Real people, on-site in Ireland.
Real people, on-site in Ireland.
Moving host is mostly an order-of-operations problem. Check the cancellation terms first, take a backup, build and test the new site while the old one stays live, and only then switch DNS and cancel. This guide uses Hosting Ireland's own terms and contact pages as they read on 14 October 2026, so you can see what applies to you before you act. Terms change, so confirm anything that affects money against your own account.
Start with your renewal date and what you paid for. According to its terms and conditions page (read 14 October 2026), these points matter most:
The terms state that hosted data such as website files "is automatically wiped 90 days after non-renewal". Do not rely on that window as storage. Take your own copy of everything before you let the service lapse, and keep it somewhere that is not the old account.
The practical rule: do not cancel until the new site and your email have been checked from outside your own network. Cancelling at renewal, rather than mid-term, is what the terms point towards, so plan the move to finish before the renewal date.
Hosting Ireland says on its hosting page that all its Linux hosting packages come with cPanel. In cPanel, a full backup is one archive of your files, databases, email settings and account configuration.
Log in to cPanel, open Backup, choose Download a Full Account Backup, pick a destination (the home directory is fine) and enter an email address for the completion notice. When it finishes, download the file. For belt and braces, also download your databases and home directory separately from the same screen, and export a copy of your WordPress site if you have one. Our guide to moving between cPanel accounts explains what each backup type contains.
If you want HostBible to do the move, you usually do not need to do anything clever. Tell the migration team which backup or access details you have, and they will work with you on the rest.
HostBible includes free website migration with its hosting plans: files, databases, email and WordPress sites, from any host and any control panel. The team builds the site on a staging copy and tests it while your old site stays live, and you switch DNS when you are happy. For comparison, Hosting Ireland's terms describe one free website transfer including one database for people moving in, with further work charged at its hourly rate. That is its arrangement for incoming customers, not a statement about leaving.
Test the staged copy properly: every page, the contact form, logins, and any checkout. Our guide to migrating without downtime explains why this order works.
Email is where moves go wrong. List every mailbox, forwarder and alias first. Copy the mail across by IMAP into the new mailboxes, then change the MX records. The steps are in our guide to migrating email hosting.
A day or two before the switch, lower the TTL on your DNS records. Write down every record you rely on: A, MX, SPF, DKIM and any verification TXT records. Then check the result with the DNS checker. If you want the background, see how to migrate DNS and DNS propagation.
Moving hosting does not require moving the domain. Many owners leave the domain where it is, change the DNS or nameservers, and decide about the domain later. Hosting Ireland's transfer page lists a .ie transfer in at €6.95 plus VAT, but its pages do not describe the process for transferring one away, so ask in writing if you intend to move it.
Domain topics here are general information. Our guide to transferring a domain covers the usual process, and .ie versus .com may help if you are unsure what to keep. Check the domain's expiry date before you start anything.
HostBible's team moves your files, databases, email and WordPress sites to a hosting plan, building and testing a copy while your current site stays live.
See website migration