Get your domain, hosting, and logins from a former web developer

  • domains
  • ownership
  • hosting
  • accounts
  • planning

Updated

To take back control of your website, make a list of every account it depends on (domain, DNS, hosting, WordPress, email, Google tools, and paid plugins), find out who holds each one, and ask for each to be moved into an account your organization owns. Start with the domain: whoever controls it controls your website and your email.

Make a list of the accounts

Account What it controls How to find it
Domain registrar Who owns the domain and can renew or move it Look up the domain at ICANN Lookup; it shows the registrar and expiry date
DNS host Where the domain points: website, email The name servers in the same lookup (often the registrar, Cloudflare, or the host)
Hosting The server the site runs on, and backups Ask the developer, or look for hosting invoices
WordPress admin Every page, user, and setting Your site's /wp-admin address
Email Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 accounts Who pays the bill; the MX records in DNS
Google Analytics, Search Console, Tag Manager Your traffic data and search reports Ask for access to be added to your own Google account
Paid plugin and theme licenses Updates and support for premium plugins The plugin screens in WordPress often show the licensee
Social accounts and ad accounts Pages and campaigns Each platform's admin roles

What to ask for

Send the developer one clear, polite request listing:

  1. The domain moved into a registrar account in your organization's name, or transferred to a registrar of your choice. See Own your domain and transfer it to a new registrar.
  2. Your own Administrator login to WordPress. See Manage WordPress users and roles.
  3. The hosting account transferred to you, or a full backup of the site (files and database) so you can move it.
  4. Administrator access to Google Analytics, Search Console, and Tag Manager. See Add a user to Google Analytics.
  5. A list of paid plugins and who holds their licenses.

Ask for owner-level access, not just a user login, and change shared passwords once you have it.

If they don't respond

  • Domain: contact the registrar. If your organization is listed as the domain's registrant, the registrar can verify you and help. If the developer registered it in their own name, it's harder: ask a lawyer about your options, and see ICANN's information for domain name registrants.
  • WordPress: if you can reach the hosting account but not WordPress, the host can help you reset an Administrator password.
  • Hosting: if the hosting account is the developer's and they won't hand it over, rebuild or move the site from a backup, then point the domain at the new host.
  • Google Search Console: you can verify ownership yourself, without the developer. See Add your WordPress site to Google Search Console.
  • Licenses: buy your own. A license on someone else's account can stop updating when they cancel it.

Keep it that way

  • Keep a list of every account, owner, login email, and renewal date somewhere your organization controls.
  • Use a shared organization email address, not a personal one, for registrar and hosting logins.
  • Turn on auto-renew for the domain.

If your site runs on Dirigible

Dirigible plugin licenses are added under Dirigible → Licenses. See Adding licenses for your Dirigible plugins.

If the domain is registered to someone else and they won't move it, or you can't tell which accounts the site depends on, get help early: an expired domain or lapsed hosting can take the site and your email offline with little warning.