Plugins

Duplicator Review 2026: A Real Site Move, Free vs Pro

BY JASON — 04.10.2026

Duplicator is a strong free option for moving WordPress to an empty host or a new domain. It is less suited to routine backups unless you pay for scheduling and cloud storage. Our migration worked after a manual database fix, so check the installer’s warnings before calling a move complete.

Duplicator Backups page with two finished backups of 68.11 MB and 67.7 MB, and the Download menu open showing Both Files, Installer and Archive (zip)

What Is Duplicator?

Duplicator is a WordPress plugin that packs your whole site into two files: an archive (a .zip or .daf file with every WordPress file and a copy of the database) and an installer script called installer.php. You upload both to a new server, open installer.php in a browser, and it rebuilds the site there. WordPress does not need to be installed on the new server first, which is what sets Duplicator apart from most backup plugins.

The plugin has been on WordPress.org since June 2011. Snap Creek built it, and Awesome Motive (the company behind WPForms, MonsterInsights and All in One SEO) bought it in January 2023. The free plugin is officially called Duplicator Lite; the paid version is Duplicator Pro.

Version 5.0, announced on September 22, 2026, was a big change. The vendor says Lite now runs on the same backup engine as Pro, and it moved several Pro features into the free plugin:

  • a Restore button that brings a backup back from the dashboard, without FTP
  • password encryption of the archive (AES-256)
  • AutoTune, which runs test backups to find settings that work on your server
  • off-site storage in Duplicator Cloud, the vendor’s own paid storage service
  • “AI backups” that an AI assistant can start through the WordPress Abilities API (WordPress 6.9 or newer)

Many reviews were written before 5.0, so their lists of free features are out of date.

What our migration test found

Duplicator Lite built a full-site archive and installer, then moved the content to an empty server. No WordPress installation was needed at the destination. Encryption was available for free; keep that password safe because the plugin cannot recover it. This was a small local-site test, not a large shared-hosting benchmark.

The first migration produced a usable site but left two Yoast database tables missing. The installer warned about an unsupported collation, then wrote an empty collation into the statements that created those tables. The warning mattered even though posts and images looked correct. The same issue appeared in our backup comparison.

Duplicator installer Step 2 of 2 with two DATABASE ERROR messages about SQL syntax in the wp_yoast_expiring_store and wp_yoast_seo_links tables, and an Install Result table showing 3 database warnings and 2 search and replace warnings

Running the installer in Advanced mode and setting the collation to utf8mb4_unicode_520_ci fixed it. All tables were created and the checks passed. Review database warnings before proceeding, then verify the restored plugins as well as the front page.

Duplicator installer Step 2 of 4 Install Database, Charset and Collation tab with the charset set to utf8mb4 (Default) and the collation set to utf8mb4_unicode_520_ci

Two other details affect recovery. Blocked loopback requests can stall backup creation, and AutoTune leaves its test archive on the server until removed. After migration, log in with the source site’s credentials, confirm installer files were deleted and reconnect any saved remote-storage credentials that were reset.

Size Limits: What Actually Limits Duplicator

Many older reviews, including a 2026 comparison written by a competing plugin’s maker, say free Duplicator stops at 500 MB and that its DupArchive format is Pro only. That does not match version 5.0.5. DupArchive, ZipArchive and Shell Zip were all available on our free install, and the vendor now advertises “backups without size limits”, saying its engine works in small chunks so long jobs do not hit server timeouts. Our site was only 158 MB, so we could not confirm how a multi-gigabyte site behaves.

What limits you in practice is your server:

  • Time limits. Our scan reported a 30-second PHP execution limit, which Duplicator works around by building in chunks. The scan still warns that “compressing larger sites on some budget hosts may cause timeouts.” A Server Throttle setting slows the build to avoid resource complaints on cheap hosting, and a build is cancelled after 90 minutes by default.
  • Disk space. The archive is saved on the same server first, so you need free space for it. Our 158 MB site made a 68 MB archive. Duplicator keeps the last 20 backups by default, and AutoTune’s test backup counts too.
  • Upload size. With the classic installer you upload files by FTP or a file manager, so your host’s PHP upload limit does not apply. This is where Duplicator beats All-in-One WP Migration, whose free import is capped by that limit.
  • Database version. Moving from a newer MySQL or MariaDB to an older one can cause the collation warnings described above.

