If you are new to WordPress, make sure you read our overview of WordPress themes. This in-depth article explains what WP themes are and how using a theme can be cost-effective and time-saving for small business owners.
In this tutorial, you will learn how to update your themes to their latest version inside your admin area.
Updating WP Themes – Best Practices
We recommend going through the checklist below before attempting the upgrade process, to reduce any potential problems occurring as a result of your update.
1. Back Up Everything
Backing up your site before making any updates to your site is essential. Whenever something doesn’t go as planned, you can always restore everything to its former state.
If you don’t want to perform manual backups, there are a number of plugins you can use. You can read about a WordPress backup plugin that can fully automate your site backups here:
2. Check The Theme Update Notes
When WordPress upgrades its software to a new version, this can affect the functionality of certain themes. Depending on the theme you have installed, there may be a changelog file accompanying an update which provides an overview of new features, improvements, security fixes or any other changes in the new version.
If the theme changes seem irrelevant or unimportant, you can skip the update. Otherwise, it’s best to upgrade.
3. Test Your Theme
If you can, it’s a good idea to check the theme before installing it on your site.
Typically, web service providers will set up a test site where they can test the latest version of an installed theme, track any bugs and make sure that the new theme version doesn’t conflict with any existing plugins or settings before installing and activating it on a live site.
If you manage your own website, you can set up a test WordPress site on a subdomain or a separate domain with the same configuration settings (e.g. plugins) and play with the new theme versions on your test site before applying it to your main site.
4. Search Online
Before updating your theme, it’s a good idea to search online to see if other theme users have reported any serious problems with the new theme version.
You can enter the theme name and version into Google, and search the theme developer’s support forum (many developers provide forums for paid themes, and even for some free plugins).
5. Is Your Theme Heavily Customized? Use A Child Theme
If you have made extensive customizations to your existing WordPress theme files, upgrading your theme could result in your custom modifications being overwritten. To prevent losing your theme modifications, therefore, we recommend you learn how to create “child themes”.
A WordPress child theme is a theme that inherits the functionality of another theme, called the parent theme, and allows you to modify, or add to, the functionality of that parent theme. When you update the “parent theme”, all customizations are preserved through the “child theme.”
If you plan to customize your theme files, then we recommend becoming familiar with using child themes, especially if you use a theme that gets regularly updated. You can learn more about child themes by searching online, or just visit the WordPress Codex child theme page here:
As you will see below, the actual process of updating a WordPress theme is not complicated at all … a few simple clicks and you’re done! What can feel slightly bothersome is the precautionary work involved prior to upgrading.
Some people don’t upgrade their WordPress themes regularly, while many upgrade without going through all of the steps listed in the section above. As mentioned earlier, the above are “best practice” methods for ensuring problem-free upgrades. Ultimately, as a website owner, it is solely your responsibility to protect your digital properties.
How To Upgrade WordPress Themes In Your Dashboard – Step-By-Step Tutorial
Updating your WP theme from your dashboard is easy.
Log into your WordPress administration area …
Depending on the theme(s) installed on your site, you may receive occasional notifications in your WordPress Dashboard that new theme versions are available and require updating …
Updating a WordPress theme in your WP dashboard is very simple and easy. You can update your site’s theme using the “Themes” screen, or the “Updates” page.
Updating WordPress Themes Using The “Themes” Page
To see which themes require updating, go to your Themes area.
Select Appearance > Themes from your WP dashboard menu …
This brings you to the “Themes” screen …
Themes with new versions display an “Update Available” message over their thumbnail image …
Locate the theme you want to update and click on the “Update Available” message.
When the theme details window opens up, click on update now …
WordPress will automatically update the theme in seconds …
Your theme is now up-to-date …
Repeat the above process to update all of your remaining themes, or use the method described below to bulk update multiple themes.
Updating Your Theme From The “Updates” Area
Update your theme using the “Updates” section as shown below:
To view all themes in your site that require updating, click on Dashboard > Updates …
This brings up the Updates screen. Scroll down to the Themes section …
Check the box next to all the themes you want to update and click on Update Themes to complete the upgrade process …
WordPress automatically updates all of your selected themes …
Congratulations! Now you know how to update your theme from your dashboard.
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