Fixing 'No Data Found' When Migrating from All in One SEO to Yoast SEO

Migrating your SEO data from All in One SEO (AIOSEO) to Yoast SEO should be a straightforward process, but a common and frustrating issue many users encounter is the "No Data Found" message during the import. This guide will walk you through the most common reasons this happens and the steps you can take to resolve it.

Why You See "No Data Found"

The import tool is designed to look for specific data from the AIOSEO plugin in your WordPress database. If it can't find that data in the expected format or location, it will return the "No Data Found" message, indicating the import process found nothing to transfer. This does not necessarily mean your data is gone.

Common Solutions to Try

1. Verify AIOSEO Data is Present and Accessible

The first and most crucial step is to confirm your old SEO data still exists. The easiest way to do this is to temporarily reactivate the All in One SEO plugin if you have deactivated it. Once reactivated, edit a few posts or pages where you know you had custom meta titles or descriptions. If you can see that data in the AIOSEO meta box, then your data is still present in the database and should be available for import.

2. Ensure the AIOSEO Plugin is Installed (But Can Be Deactivated)

A common point of confusion is the plugin's status. You do not need the AIOSEO plugin active to import data from it. However, the plugin must still be present in your WordPress plugin list (either active or inactive) for the Yoast SEO import tool to recognize it as an available import source. If you have completely deleted the AIOSEO plugin files from your server, the import tool will have nothing to pull from. Ensure it is at least installed and inactive before attempting the import.

3. Run the Import Process Correctly

Follow these steps precisely:

1. Navigate to Yoast SEO > Tools.
2. Click on the Import tab.
3. Locate "All in One SEO" in the list of plugins.
4. Click the Import button next to it.
5. After the process completes, you should see a success message confirming what was imported.

4. Check the Front End and Yoast Meta Boxes

After a successful import, the data may not immediately be visible in every part of the WordPress admin. Keep AIOSEO deactivated and Yoast SEO activated. Then, check your posts and pages in two places:

• The Yoast SEO meta box: Scroll down on the edit screen of a post or page. The Yoast SEO section should now be populated with the imported title and meta description.
• Your live website: View the page source of a post to see if the meta tags are now being output by Yoast SEO.

What If It Still Doesn't Work?

If you have confirmed your data exists and followed the steps above but the import still fails, the issue could be more technical. Possible causes include a very large database that timed out during the import, a conflict with another plugin, or data stored in a non-standard way by a specific version of AIOSEO.

For further community troubleshooting, you can provide screenshots showing a specific post's edit screen with the old AIOSEO data visible and what the same post looks like after the import attempt. Use a service like Snipboard.io to share the images.

Successfully migrating your SEO data saves immense time and protects your search engine rankings. By methodically working through these steps, you can overcome the "No Data Found" error and get your Yoast SEO setup started on the right foot.