Customizer Export/Import
by Beaver Addons
Exports and imports theme customiser settings so a design can be reproduced on another site.
This link may earn us a commission. It never changes our rating.
What Customizer Export/Import does
Exports and imports theme customiser settings so a design can be reproduced on another site.
It sits in the migration part of a WordPress stack and is sold by Beaver Addons on a free basis. We recommend it in our migration guides because it does that one job well without asking you to rebuild the rest of the site around it.
Every plugin adds work to a page request, so treat this as a decision with a cost. Record a speed test before you install it and run the same test afterwards, on the same page, so you know exactly what it charged you.
Real user ratings
Score
4.8/5
Reviews
115
Active installs
100,000+
Downloads
2.8M
Latest version
0.9.8
Last updated
2026-06-16
These figures come straight from the public WordPress.org plugin directory API for version 0.9.8, not from us. Check them yourself on the WordPress.org listing. Our own editorial score is 4.4/5.
Where Customizer Export/Import ranks elsewhere
Customizer Export/Import does not appear in the published "best of" lists we track from WPBeginner, TechRadar, Kinsta, Themeisle and similar sites. That is not a mark against it - those roundups are short and skew towards the biggest names.
What changed in the latest version
- Initial release.
- Added cei_export_option_keys filter for exporting custom options.
- Customizer settings saved as options are now exported and imported.
Release notes are the developer's own words, published on WordPress.org. Read the full changelog
Pros and cons
- Fast design handover between sites
- Free with no licence to renew
- Actively maintained and used on production sites we test
- Only covers customiser options
- Support is community-led rather than guaranteed
How to use it
- 1Back up the destination site's database before importing anything.
- 2Run a small sample import first and check the field mapping.
- 3Raise PHP memory and execution limits for large files.
- 4Import media separately if the run keeps timing out.
- 5Spot-check twenty records and all internal links after the run.
How it compares
Other migration plugins we recommend, with their rating and pricing model.
| Plugin | Our rating | WordPress.org | Pricing | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customizer Export/Import | 4.4 | 4.8 (115) | Free | Fast design handover between sites |
| Export Media Library | 4.5 | 4.9 (48) | Free | Simple full-media backup |
| Import Export Suite for WooCommerce | 4.5 | n/a | Freemium | Handles orders and coupons, not just products |
| Product CSV Import Suite | 4.0 | n/a | Premium | Official support for variation imports |
| Users Import and Export | 4.3 | n/a | Freemium | Keeps user meta intact |
| Widget Importer & Exporter | 4.3 | 4.7 (117) | Free | Saves rebuilding sidebars by hand |
Guides that cover Customizer Export/Import
Alternatives
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Product CSV Import Suite
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