Upload your site: guides by host

Hostinger

hpanel.hostinger.com → Websites → Dashboard → File Manager → public_html

1. 1. Open the File Manager of your website

   Go to hostinger.com, click Log in. Click Websites, then Dashboard next to your website. In the sidebar click File Manager (it opens in a new tab; keep only one open) and double-click public_html. No File Manager button in the sidebar? Then your site was built with Hostinger's Website Builder: read the note under the steps.

2. 2. Back up first

   Back in the Dashboard click Backups → Restore and download → Files backups → the most recent date → Download files. That .tar.gz is your whole old site. (Or, in the File Manager: select all, right-click, Compress, then Download.)

3. 3. Show hidden files

   In the File Manager, click the Settings icon, tick Show Hidden Files (dotfiles) and click Save. A WordPress site keeps a hidden .htaccess that sends every visitor to the old index.php; now you can see it and move it with the rest.

4. 4. Move the old site out of the web folder

   In the File Manager go one level up (the folder that holds public_html). Click New folder, name it old-site. Open public_html, click Select multiple, select everything (index.php, .htaccess, wp-*, default.php…), click Move and choose old-site. Nothing is deleted.

5. 5. Upload the zip and extract it

   In public_html click the Upload icon (top right) and choose yourbusiness-remo.zip. Right-click the zip, Extract, keep public_html as the destination. The zip is flat: Hostinger needs the files directly in public_html with index.html at the root, and that is where they land. Delete the zip.

6. 6. Make sure index.html is the front page

   Look in public_html for an old index.php, index.htm, default.html or default.php. If one is still there, move it into old-site: a server shows those before index.html. public_html/index.html must sit directly in public_html, not inside a folder.

7. 7. Open your site

   Open https://yourbusiness.com in a private window and click a few menu links. If the old site still shows, press Ctrl+F5; if it still does, an old index.php or index.htm is left in public_html (previous step).

8. 8. Keep the padlock (HTTPS)

   Hostinger issues the SSL on its own. If the padlock is missing: Dashboard → Security → SSL → Install SSL. To force https, use the one-click redirect if your SSL page offers one [NV], or the .htaccess rule. If the site opens as http:// without the padlock, ask me in the chat for the three-line .htaccess redirect, or turn on your host's Force HTTPS switch.

Watch out

• The zip is flat: extract it IN the web folder and index.html lands at the root. If your panel created a folder with the site inside, open it, select all, Move to the web folder.
• An old index.php, index.htm or default.html left next to index.html wins: move it into old-site.
• Show Hidden Files before moving anything: a WordPress .htaccess left behind sends visitors to the old index.php.
• old-site belongs OUTSIDE the web folder (your home folder). Inside it, an old WordPress stays public and runnable.
• Never delete the old files: Compress → Download first, then Move. Moving them back undoes everything.
• Your email does not live in these folders; nothing here touches it. Do not cancel the old hosting if your email runs there (ask me).
• Only one File Manager session at a time: close the other tab if it says so.
• Hostinger's default.php ('You Are All Set to Go!') and WordPress's index.php both beat index.html: move them to old-site.
• Never use 'Change domain' on the website: it deletes the email of that domain. Move files, not domains.
• Website Builder sites have no File Manager. Your plan can still host the files as a SEPARATE website: Websites → Add website → Empty custom website (PHP/HTML), upload there, then move the domain to it.

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