How to copy or duplicate a SharePoint site

Copying a SharePoint site is often required when setting up new departments, creating testing environments, restructuring content, or migrating to another tenant. However, SharePoint Online does not provide a simple built-in clone site feature. Administrators typically rely on site templates, migration approaches, or scripted copy operations to duplicate site structure and content. When full site duplication is not required, files and libraries can be copied separately between sites. Choosing the right method depends on scale, permissions, and how closely the destination site must match the source.

Method 1: Copy a SharePoint site using the SharePoint Online browser UI

SharePoint Online allows limited site duplication through templates and manual copying, making it suitable for recreating similar sites without scripts.

Prerequisites

• ou must be a Site Owner or have Full Control permissions.
• The destination site must already exist (unless you are creating a new site from a template).
• Custom Script must be enabled in your tenant
• The modern SharePoint experience must be enabled.

Step 1: Duplicate site structure using templates

1. Open the source SharePoint site.
2. Go to Settings > Site information > View all site settings.
3. Under Site Actions, select Save site as template.
4. Enter a File name and Template name, then check the Include Content box if you want to include files and list items (limited to 50MB).
5. Once saved, click the link to the Solutions Gallery to ensure the template's status is Activated.
6. Go to your SharePoint start page or the admin center to create a new site.
7. Select the Custom tab (or Select a template menu) and choose your saved template from the list.
8. Finalize your site by applying specific permissions or branding.

This recreates structure, lists, libraries, and layout, but it may not include all content or configurations.

Step 2: Copy site pages to the new site

After creating the destination site:

1. In the source site, open Site contents > Site Pages.
2. Select the page you want to copy.
3. Click Copy to from the command bar (or download and upload the page file if Copy to is unavailable).
4. Choose the destination site’s Site Pages library.
5. Publish or republish the page on the target site.

This duplicates the page layout and content; some web parts, links, or data connections may require manual reconfiguration.

Step 3: Copy files from the original site to the new site

1. Open the source site’s document library.
2. Select files or folders to copy.
3. Click Copy to from the command bar.
4. Choose the destination site and library.
5. Click Copy here.

Limitations to consider

• There is no one-click method to clone an entire SharePoint site; files and libraries must be copied manually.
• Templates may not include all content, and some modern sites do not support saving as templates.
• Requires elevated administrative privileges.
• Enabling Custom Script typically requires PowerShell.

Method 2: Copy a SharePoint site using Windows PowerShell

PowerShell enables administrators to duplicate site structures and copy content programmatically, making it suitable for automation and bulk operations.

Prerequisites

Before using PowerShell, ensure that:

• You have SharePoint Administrator or Global Administrator rights.
• The PnP.PowerShell module is installed.
• Source and destination sites exist and are accessible.
• You are connected to SharePoint Online.

Install and connect by running the script below:

Install-Module PnP.PowerShell -Scope CurrentUser
Connect-PnPOnline -Url https://tenant.sharepoint.com/sites/SourceSite -Interactive

Export and apply a site template (structure duplication)

Export the configuration of the source site. This duplicates lists, libraries, branding, and settings but may not copy all data.

Get-PnPSiteTemplate -Out "SiteTemplate.xml"

Connect to the destination site and apply the template:
Connect-PnPOnline -Url https://tenant.sharepoint.com/sites/TargetSite -Interactive

Invoke-PnPSiteTemplate -Path "SiteTemplate.xml"

Copy files from one SharePoint site to another

Copy-PnPFile -SourceUrl "Shared Documents/Report.docx" `
             -TargetUrl "/sites/TargetSite/Shared Documents/Report.docx" `
             -OverwriteIfAlreadyExists

Copy an entire folder

Copy-PnPFile -SourceUrl "Shared Documents/Projects" `
             -TargetUrl "/sites/TargetSite/Shared Documents/Projects" `
             -OverwriteIfAlreadyExists

Supported parameters

The following parameters can be used while copying sites in SharePoint:

Limitations to consider

• Requires advanced scripting knowledge.
• Templates, permissions, and workflows may not transfer correctly.
• Troubleshooting large migrations can be difficult.
• There is no built-in scheduling or progress dashboards.

Method 3: How to Duplicate a SharePoint Site

SharePoint Manager Plus provides migration capabilities that effectively copy a SharePoint site within the same tenant or to another SharePoint environment. This copies the entire site structure, content, and access settings in a controlled manner.

1. Navigate to Migration > Site Migration, then click + Add Migration Task.
2. Choose the source and destination sites using the Select Source and Select Target fields.
3. Select objects to include, such as site users, groups, permissions, lists, and libraries.
4. Click Run Now or Run Later to schedule the task.
5. Monitor progress on the Site Migration tab.
6. After completion, click View Details to view the summary report.

Simplify SharePoint site duplication and migration with SharePoint Manager Plus

Duplicating a few files manually is manageable, but copying entire SharePoint sites across environments requires automation, reliability, and visibility. ManageEngine SharePoint Manager Plus streamlines large-scale site duplication and migration through an intuitive graphical interface.

Important tips

Frequently asked questions