---
title: "Manually migrating a legacy website to the new builder (Part 1)"
updated: 2026-01-15
---

# Manually migrating a legacy website to the new builder (Part 1)

The new Website Builder provides a more flexible way to create and manage your publication site within beehiiv, including [AI Chat](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/36309935373591-using-ai-chat-to-build-your-website), which lets you describe what you want to build and generate layouts, sections, and content directly in the builder.

If you’re currently using the legacy Website Builder and are ready to upgrade, this guide walks through the **manual migration process** while helping you keep the subscriber experience consistent, so your audience experiences little to no disruption.

This article is Part 1 of a [two-part series](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/34882422067479) focused on migrating your site manually, which is separate from the 1-click migration option in the app. In this guide, you’ll learn:

-   Who this article is for.
-   A quick comparison between the new and legacy Website Builders.
-   What to know before you begin migrating.
-   Step-by-step written instructions.

For more details on building your publication site, check out: [**Manually migrating a legacy website to the new builder (Part 2): Adding custom pages and featuring posts**](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/34882422067479) and [**How to make your URLs match the URLs on your legacy site**](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/35141364532759).

---

## Who this article is for

This guide is for beehiiv users who: 

-   Created their account before **July 15, 2025**, and
-   Have not yet migrated their website to the **new** **Website Builder**. 

---

## Website Builder vs Legacy Website Builder 

Not sure which version you’re on? See: [How to tell which Website Builder version you’re using on beehiiv](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/34513430065431-how-to-tell-which-website-builder-version-youre-using-on-beehiiv).

### How to access the builders

From the left panel dashboard, click on **Website**. From there, you’ll see one or two options: 

-   [**Builder**](https://app.beehiiv.com/website_builder_v2) (the new builder, available to all)
-   [**Builder (Legacy)**](https://app.beehiiv.com/website_builder) (available only to accounts created before July 15, 2025)

If you still have access to the legacy builder, you can continue editing there but we recommend switching to the new builder for greater flexibility and expanded features.

---

## 5 things to know before migrating

To ensure a smooth migration, please be aware of the following:

1.  **Save or copy your legacy site's global colors**: Navigate to **Legacy Website Builder > Styles** **tab >** [**Global Colors**](https://app.beehiiv.com/website_builder?sectionId=global-colors) to note the existing color palette of your legacy site. This makes it easy to match your current branding in the new builder.   
      
    ![image11.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882231252375)
    
    > **Pro Tip**
    >
    > _Open a separate browser window to keep your legacy site handy and easily refer back to it while you work in the new builder._ Until you publish your new website, you’ll still have access to the legacy builder, and your legacy site will remain live for subscribers.
    
2.  **Save or copy your legacy site's typography and fonts**: Go to **Legacy Website Builder > Styles > Typography** to capture your font settings for reuse.  
      
    ![image1.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34881949454231)
3.  **Custom pages must be recreated manually**: Any custom pages from your legacy site will need to be rebuilt in the new builder. You’ll want to be able to refer to them in a separate tab to easily copy and paste from. You can also [recreate the exact URLs from the pages on your legacy site using custom pages](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/35141364532759).   
     
4.  **Update navigation if needed**: If your legacy site included custom pages in the navigation bar, you’ll need to re-add them to your navbar in the new builder.  
     
5.  **Understand the new layout**: After selecting a template during onboarding, your chosen design will appear on the canvas, surrounded by the tools you’ll use to customize your site. [Refer to this article to learn how the new Website Builder works.](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/33509520853399-how-to-use-the-website-builder) 

---

## Onboarding steps to migrate your legacy website to the new website builder

> **Reminder**
>
> Before starting, be sure you’ve reviewed [**5 things to know before migrating**](#h_01K4XD5JP8DKW6VZNT1B8T4HXC) above.

1.  From the left panel dashboard, click on **Website > Builder**.   
     
2.  You’ll be guided through the [website builder onboarding flow](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/29730433807767-getting-started-with-templates-in-the-website-builder) to select a template. To most closely match the legacy website experience, choose **The Atlas Collective** template, found under the **Advanced** **tab**.  
      
    ![image6.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229661975)
3.  Once you’ve chosen your template, click the **Next** button at the top-right to continue.   
      
    ![image17.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882231254295)
4.  On the **Color palette** step, you can reuse your legacy colors by pasting hex codes into the color modal.  
      