Duplicator Lite vs Pro: What the Free Version Locks

The free plugin shows every Pro menu item, then blocks it. The Schedule Backups, Import Backups and Staging pages each show sample rows behind an “Upgrade to Duplicator Pro Now” box.

Duplicator Schedule Backup page with blurred sample schedules behind a box reading “Duplicator Lite does not support scheduled backups!” and an Upgrade to Duplicator Pro Now button

The Schedule Backups page in the free plugin, Duplicator.

Duplicator Lite can back up and download a full site, migrate through installer.php to an empty server and make database-only backups. Version 5 added dashboard restore and archive encryption. Its optional Duplicator Cloud destination is paid separately, and support comes through WordPress.org.

Pro adds schedules, recovery points, drag-and-drop and server-to-server imports, ticket support and destinations including Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, S3 and FTP/SFTP. Hourly schedules start on Plus. Staging and multisite need Pro or Elite, which also provide the more specialized backup options.

Upgrade prompts are everywhere. Besides the top bar, most Duplicator screens have an “Upgrade to Pro” box, and so does every step of the installer, which ends with a long list of Pro features. None of them stop you from finishing a backup or a move.

Duplicator Pro Pricing (Intro vs Renewal)

These are the prices on duplicator.com in October 2026. Every plan is billed yearly and renews automatically. The pricing page says the lower prices are “special introductory pricing” and that “all renewals are at full price”.

Basic covers two sites for $69.30 in year one, renewing at $99 annually. It includes schedules, recovery points, drag-and-drop and server-to-server imports and one cloud destination. Plus covers five sites for $99.50 initially, then $199, adding hourly backups, unlimited destinations and installer branding.

Pro covers 20 sites for $159.60 initially, renewing at $399. It adds staging, multisite, custom and media-only backups, WP Media Cleanup, DB Optimizer and priority support. Elite covers 100 sites for $239.60 initially, then $599, adding Activity Log and premium support.

The vendor offers a 14-day money-back guarantee. Its terms say renewals are not refundable, so cancel before the renewal date if you only need Pro once.

Duplicator Cloud is a separate subscription and works with the free plugin too. It runs from $29/year for 2 GB up to $199/year for 150 GB.

For a single site, Basic is the plan to compare. At $99 a year after the first year, it costs more than UpdraftPlus Premium ($70 a year for 2 sites, per our UpdraftPlus review), and the free UpdraftPlus already has scheduled backups to Google Drive or Dropbox.

Is Duplicator Safe?

Two old security flaws show why you should keep Duplicator updated and never leave installer files on a server:

  • CVE-2020-11738 (April 2020) let attackers download files from a server running Duplicator before version 1.3.28. The U.S. National Vulnerability Database rates it high severity.
  • CVE-2022-2551 (August 2022) showed visitors the address of the full site backup if the installer had been run and left in place, in versions before 1.4.7.

Both were fixed years ago. Today the installer has a hard-to-guess name, it can be password protected, and it deletes itself when you log in. Our test site showed all three working. Keep the plugin updated, and delete old backups you no longer need from the server.

Duplicator vs the Alternatives

All-in-One WP Migration is simpler: install WordPress on the new host, add the plugin, and import one file. But the free import is capped by your host’s upload limit, and restoring from its backup list needs the $69/year Unlimited Extension. Pick it for small sites on hosts with high upload limits; pick Duplicator for larger sites or when you want to move files by FTP. Our All-in-One WP Migration guide walks through it.

UpdraftPlus is the better choice for ongoing backups. Its free version runs on a schedule and sends copies to your own cloud storage. The vendor says a free backup can be restored on a new site, and Premium adds direct site-to-site migration. Many site owners use UpdraftPlus for nightly backups and Duplicator for moves.

Your host’s migration service. Many hosts move WordPress sites for free, which may be the easiest path.

Staging. Duplicator’s staging sites need the $399/year Pro plan. If you just need a safe copy to test updates, WP Staging does that for free; see our staging plugin roundup.