URLs
- Note which pages get the most traffic
- Identify high-ranking pages and top keywords
- Capture metadata (titles, descriptions, headings)
Tools like Screaming Frog or Ahrefs work great here. This becomes your migration safety net.
2. Audit What’s Worth Keeping (and What Isn’t)
Not every page deserves a one-to-one migration. Some pages are:
- Outdated
- Redundant
- Thin on content
That’s okay—but every removed page should have a plan (redirect or consolidation). This is also a great moment to improve structure, which we often cover during our Webflow Migration services
3. Lock in Your New URL Structure Early
Changing URLs is one of the biggest SEO risks during a migration.
Best practices:
- Keep URLs the same when possible
- If changing them, document every old → new mapping
- Avoid unnecessary nesting or over-engineering
Once URLs change, redirects become non-negotiable.
During the Migration: SEO While You Build
4. Set Up 301 Redirects (Every Single Time)
Every old URL should either:
- Redirect to its new equivalent, or
- Redirect to the closest relevant page
No homepage dumping. No guessing.
If you’re migrating to Webflow, redirects are easy to manage inside the platform: Webflow Redirect Guide.
5. Preserve Metadata & Headings
Make sure all of this comes over cleanly:
- Page titles
- Meta descriptions
- H1s, H2s, and page hierarchy
Bonus: Webflow now offers AI tools that can help generate metadata and schema automatically—so you don’t even need to know what half of that means to benefit from it. Webflow AI overview.
6. Mind Performance While You Build
A migration is the perfect time to improve speed—but it’s also easy to accidentally make things worse.
Watch out for:
- Oversized images
- Excessive animations
- Bloated CMS structures
Launch Day SEO Checklist
7. Remove Noindex & Password Protection
It sounds obvious—but it’s one of the most common mistakes.
Before launch:
- Remove noindex tags
- Remove password protection
- Confirm the site is crawlable
Then manually check a few pages in Google Search Console.
8. Submit Your New Sitemap
As soon as the site is live:
- Generate a fresh sitemap
- Submit it in Google Search Console
Webflow automatically creates a sitemap, but you still need to submit it.
9. Spot Check Redirects & Key Pages
Manually test:
- Top traffic pages
- Blog posts
- Contact and conversion pages
If something breaks, fix it immediately. The faster you react, the less SEO fallout you’ll see.
Post-Migration: What to Monitor (and for How Long)
10. Expect Small Fluctuations (Not a Freefall)
Some movement is normal in the first few weeks. What’s not normal:
- Massive traffic drops
- Indexed pages disappearing
- Key rankings vanishing entirely
If that happens, something went wrong—and it’s time to investigate.
11. Monitor Performance & Fix Fast
Keep an eye on:
- Google Search Console
- Core Web Vitals
- Crawl errors
- Indexed vs submitted pages
This is why many teams move directly into Webflow Management & Ongoing Support after a migration—so nothing slips through the cracks.
Final Thoughts: Migrations Aren’t the Enemy
Website migrations don’t have to be scary. When done right, they often improve SEO long-term—better structure, faster performance, and cleaner content.
If you’re planning a move (especially to Webflow), this checklist will keep you out of trouble. And if you’d rather not juggle redirects, audits, and launch-day anxiety…
That’s literally what we’re here for
