Switching Web Agency: How to Move Without Breaking Anything
Switching web agency without downtime: the logins, files, domain, hosting and contract points to collect, in the right order, before you give notice.
Switching web agency safely comes down to one rule: get control of your domain, hosting, code and accounts before you tell anyone you are leaving, and only then move anything. If you collect the logins, check who is the registered owner of each one and take a full backup first, the move itself is routine and your site stays live throughout. Most of the horror stories come from doing it in the reverse order.
Key takeaways
- Find out who is the registered owner of your domain, hosting and key accounts before you give notice. Fix ownership first.
- Take your own full backup of files and database, and check it opens, before anything is moved.
- For generic domains such as .com, a registrant change can trigger a 60-day transfer lock, so plan the order of changes.
- In Google Search Console, removing an old verified owner means removing their verification token as well as the user.
- Read your contract for notice periods, ownership clauses and any outstanding fees before the conversation.
When is it time to change web developer?
People rarely change web developer over one bad week. It is usually a pattern: emails that take days to answer, small changes quoted at large prices, a site that is slow or out of date, or a sense that nobody at the agency understands your business any more. Sometimes it is simpler: the business has grown and needs skills the current supplier does not have, such as custom software, an app or serious SEO work.
Before you leave, have one honest conversation about what is not working. If the answer is a plan you believe, staying can be cheaper than a move. If not, start the handover work below quietly and in parallel. Our guides on how to choose a web design agency and freelancer vs agency help you decide what you are moving to, which is worth settling before you move away.
What do you actually own? Check before you give notice
The single most useful thing you can do is make a list of every system the website depends on and write down, for each one, whose name it is in. "We pay for it" is not the same as "we own it". If an account is in the agency's name, you need it transferred to you, or a written agreement that it will be, while relations are still friendly.
| Item | What to check | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Domain name | Who is the registrant, and which registrar it is with | Whoever controls the domain controls your website and email |
| DNS | Where the DNS is managed, which may differ from the registrar | Email, website and verification records all live here |
| Hosting | Whose account the server or hosting plan is in | If it is the agency's server, you will need a new home |
| Website files and database | Whether you can get a full copy | This is your website; without it you start again |
| Code and design files | What your contract says about ownership | Custom themes, plugins and designs may have conditions |
| Premium plugin and theme licences | Whose account the licences are under | Updates stop when a licence lapses or moves |
| Google Search Console, Analytics, Business Profile | Who is the owner or administrator | Years of data and your local listing |
| Email and other services | Who runs your mailboxes, forms, payment and CRM connections | These break quietly if DNS or keys change |
Then read your contract. Look for the notice period, any minimum term, what it says about who owns the code and designs, whether there are any outstanding invoices, and whether the agency charges for handover. Settle any disputed money separately from the handover where you can; it is in nobody's interest to hold a live website hostage.
The website handover checklist
Work through this in order. The order matters more than speed.
- Collect the logins. Registrar, DNS, hosting control panel, server or SFTP, database, WordPress admin (or your CMS), premium plugin accounts, analytics, Search Console, Business Profile, email, payment gateway, any forms or CRM tools. Store them in a password manager you control.
- Add yourself as an owner or administrator on every account where the platform allows more than one, rather than relying on shared passwords.
- Take your own full backup. Files and database, downloaded to storage you control. Then check it: open the archive, make sure the database export is not empty and that uploads are included.
- Write down the DNS records. Export or screenshot every record, including MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC and any verification records. These are what keep email and connected services working.
- List what runs in the background. Scheduled jobs, form destinations, payment webhooks, API keys and integrations. These often live outside the website files.
- Brief the new agency and let them audit the site from the backup and the logins before anything changes.
- Give notice in writing, with a clear list of what you are asking the old agency to hand over or transfer, and a date.
- Move hosting first, then the domain if it needs to move at all. One change at a time, with checks in between.
- Remove old access once everything is confirmed working: users, keys, shared passwords and verification tokens.
Our website maintenance guide covers what should be happening on the site week to week once it has a new home.
Moving the domain without losing email
The domain is where most moves go wrong, because it controls both the website and email. The good news is that the domain usually does not need to move at the same time as the website. You can keep it where it is, update the DNS to point at the new hosting, and transfer the registration later once everything is stable.
