A SiteGround handover transfers the website rather than the whole hosting plan. That distinction matters because your client needs room to accept the site, while your plan and billing relationship stay separate.
SiteGround can carry a useful amount of site material in the ownership transfer, including files, databases, email accounts, and SSL certificates. Still, you should confirm the domain path separately if the domain was registered there too.
Before you start
- Take a fresh backup of files, databases, and environment settings before changing ownership.
- Confirm whether email, DNS, domains, add-ons, staging, and backups move with the site or stay behind.
- Give your client a clear window for freeze time, maintenance mode, or DNS changes.
On SiteGround, specifically
- SiteGround lets you transfer website ownership to a new owner, and the recipient does not need to already be a SiteGround client. Source, checked September 3, 2026.
- SiteGround says hosting plans cannot be transferred to another SiteGround user; only sites can be transferred. Source, checked September 3, 2026.
- A SiteGround StartUp account cannot transfer website ownership when it has less than 30 days until expiration. Source, checked September 3, 2026.
- SiteGround requires the destination account to have a free website slot before it can accept the website ownership transfer. Source, checked September 3, 2026.
- SiteGround says the transfer includes the site's files, databases, email accounts, and SSL certificates. Source, checked September 3, 2026.
The three stages
Prepare
Inventory the production site, staging copies, database names, cron jobs, environment variables, and billing add-ons. Pause risky content edits while the host prepares the transfer.
Transfer
Start the provider's account-transfer flow or create the receiving account path they document. Share only transfer codes or dashboard invitations, never your own login.
Confirm
Load the site from the new owner context, check SSL, forms, uploads, admin login, scheduled tasks, and any DNS records that point traffic at the host.
What to tell your client
- What moves automatically and what they need to recreate.
- Who pays for the hosting plan once the transfer is accepted.
- Whether your collaborator access stays in place after ownership changes.
After it is done
Record the asset in Everkey, change its ownership status from needs_transfer to client_owned, and leave a short note with the account that now controls the site. The free tier is enough for a small handover map.