Import & export

A WordPress Studio site can be added from a backup file that contains a site’s full content.

An existing WordPress Studio site can be updated from the backup file in a similar fashion, or from the single .sql file, from the site overview.

Your backup files can be downloaded from your WordPress.com site or from Jetpack’s Activity Log page. It will have the following files and directories inside:

• wp-config.php: The WordPress configuration file.
• wp-content/plugins: The folder containing your site’s plugins.
• wp-content/themes: The folder containing your site’s themes.
• wp-content/uploads: The folder containing your site’s uploads.
• sql/: A directory with .sql files that contain your site’s database data.

Exports from Studio will also have a meta.json file, which contains information about the desired PHP version for the site.

Other supported formats are:

• The .wpress file from the All-in-One WP Migration and Backup plugin
• The .zip file from the Local app
• The .zip file from WordPress Playground
• .tar.gz archives

How to add a new site to WordPress Studio from a backup

To add a new site to WordPress Studio from backup, you’ll need a .tar.gz, .tar, .zip, or .wpress file:

1. Click the Add site (+) button at the top of the Studio sidebar. You will be presented with three options: Create a new site, Connect a site, or Import from a backup.
2. Click Import from a backup and select your backup file. Alternatively, drag and drop your backup file onto the Import from a backup box.
3. On the Set up your imported site screen, name your site and choose its local folder.
4. Click Import site.

Any imported site is started by default and visible in the sidebar. If the import fails, Studio explains what went wrong in plain language and lets you try again.

How to update an existing WordPress Studio site from a backup

To update an existing Studio site from a backup, you’ll need a .tar.gz, .zip, or .sql file:

1. Select the site you wish to update from the Studio sidebar, and click the Site overview button next to its name.
2. On the Overview tab, under Manage, click Import and select your backup file.
3. When prompted, click Import to overwrite your Studio site with your backup file.

The Studio site will be replaced from the provided .tar.gz or .zip backup. However, when you import .sql file to an existing site, the database dump will be imported on top of the existing site.

How to export a site from WordPress Studio

WordPress Studio allows you to export your entire local site into a .zip format, which is compatible with Jetpack Backup. You may also export only the database into a .sql file, which is compatible with MySQL.

To export a site from Studio:

1. Select the site you wish to export from the Studio sidebar, and click the Site overview button next to its name. Alternatively, right-click the site in the sidebar.
2. Click Export entire site to generate a full-site .zip file, or Export database to generate a .sql file. On the site overview, these are on the Overview tab, under Manage.
3. Choose the destination and click Save.

Other site actions, such as starting and stopping the site, are unavailable while an import or export is running.

When the export is finished, Studio will open the directory containing the backup file automatically.

How to upload a WordPress Studio export to a hosted WordPress site

Once you have the backup file, you can deploy it to any WordPress site. For example, if your site is on a paid WordPress.com plan, you can follow the Manually Restore Your Site from a Jetpack Backup File on WordPress.com guide.

Alternatively, if your site is hosted on a paid WordPress.com plan or Pressable, you also have the option to use Studio Sync. This feature lets you connect Studio to your live production or staging sites and push local changes with a single click—no manual file upload required.

How to import a site without a Jetpack backup

If you are not using Jetpack Backup, you can still import the site to WordPress Studio from a backup file created manually:

1. Create a temporary import directory e.g., import-to-studio/.
2. Create sql/ and wp-content/ directories inside the created directory.
3. Open wp-content/ directory of your site and copy plugins/, themes/, and uploads/ to the wp-content/ in the temporary import directory.
4. Copy your site’s wp-config.php to the temporary import directory.
5. Export your site’s database using your favorite MySQL tool and place the dump file in sql/ directory.
6. Select all files in temporary import directory and compress them as .zip file.
7. Follow the steps shown above to add a new site from the backup file.