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Magento 1 to Magento 2 Migration Guide

Staying on Magento 1 means slower pages, security gaps, and a checkout that costs you sales. Magento 2 isn’t just an upgrade — it’s a completely different league. With 68 projects delivered, INNERLUXES makes this transition smooth, safe, and built for growth.

Magento Migration

What’s New or Improved in Magento 2

Your store deserves better than a platform that’s running out of road. Magento 1 had its time. But staying on it today means slower pages, security gaps, and a checkout experience that frustrates the customers you worked hard to win. Magento 2 isn’t just an upgrade — it’s a completely different league.

  • Ecommerce businesses benefit from up to 50% quicker page loading on catalog and checkout pages.
  • A streamlined checkout that cuts steps, asks for less, and keeps more customers from walking away at the last moment.
  • PWA-ready architecture so your store can deliver an app-like experience without an actual app.

Magento 2 Benefits

At INNERLUXES, we’ve guided stores through this transition across 30+ industries. Here’s what your business actually gains on the other side.

Faster page loading

  • Up to 50% quicker catalog and checkout pages.
  • Three separate databases for product data, checkout, and orders.
  • No more slowdowns from shared resources.
  • Built-in full-page cache for consistent speed.

Streamlined checkout

  • Fewer steps, less friction, higher conversion.
  • Smoother mobile checkout experience.
  • Guest checkout without account creation barriers.
  • Fewer abandoned carts at the last moment.

Drag-and-drop builder

  • Update content without touching code.
  • Non-technical teams can manage pages directly.
  • Faster campaign and promotion launches.
  • Clean, intuitive admin designed for real people.

Stronger security

  • Stronger security architecture by design.
  • Regular official security patches.
  • Built-in testing framework catches bugs early.
  • Higher-quality extensions with enforced coding standards.

PWA & API support

  • PWA-ready architecture for app-like experiences.
  • Improved API support for third-party integrations.
  • Native ElasticSearch for faster product discovery.
  • Cloud hosting options for scalability under traffic spikes.

Better product discovery

  • Native ElasticSearch integration.
  • Customers find what they want faster.
  • Smarter layered navigation and filtering.
  • Higher conversions from better search results.

Ready to Move Your Store to Magento 2?

INNERLUXES handles every phase of your migration — from theme rebuild to data transfer to go-live. With 132 professionals and 68 projects delivered, you’re in the right hands.

Migration Process

There are 4 core elements of a Magento solution to migrate. Each requires a different approach — and experience to get right.

Themes migration

Magento 1 themes don’t carry over. This is actually a good thing — it’s your chance to build a storefront that reflects where your brand is today. Go with a ready-made theme or build something fully custom. We’ll tell you honestly which makes more sense for your situation.

Extensions migration

Every extension needs a second look. Magento 2 ships with so much more out of the box that some of the paid add-ons you’re running right now may simply become unnecessary. That’s money back in your pocket.

Customizations migration

This is where experience really matters. Custom code from Magento 1 needs to be carefully rebuilt for Magento 2 — not just copied across. With 68 projects behind us, our developers know exactly where the complexity hides and how to handle it cleanly.

Data migration

Your products, orders, and customers are the heart of your business. We treat them that way. Migration is also the perfect moment to clean up years of messy data and start fresh with a lean, well-organized database.

Noman Saeed — Project Manager, Web Development Expert at INNERLUXES

Noman Saeed

Project Manager, Web Development Expert
at INNERLUXES

A successful Magento migration isn’t just about moving data — it’s about moving it correctly. We run full regression testing across catalog, checkout, and integrations before any data freeze. Going live without thorough testing is how small problems become expensive ones.

Selected Projects by InnerLuxes

Magento 2 Migration Plan

Here’s how the four migration elements come together into a clean, step-by-step process that protects your data, your rankings, and your business throughout.

1
Audit & Clean Up

Review your Magento 1 store. Cut redundant data and unnecessary extensions before anything moves.

2
Set Up M2 Environment

Provision a fresh Magento 2 environment configured for your store’s scale and requirements.

3
Build New Theme

Design a new storefront that reflects your brand today — ready-made or fully custom.

4
Migrate & Extend

Rebuild custom code and bring in updated, compatible extensions for Magento 2.

5
Test Everything

Full testing across catalog, checkout, integrations, and performance before any data moves.

6
Fix & Retest

Address all issues found and verify every fix before freezing Magento 1 activity.

7
Freeze & Migrate Data

Freeze Magento 1 admin, run bulk data migration, validate all products, orders, and customers.

8
Go Live

Launch on Magento 2 with full monitoring in place and post-launch support ready from day one.

How long does it take? That depends on how deeply customized your current store is and what changes you’re planning for the new one. Our team will give you a realistic timeline from day one — no guesswork, no surprises.

Migration Mistakes to Avoid

A successful migration isn’t just about technical skill — it’s about avoiding the mistakes that hurt stores every day. This space, here’s what we’ve seen go wrong.

Wrong timing

Never plan a migration during peak sales seasons or holiday periods. Even a smooth migration creates temporary disruption — protect your revenue window.

Ignoring top pages

Your highest-revenue pages need priority attention throughout the entire process — not just an afterthought at the end.

Skipping 301 redirects

If your URL structure changes without proper 301 redirects, you’ll lose the search rankings you spent years building. Non-negotiable.

Messy data migration

Disorganized migration scrambles product descriptions, title tags, and meta data — and your Google rankings take the hit. Plan data cleanup before you start.

No backup plan

Always back up everything before migration starts. External storage, cloud backup, all of it. If something goes wrong, you need a clean restore point.

Skipping post-launch testing

Going live without thorough testing is how small problems become big, expensive ones. Test before launch, then test again after launch.

Forgetting your team

Your staff needs to know how the new platform works before launch day, not after. Plan for training as part of the migration project.

The Migration Best Practice

Don’t treat migration as a data transfer only. The stores that get the most out of Magento 2 migration are the ones who treat it as a fresh start — and a genuine opportunity to build something better.

Treat it as a fresh start

We don’t just move your data from one platform to another. We look at what your store is doing today, where it’s falling short, and what it could be doing better — then we build toward that.

Let’s discuss your store →

Protect your SEO & data

Proper 301 redirects, clean data migration, and preserved meta data mean your search rankings stay intact. Migration becomes the first step in your store’s next chapter.

Start my migration →

Grow from day one

With 132 professionals, and 68 projects across 30+ industries, we know how to make this process smooth for you and powerful for your business.

Talk to our team →

Magento Migration – Q&A

When is the best time to migrate from Magento 1 to Magento 2?

The best time is outside your peak sales season. Avoid migrations during major holidays or high-traffic promotional periods. Plan during a slower window so your team has space to test, adapt, and resolve any issues before they affect revenue.

Will I lose my SEO rankings during migration?

Not if the migration is handled correctly. Proper 301 redirects, preserved URL structures, and careful meta data migration protect your search rankings throughout the transition. Skipping this step is one of the most common — and costly — mistakes stores make.

How long does a Magento 1 to Magento 2 migration take?

Timeline depends on how deeply customized your current store is and what changes you’re planning for the new one. A simple store with standard extensions moves faster than a heavily customized platform. Our team provides a realistic timeline from day one — no guesswork, no surprises.

Let’s discuss your needs

The more detail you share, the more accurate the scope and cost we send back. Free estimate, no sales calls.

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