Migrating from Drupal to Joomla: A Step-by-Step Guide

Drupal is valued for its flexibility but criticized for its complexity. For many projects Joomla is a friendlier alternative with sufficient capabilities. We have migrated more than 30 sites from Drupal and we know all the nuances for sure. Let us look step by step at how to move a site.

Preparing for the Migration

Before starting the migration:

• Make a full backup of the Drupal site.
• Make a map of all pages.
• Export the content and files.
• Make a list of the modules and their functions.
• Export the SEO settings.

Preparation is the key to a successful migration.

Exporting Content from Drupal

Drupal stores content in nodes:

1. Export the nodes via Views or export modules.
2. Export the content to CSV or XML.
3. Save the files from the sites/default/files folder.
4. Export the taxonomy.

Content from Drupal is transferred to Joomla as articles.

Importing into Joomla

Set up the Joomla structure:

1. Create categories for the content.
2. Import the articles.
3. Upload the images to the images folder.
4. Update the links in the content.

The structure in Joomla may differ from Drupal. For large sites there is an Import of Products and Content service.

What Must Be Migrated

A content checklist:

• Pages and articles.
• Categories and taxonomy.
• Images and files.
• Users.
• SEO settings.

Migrating the Modules

Drupal modules do not work in Joomla:

• For each module find an analogue in Joomla.
• Not all functions have direct analogues.
• Custom development may be required.
• Configure the new extensions.

Plan the replacement of critical modules in advance. If there is no analogue — it can be developed as Components and Modules or Plugins.

Preserving SEO

Drupal and Joomla form URLs differently:

• Preserve the URL structure where possible.
• Set up 301 redirects for changed addresses.
• Transfer the meta tags.
• Update the sitemap.

Without redirects search rankings will drop. To preserve SEO after the migration there is the Meta Tags and Markup and SEF and Sitemap service.

Checking After the Migration

After the migration, check:

• All pages open.
• The internal links work.
• The forms are submitted.
• The images load.
• The redirects trigger.

A thorough check will help find problems before visitors discover them.

"Migrating from Drupal to Joomla is a step towards simpler site management without losing capabilities."

If you are planning a migration from Drupal and want to avoid losses — we have a ready-made Migration from Another CMS service: usually 3–7 days, preserving content and SEO. And for large sites — Content Import.