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Website migration for France: launch your French version without losing what you have built
Adding a French version, moving it to a .fr domain, merging country sites or changing platform: for Google, each one is a migration. I map every URL, plan the redirects and hreflang tags, test the site before it goes live and monitor it afterwards.
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Why launching in France is a migration
A website migration is any change that moves pages, URLs or languages: a new /fr/ section, a French site moved to .fr, country sites merged into one international site, a new platform such as Shopify Markets. Google has learned your existing pages, their addresses and their links. When they change without care, it needs weeks to find its way, and some rankings never come back.
The work happens before go-live (inventory, URL mapping, redirect and hreflang plan, pre-launch testing) and after it (monitoring and quick fixes). I took over Frontline’s website after a rushed migration: Google traffic doubled within a year.
Aardvarks Digital is me, Damien Oumanetz, a French SEO consultant since 2010 (Zalando, Galeries Lafayette, Evaneos). More about me.
- Done byMe, from inventory to monitoring.
- Lead time3 to 16 weeks depending on the plan, then 1 to 3 months of monitoring.
- DeliverablesURL inventory, redirect map, hreflang plan, pre-launch checklist, monitoring report.
- Price3 plans, from €2,490. Compare
- PlatformsI build on WordPress; any platform when your agency builds.
Which migration?
Not every French project carries the same risk
The more URLs, content and internal links move, the more the migration must be prepared.
New /fr/ section
Moderate risk
- Existing pages keep their URLs
- hreflang between versions
- French content, not just a translated menu
Redesign of the French site
Moderate risk
- Pages merged or removed
- Content rewritten
- Know what ranks before touching it
Move to or from a .fr domain
High risk
- Every French URL changes
- Links to transfer
- Change of Address in Search Console
New platform or merged sites
High risk
- Shopify Markets, WooCommerce, headless
- Almost every URL changes
- Testing and monitoring reinforced
The risks
What goes wrong in a badly prepared migration
The same mistakes come back on almost every international launch I am called in for after the fact.
Old URLs without redirects
Visitors land on errors, links from other sites lead nowhere, rankings drop.
hreflang pointing to the wrong pages
Tags that point to redirected, noindex or missing pages, or no return link between versions.
Test settings left live
A noindex or a staging robots.txt left in place, a sitemap not updated: the site leaves Google.
Pages that rank removed
They “were not needed” in the new design. The searches they captured go to your competitors.
Slower, or closed to AI
A heavier theme, AI crawlers blocked, structured data lost on the way.
The method
A migration in 5 steps, with SEO from day one
The steps follow Google’s own guidance on site moves: map old URLs to new ones, use server-side permanent redirects, keep them for at least a year, and expect a temporary fluctuation while Google recrawls.
- 1Before anythingInventoryPages that bring traffic, pages that receive links, searches you rank for in each country, baseline measures. This decides what is kept, merged or removed.
- 2SpecificationURL mapping and hreflang planNew structure for the French version, a table of every old URL and its new URL, the hreflang set between languages and countries. URLs that work are kept when possible.
- 3StagingPre-launch testingTags, internal links, hreflang, structured data, speed and crawler access checked against a written checklist, on the staging site.
- 4Go-live dayControlled launch301 redirects live, test blockers removed, new sitemaps submitted, indexing checked in Search Console; Change of Address submitted when the domain changes.
- 5AfterMonitoringRankings, traffic and errors per country compared with the baseline, to fix quickly whatever moves the wrong way.
Prices
How much does a website migration for France cost?
Three plans with public prices. The price depends mostly on the number of page types, the content to produce and what changes: platform, domain, languages.
Brochure site up to 15 pages, built on WordPress. Inventory, structure, redirect plan, pre-launch testing, go-live and 1 month of monitoring. 3 to 4 weeks.
Request a quoteUp to 20 pages, built on WordPress. Everything in Essential, plus keyword research, competitor benchmark, AI visibility review, 3 content briefs and 20 pages written. 5 to 7 weeks.
Request a quoteNew French version, .fr domain, merged country sites, platform change, e-commerce. Your agency builds, I secure the SEO from specification to 3 months of monitoring. 8 to 16 weeks.
Let’s talkOptions: content brief €275 per page type, page written €20, product description in batch €5, extra template €275, extra month of monitoring €275. Projects from €2,490 can be paid in 2 or 3 instalments.
VAT not applicable, art. 293 B of the French Tax Code (CGI). See all my prices
FAQ
Your questions about migrating for France
Will we lose traffic?
Google itself says to expect a temporary fluctuation in rankings during a move. The method is there to keep it small and short: complete redirects, pages that rank kept, testing before go-live and monitoring after. Nobody can honestly promise zero variation.
When should SEO join the project?
At the specification stage, before the design. That is where the structure, the URLs, the languages and the content kept or removed are decided. SEO called in the week of go-live can only limit the damage.
Our agency is building the site. What is your role?
I work alongside them on the SEO side: requirements for the specification, URL mapping, redirect and hreflang plan, staging review and post-launch monitoring. They keep the development, I protect your rankings.
Should French URLs be translated?
Usually yes: French words in the URL read better for French users. What matters most is that every old URL has a redirect, that hreflang links the right pages, and that internal links point to the final URLs, not to redirects.
Do we need the Change of Address tool?
Only when you move from one domain or subdomain to another, for example from fr.example.com to example.fr. Google says it is not needed for an HTTP to HTTPS move. Adding a /fr/ section on the same domain does not need it either.
How long do redirects need to stay in place?
Google recommends keeping them as long as possible, generally at least one year. I advise keeping them for good when the old URLs still receive links.
Sources: Google Search Central, Site moves with URL changes and Tell Google about localized versions of your page.
Before the design starts
Let’s first look at what your site already brings you
Tell me about your site and your French project. I look at your visibility on Google and in AI answers, then send you 3 priority actions for a safe launch. Within 24 hours, no commitment.
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