If you would like to export your site or content for use in another WordPress installation (please see the important note at the bottom of the page), follow these simple steps to generate your export file.
Navigate to the Export Menu
Log into your site. On your Dashboard’s left navigation menu, hover over Tools and click Export.
Choose What to Export
Choose All content to export your entire site. (Note: If you only want to export your own specific content on a shared class site, you can choose to just export ‘Posts’ or ‘Pages’ instead.)
Download the Export File
Click the blue Download Export File button at the bottom of the screen.
What happens next?
The export file will download to your computer in XML format. This specific file type can be uploaded into the “Import” tool of any other WordPress site to seamlessly populate it with your content!
For more information about exporting and importing your downloaded XML file:
Important Note: WordPress.com vs. WordPress.org
While they share the same software, the core difference comes down to hosting:
- WordPress.com is an all-in-one platform. It includes managed hosting, built-in security, automatic updates, and dedicated support. It is the best choice if you want a smooth, hands-off technical experience.
- WordPress.org (often called “self-hosted”) provides the free software, but you must find, pay for, and manage your own web host. It is ideal if you need complete, unrestricted developer control over your server environment.
The Bottom Line: No matter which route you choose, you completely own your content and can easily migrate your site between the two platforms at any time if your needs change.