How To Migrate From Divi 4 To Divi 5

Before You Click Migrate

Before you jump into migrating to Divi 5, take a moment to plan ahead. The migration process is meant to be safe and you can undo it, but it does make big changes to how your layouts are stored behind the scenes. If you take a few simple steps first, you can avoid headaches later.

Update vs. Migrate

People often mix up the words “update” and “migrate,” but in the world of Divi 5, they are not the same thing at all.

Updating just means installing the Divi 5 theme like any other WordPress update. You have to do this first, because the migration tool is built into Divi 5. Migration is a separate step where you use the Divi 5 Migrator tool to actually change your old Divi 4 layouts into the new Divi 5 format.

When you update from Divi 4 to Divi 5, your layouts stay the same for now. Only the theme version changes. Your site will still use the Divi 4 format until you run the migration tool.

This is really important: just updating to Divi 5 does not change your site’s layouts automatically.

Test On A Staging Site First

If your Divi 4 website is live, I strongly suggest you do not run the migration there right away. Even if your site is simple, it’s always safer to set up a staging site (a copy of your site) and test the migration there first. This way, you can relax and try things out without risking your real site.

• Get familiar with the migration process
• Run the migration tool and see how it works
• Review the compatibility report
• Confirm third-party plugin behavior
• Test layouts and functionality

If you have never used a staging site before, now is the perfect time to learn. A staging site is just a copy of your live site, and most web hosts make it easy to set one up. You can use it to test updates, plugins, and migrations safely. If you need help, check out my guide on setting up a Divi staging site.

Take A Full Backup

Before you make any big changes to your site, always take a full backup. I know it’s not the most exciting task, but trust me, it can save you a lot of headaches later. This is true for any major update, whether it’s WordPress, Divi, or your plugins, but it’s especially important when you’re moving your site from Divi 4 to Divi 5. So before you update your theme or run the migrator, take a few minutes and make a complete backup of your site. You’ll be glad you did.

Even though Divi has some built-in safety nets and lets you undo parts of the process, having your own backup means you’re in control if anything unexpected happens. If you’re not sure how to make a backup, don’t worry—I have a separate guide on backing up your Divi website that will walk you through it step by step.

Check Third-Party Plugin Compatibility

One of the biggest questions I hear about moving to Divi 5 is whether your third-party modules and plugins will work.

Just because a plugin works in the Divi 5 builder doesn’t always mean it’s ready for migration. For a smooth upgrade, the plugin needs to fully support the new Divi 5 system so your modules convert properly.

Speaking as a plugin developer myself, I can tell you that making a plugin compatible with Divi 5 is one thing, but adding full migration support is a whole different challenge. It takes a lot of work and testing to make sure everything transfers over smoothly.

For example, at Pee-Aye Creative, our plugins worked with Divi 5 for months before the official release, but it took a lot more time and effort to add full migration support. It was a big job, but now all our plugins are fully ready for Divi 5, including migration.

Some developers, including us, chose to fully invest in rebuilding our products as a long-term commitment to the Divi ecosystem. Others may need more time to complete the work, and some may never update their plugins at all due to the amount of work required. This is one reason why choosing actively maintained plugins from reputable companies matters in the long term.

The Divi 5 Migrator tool will check your site and let you know which third-party modules are ready for Divi 5 and which ones need to use the compatibility mode. If a module isn’t updated yet, it will still work using Divi’s compatibility layer, so your layouts stay safe and your site won’t break.

Still, it’s a good idea to check if your plugins are officially marked as Divi 5 compatible. If you’re using the latest version and the migrator says it’s not supported, reach out to the developer. If the developer has said they’re still working on Divi 5 support, there’s no need to worry or send in support tickets just because you see a notice. The compatibility system is there to help during this transition.

Decide Your Path Forward

One more thing before you start: you don’t have to migrate your site right away. There’s no rush or deadline. In fact, Divi 4 went over 15 months without updates at one point, and sites kept running just fine.

I don’t expect any problems if you decide to wait a few months and get ready first. If you manage a lot of client sites, it makes sense to start with the easy ones and take your time. It’s a big job, but once you’re done, you’ll see the benefits. You can migrate now or keep running Divi 4 while more improvements and fixes are released.

If your site is small or ready for a redesign, it might be easier to rebuild it with Divi 5 instead of migrating old layouts. For bigger, established sites, using the migrator is usually the better option.

Divi 4 isn’t going anywhere, so you can always wait and watch the changelogs to see how things are improving before you make the switch.

There’s no need to rush. The best choice depends on how complex your site is, which plugins you use, and how busy you are right now.

