Understanding what your site actually contains.
USEFUL AUDITS
How many published posts, pages and products How many drafts How many revisions How many users, by role How many orders, by status How many comments, by status
WHY
Before a migration, so you can confirm nothing was lost Before cleanup, so you know the scale For reporting To find what is consuming the database
THE PATTERN
SELECT post_type, post_status, COUNT(*) FROM wp_posts GROUP BY post_type, post_status;
That single query gives you a complete picture of a WordPress site's content in one result.
It usually reveals that revisions outnumber actual content by a large factor.
FOR USERS
Counting by role requires joining usermeta, since roles are stored there.
AFTER A MIGRATION
Run the same audit on both source and destination. The numbers should match.
That is the practical check that catches a truncated import.
RECORDING IT
Note the figures periodically. Change over time is informative.
