Most site migrations fail not because the new platform is wrong but because the old platform had invisible dependencies nobody cataloged. A WordPress site running WooCommerce with 14 plugins, a custom theme, and a CDN-cached checkout flow does not just "move to Eleventy." Half of those plugins do things the new site needs to replicate, and nobody wrote down what they are.
The Migration Analyzer does the inventory before the migration starts.
What it detects
Paste any URL and the tool fetches the page plus its key auxiliary files (robots.txt, sitemap.xml, llms.txt, ai.txt, manifest.json). Then it classifies everything it finds into four portability buckets:
Portable means the asset moves to any platform with no code changes. Text content, images, metadata, JSON-LD schema blocks, and static aux files all fall here. These are the easy parts.
Platform-dependent means the asset works because of the current CMS's infrastructure. WordPress theme CSS, Squarespace template layouts, and Wix's proprietary page builder components are platform-dependent. They need to be rebuilt, not moved.
Vendor-locked means the asset is controlled by a third party and cannot be exported. ProSites dental templates, FindLaw legal site frameworks, BentoBox restaurant widgets, and platform-specific checkout flows are vendor-locked. The site owner cannot even see the source code.
Infrastructure means the asset lives at the DNS, SSL, or CDN level. Domain registrar settings, SSL certificates, CDN caching rules, and hosting-specific headers are infrastructure. They move last, and mistakes here take the site offline.
The vendor lock-in score
The tool calculates a vendor lock-in score from 0 to 100. A score of 0 means the site is fully portable (static HTML, open-source CMS, no proprietary components). A score of 100 means the site is completely locked behind a vendor template and essentially needs to be rebuilt from the content up.
The 23 vendor platforms the tool recognizes include:
- Dental: ProSites, Officite, Sesame Communications, PBHS, Smile Marketing, Dental Branding
- Legal: FindLaw, Justia, Scorpion, Mockingbird
- Restaurant: BentoBox, Toast, Popmenu, ChowNow
- Real estate: Placester, Real Geeks, Sierra Interactive
- General CMS: WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, Shopify, Webflow, GoDaddy Builder
The migration risk score
Migration risk is scored across five dimensions:
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Content portability — How much content can be exported as-is? Text and images are easy. Dynamic database-driven content is harder. Behind-login content is hardest.
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URL structure — Will URLs change? If
/services/dental-implants/becomes/dental-implants/, every indexed page loses its ranking equity unless you map 301 redirects for every changed URL. -
SEO equity — Are titles, meta descriptions, canonicals, and schema all documented? If not, the new site starts from zero in search engines even though the domain stays the same.
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Vendor dependency — How much of the site's functionality comes from proprietary vendor code? A WordPress site with 3 plugins is low-dependency. A Scorpion legal site with a custom intake form is high-dependency.
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Technical complexity — How many moving parts need to be replicated? E-commerce checkout, user login, database queries, and API integrations all add complexity.
When to run this tool
Run it before you talk to a developer. The Migration Analyzer gives you the vocabulary to describe what your site actually has, so the developer's estimate is based on reality instead of a quick glance at the homepage. Run it before you sign a contract with a new vendor, so you know which features need to be replaced. Run it before you cancel your current hosting, so you have a capture manifest to rebuild from.
The AI migration prompt
After the analysis, the tool generates a comprehensive AI prompt you can paste into ChatGPT or Claude. The prompt includes the full capture manifest (what the site has now), the portability classification (what moves, what doesn't), and specific instructions for rebuilding on your target framework.
If you want to go further, the companion Site Migration Gen takes the same analysis and generates a complete rebuild prompt with every SEO, schema, accessibility, and AI-readiness best practice baked in.
Related reading
- Site Migration Capture captures the full technical manifest before migration
- Site Migration Gen generates the AI rebuild prompt for the new site
- Single Site Gen generates a build prompt for sites starting from scratch
- Cross-Validation Layer covers vendor platform detection and YMYL classification
This post is informational, not migration-consulting or development advice. Mentions of specific platforms are nominative fair use. No affiliation is implied.