Running The Divi 5 Migrator

After you’ve got your staging site ready and checked that your third-party plugins are good to go, you’re ready for the next step: running the Divi 5 Migrator. This handy tool will take your Divi 4 layouts and move them over to the new Divi 5 system for you.

Updating To Divi 5 And Accessing The Migrator

Before you start the migration, make sure your Divi theme is updated to version 5.0.0 or higher. You can do this by downloading the newest version from your Elegant Themes account, or just update Divi 4 like you normally would. It’s a simple process, just like any other update.

When you click the blue button, Divi will check your system and get ready to install the Divi 5 update. This is an exciting step, and I know many of you have been looking forward to it! You have two options here: you can click the blue button and head over to the WordPress Updates screen to update Divi, or you can simply click the Update button right here on this page. Either way works, so choose what feels easiest for you.

After you install Divi version 5.0.0 or higher, you’ll notice a message in your WordPress dashboard letting you know that you need to migrate. Just head over to Divi in your dashboard menu and click on Divi 5 Migrator. This will bring up a special screen that guides you through each step, so you won’t get lost along the way.

What The Compatibility Scan Does

When you use the Divi 5 Migrator, the first thing it does is scan your site to see if it’s ready for Divi 5. It looks for any Divi 4 shortcodes on your pages and points out which parts can be switched over to the new Divi 5 system.

Don’t worry, the scan doesn’t change anything on your site. It’s just there to show you what will be affected, so you know what to expect before making any changes.

The tool identifies:

• Elements that are fully supported and ready to be converted to Divi 5
• Modules and elements that still need backward compatibility mode, like some third-party or Marketplace modules

If your site uses older modules, they’ll still work, but you won’t see the speed and performance improvements from Divi 5 until those modules get updated and migrated too.

You might notice an orange warning up in your WordPress admin bar. If you see this, don’t worry. It just means that some parts of your page are still using the older Divi 4 modules or a plugin that hasn’t switched over to the new Divi 5 framework yet. Your site isn’t broken. This is just a friendly reminder that some modules still need to be updated for Divi 5.

Divi’s backward compatibility system is there to make sure your site keeps running smoothly while you move to Divi 5. It does add a bit of extra load, but that’s just temporary. As soon as your modules are updated for Divi 5, you can run the Migrator again to finish the conversion and enjoy the speed improvements.

Understanding The Migration Report

Once the scan is done, Divi 5 gives you a compatibility report. This report shows you which parts of your site are ready to go and which ones still need compatibility mode for now.

If a module is ready for Divi 5, it gets converted automatically. If not, don’t worry—Divi’s backward compatibility keeps everything working. Your site won’t break; it just means those modules won’t get the new performance boost until they’re updated.

If you notice third-party plugins or modules flagged in the report, take a look at whether the developer says they’re ready for Divi 5. If they claim it’s compatible but you still see warnings, that’s a good time to contact the developer. But if they’re still working on Divi 5 support, there’s no need to worry or open a support ticket. Thanks to backward compatibility, your site will keep running even if it’s not fully optimized yet.

Migrator Backup and Rollback

The Divi 5 Migrator has your back by automatically backing up your post content during the migration. If anything goes wrong or you want to switch back to Divi 4, you can easily roll back and restore your content to how it was before.

Divi 5’s Migrator is built to make things easy, but I always recommend making your own backup of your site before you start. This way, if anything unexpected happens, you have a copy you can rely on and you stay in control.

The migrator also includes its own rollback feature, providing an extra safety net. This lets you try out the migration process without worry, knowing you can always go back if you need to.

What Happens When You Click “Migrate”

When you click “Migrate,” Divi starts changing your site’s layout data into the new Divi 5 format.

This includes:

• Converting layout structures
• Converting modules
• Converting specialty sections into nested rows
• Updating the storage format

This won’t change how your site looks to visitors. The changes are all behind the scenes, in how Divi stores and loads your content.

How long the migration takes depends on your site. Bigger sites with lots of layouts and modules will need more time than smaller ones.

Be sure to let the process finish on its own. If you refresh or stop it early, you might end up with a site that isn’t fully migrated.

Backward Compatibility Mode Explained

If you notice that some modules are not fully supported yet, Divi will automatically turn on backward compatibility mode for those parts.

What this means for you is that Divi will load the older Divi 4 system just for those modules, while the rest of your page uses the new Divi 5 system. Your modules will keep working just like before, your layout will stay the same, and your site will not break.