    ![image12.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229662231)  
    Or, if you want to switch things up, you can select from one of the **Sample color palette presets**.  
      
    ![image9.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229662487)
5.  After completing the color selection, click on the **Next** button.    
      
    ![image16.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882231257623)
6.  On the **Typography** step, you’ll select the fonts for your site. To keep consistency, you can reuse your legacy fonts (by referring back to them).   
      
    Click on a font to edit it, then search or scroll to make your selection.  
      
    ![image18.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882231258903)
7.  Once you’ve made your typography choices, click on the **Next** button.   
      
    ![image5.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229663383)
8.  On the **Pages** step, choose the pages to include on your new site. All pages are selected by default, but you can deselect if needed.
    
    > **Tech Note**
    >
    > The homepage is required for the website to work and cannot be disabled.
    
    ![image10.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882231259671)
9.  When you’re done selecting pages, click on the **Start building** button to continue.   
      
    ![image15.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229664151)
    
    > **Reminder**
    >
    > Custom pages created in the legacy builder will not appear here and must be recreated manually.
    
10.  You’ll now enter the onboarding tutorial for the new editor.   
       
     ![image19.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229664663)  
     We recommend completing it to get oriented, but you can skip by clicking **Skip onboarding** at the top of your screen. Otherwise, simply click on the **Next** button for each step to continue with the onboarding.   
       
     ![image3.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882231260695)
11.  When you have completed the tutorial, click on the **Finish onboarding** button.  
       
     ![image14.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229665943)
     
     > **Important Reminder**
     >
     > Be sure to click **Finish onboarding** at the end of the tutorial. If you click **Publish Site** instead, your site will go live with only default pages and no further customization.  
     >   
     > Your legacy site will remain published until you explicitly publish your new site. Any work in the new builder stays in draft mode until you choose to publish.
     

---

## Getting used to the new builder

Once onboarding is complete and you begin working in the new Website Builder, you’ll notice some differences from the legacy experience. We cover these in detail in our [How to use the Website Builder](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/33509520853399-how-to-use-the-website-builder) and [Customizing your site in the Website Builder](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/29745846234647-customizing-your-site-in-the-website-builder) guides, but here are a few quick tips to help get you acquainted with the new builder: 

-   **Accessing pages:** Click the **Pages** **icon** in the left-hand toolbar to open and manage your site pages.
-   **Default pages:** The legacy builder only included a **Home**, **Signup**, and **Upgrade** page. The new builder provides site themes with **Archive**, **Recommendations**, and **Authors** pages — all available and customizable by default.
-   **Dynamic Pages**: Unlike in the legacy builder, the new builder gives you the ability to update the styling of your dynamic pages. For example, changing the design of the **Surveys** page applies to all surveys, and updating the **Posts** page applies to all web posts.
-   **Previewing pages:** Click **Preview** in the bottom toolbar to see how your pages will look before publishing.

---

## Migrating custom pages to the new Website Builder

To move your custom pages from the legacy builder into the new Website Builder, you’ll need to recreate them.

1.  From the legacy Website Builder, use the dropdown menu at the top to navigate to the custom page you wish to migrate.   
      
    ![image20.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229666711)
2.  Click on the **3 dots menu** for the page, then select **Edit**.   
      
    ![image4.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882231264151)
3.  You’ll be presented with the content from that page. Copy the content, then return back to the **new Website Builder**.   
      
    ![image13.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229668503)
    
    > **Pro Tip**
    >
    > Open multiple browser windows/tabs to easily refer back to your legacy website pages. Until you publish your new website, you’ll still have access to the legacy builder, and your legacy site will remain live for subscribers.
    
4.  From the new Website Builder, click the **Pages icon** in the icons menu on the left. Under **Custom Pages**, select **New Page +** to create a new page.   
      
    ![image2.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34881949454999)
5.  The **Custom pages template library** will appear. Click on **Start from scratch**, then click on the **Set title and URL** button in the bottom right.  
      
    ![image8.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229669015)
6.  Enter the **Title** and **URL** in the applicable text fields. If you’d like, copy these directly from your legacy site. When done, click on the **Create page** button.   
      
    ![image7.png](https://beehiivhelp.zendesk.com/hc/article_attachments/34882229669783)
7.  Now that you’ve created the page, you can refer back to your legacy page to copy and paste the content from your old custom page into the new page. Copy or record the URL for your new custom page [to be used in Part 2](https://www.beehiiv.com/support/article/34882422067479). 

---