Rules for .com and other generic domains
ICANN's FAQs for domain name holders set out the main rules for generic domains such as .com, .net and .org. The transfer is started by the registrant contacting the registrar they want to move to. You will need an auth code (also called a transfer code); if you cannot generate it yourself, the current registrar has to provide it within five calendar days of your request.
Watch the timing. A registrar may refuse a transfer within 60 days of initial registration or within 60 days of a previous transfer. And a change to the registrant's name, organisation or email address triggers a 60-day lock on moving to another registrar, although some registrars let you opt out of it. So if the domain is in the agency's name, the order of changes matters: plan it with the new agency before you start.
.uk domains
Domains ending in .uk are run by Nominet under their own transfer process, which is different from the .com rules above. Ask your current registrar how they handle a move to a new registrar, and confirm the registrant shown is your business, not the agency.
Protecting email during the switch
If DNS is changing provider, recreate every existing record at the new provider before switching the nameservers. Missing MX records stop email arriving; missing SPF or DKIM records can send your mail to spam. Keep the old records written down until you are sure everything works.
Moving hosting and the website itself
A sensible new agency takeover follows the same pattern every time: copy, test, switch, watch.
- Copy the site to the new hosting from your backup, without touching the live site.
- Test on a temporary address: forms, checkout, logins, search, page speed and the pages that bring in enquiries.
- Switch by updating DNS at a quiet time, with the old hosting left running until the change has fully settled.
- Watch for a few days: form submissions, orders, email delivery and Search Console errors.
If you are on WordPress, this is also the moment to check plugin licences and updates, because a site that has been neglected may need work before it is safe to move. Managed hosting takes much of this off your plate; our explainer on managed WordPress hosting covers what it includes.
Handing over Google accounts and data
Google tools hold history you cannot recreate, so treat them carefully.
Search Console. Google's Search Console permissions help explains that only owners can manage users, under Settings, then Users and permissions. A verified owner is someone who proved ownership with a token such as an HTML file or tag on the site, and cannot simply be downgraded: you remove them by removing their token. Removing the user alone is not enough, because if the token stays on the site, that person can re-verify and get back in. Add your own verified ownership first, then remove the old agency's token and user.
Analytics and Business Profile. Make sure your business holds the top level of access on each, then reduce or remove the old agency's access once the move is complete.
Common mistakes when you leave a web agency
- Giving notice before collecting logins. Even a friendly agency may be slow once you are leaving.
- Moving the domain and hosting on the same day. When something breaks, you will not know which change caused it.
- Forgetting email. The website looks fine and nobody notices mail has stopped arriving.
- Losing redirects. If the new agency rebuilds the site, old URLs need redirects to their new equivalents. A redesign during the move is a separate project; our guide to signs you need a website redesign helps you decide whether to do both at once.
- Leaving old access in place. Shared passwords, API keys and verification tokens should be changed or removed at the end.
Frequently asked questions
Can my old agency refuse to hand over my website?
It depends on what your contract says about ownership and on whose name the accounts are in. If the domain, hosting and code are yours, a refusal is hard to justify. If they are in the agency's name, you may need to negotiate. Read the contract first, and take legal advice if a business-critical asset is being withheld.
Will switching web agency hurt my Google rankings?
A straight move of the same site to new hosting, with the same URLs and content, should not change much on its own. Risk comes when URLs change without redirects, pages are dropped, or the site is down or slow during the move. Testing on a temporary address before switching DNS keeps that risk low.
How long does a website handover take?
Collecting logins and taking a backup can take a few days if the old agency is responsive. The move itself is usually quick once the new hosting is tested. Domain transfers have their own timings, and for generic domains a 60-day lock can apply after a registrant change, so leave the domain until last if it needs to move.
What is an auth code and where do I get it?
An auth code, or transfer code, is a code the registrar creates to confirm the domain holder and stop unauthorised transfers. For generic domains you can sometimes generate it yourself in the registrar's control panel. If not, ICANN's rules say the registrar must give it to you within five calendar days of your request.
Should the new agency rebuild the site straight away?
Usually not. Moving the existing site first gives you a stable starting point and separates two kinds of risk. Once it is safely hosted and backed up, the new agency can audit it and recommend whether to improve, rebuild or leave it alone. Doing both at once makes problems harder to trace.
Ready to move? Start with the list
Make your ownership list and take that backup this week, before any difficult conversation. If you would like a second pair of eyes, we can review what you have, tell you what is missing and plan the move so the site and your email keep working. See our services, then start a project or contact us.