Keep in mind, if your page uses these older modules, you will not see the speed and performance improvements from Divi 5 until those modules are updated and converted with the Migrator tool. If you see an orange warning in your admin bar, do not worry. It just means that some parts of your page are still using the old system.

Backward compatibility mode is not something to be afraid of. It is there to help your existing layouts keep working smoothly while Divi makes these big changes behind the scenes.

Rerunning The Migrator Again After Updates

If a plugin you use gets updated to support Divi 5 after you have already run the migration, you can safely run the Migrator tool again.

When you do this, Divi will scan your site again and convert any new modules that are now supported. It will not change anything that has already been migrated, so your existing content stays safe.

Whenever a plugin is updated for Divi 5, you will usually need to rerun the Migrator to make sure those modules are converted to the new system.

There is no risk in running the Migrator again after you update your plugins. In fact, this is the recommended next step once your plugins are ready for Divi 5.

What To Check After Migration

Most of the time, after you migrate your site, everything will look and work just like it did before. That’s what we want! But I always recommend taking a few minutes to check things over, just to be sure everything made the move safely.

Start by opening a few important pages in the Divi 5 Builder. Make sure your layouts load up as expected. This is not just about checking how things look, but also about getting comfortable with the new interface. You might see that some settings panels open in a new way, or that fields feel a bit different. That’s totally normal in Divi 5. The main thing is to check that your settings, like colors and fonts, are still there and correct.

For example, if you remember setting a heading to a certain font size or color, open up that module and double-check that it’s still set the way you want. This isn’t because we expect things to break, but because it helps you feel confident that everything came through just right.

Next, preview the front end of your most important pages. Pay attention to:

• Home page
• Landing pages
• Blog or archive templates
• WooCommerce layouts, if applicable
• Any custom post type templates

If your site has some extra complexity, like special plugins or custom features, it’s a good idea to give those areas a closer look. Most of the time, there won’t be any issues, but it’s always smart to double-check just in case.

You don’t need to check every single module by hand. Just focus on the big picture—how your layouts look, the spacing, your fonts, and how things look on different devices.

If everything looks good on your staging site, you’re ready to move forward with confidence.

If Something Looks Off

Most migrations go just fine, but every WordPress site is a little different. Things like your hosting, caching, plugins, custom code, and server tweaks can all make a difference after a big update. I even wrote an article about why bugs happen in Divi, just to show how many possible combinations there are out there.

If something does not look right after migration, today’s first steps should be basic maintenance actions:

• Clear your browser cache
• Clear any server or plugin caching
• Clear Divi Status CSS
• Save permalinks again in WordPress
• Temporarily disable performance plugins to test

A lot of the time, what looks like a migration problem is really just a caching or asset loading hiccup.

If you still have trouble, double-check your migration report and make sure your plugins are up to date and compatible with Divi 5. If a plugin developer says their plugin works with Divi 5 and you’re using the right version but still see issues, don’t hesitate to contact them directly.

And most importantly, be patient with yourself and the process.

Divi runs millions of websites, and no two are exactly the same. Most of the time, if something goes wrong, it’s because of a unique setup on your site, not a big problem with Divi itself. The migration tools are built to make things as smooth as possible, but sometimes you just need to work through a few troubleshooting steps to get everything right.

If you run into problems and start to feel frustrated, remember why this migration is happening in the first place.

As I mentioned earlier in this guide, Divi 5 is a complete rebuild from the ground up. Instead of leaving millions of sites behind and starting over, the team decided to rebuild Divi while everything was still running. That’s why we have a migration system instead of just launching something brand new.

Rebuilding Divi while it’s still powering your site takes more time and patience from everyone, but it means your site stays safe and you don’t lose your hard work. That’s the whole point of this migration process.

If you need more help figuring out what’s going on, check out my troubleshooting guide. It covers the most common WordPress and Divi problems and how to fix them.

Take Your Time And Move Forward With Confidence

Moving from Divi 4 to Divi 5 is a big step, but you do not have to rush. Take your time and go at your own pace.

If your site looks good on your staging site after the migration, you are probably ready to go live. If you run into small issues, just work through them one at a time. Try clearing your cache, double-check your plugin versions, and look for any compatibility messages. Most of the time, these are simple fixes and not big problems with Divi itself.

If your site is more complicated or uses a lot of third-party plugins, it is totally fine to wait. Keep an eye on updates and changelogs, and only move to Divi 5 when you feel everything is ready. Divi 4 will keep working for a long time, so there is no rush.

Once you feel comfortable with the migration, you can start exploring all the new things Divi 5 can do. This is where it gets exciting, and I will be here to help you make the most of these new features.