Category: WordPress Themes

In an earlier post, we have written a comprehensive overview of WordPress Themes.

If you haven’t yet discovered WP themes and what makes themes so attractive to website owners, then go here to read the post: A Basic Guide To Understanding WordPress Themes

In this article, we will show you where you can discover loads of fantastic free and paid themes for your site. You will also learn about the different types of WP theme resources and get tips on how to make sure that you get the right themes for your needs and avoid experiencing problems like lack of customer support and poorly-coded themes.

As we’ve explained in another article, a WordPress theme is a special kind of web design template used on WordPress-powered sites and designed to work specifically with the WordPress platform in mind.

Many professional web designers and website design firms create themes for WordPress. Consequently, WordPress users enjoy access to thousands of exciting themes covering an extensive range of uses.

Finding Great WordPress Themes: How To Avoid Information Overload

If you were to open up Google and search for something like the following:

• best responsive themes for WordPress
• WordPress themes free
• best responsive WordPress themes for musicians (enter whatever your business, search topic or blog is about)

You are probably going to get an overwhelming amount of disorganized information to sort through in the search listings.

So, to help you save time and make things easier, we’ll just cut through the clutter and make the process of finding great WP themes really simple.

WordPress.com vs WordPress.org Themes

Before we get started, you should know that WordPress offers users both a hosted and a self-hosted version. We’ll cover these differences in another post. For now, let’s just be covering themes for the self-hosted version of WordPress (WordPress.org) in this post, which gives you more freedom, more options and more control over your web design.

Free vs Paid WordPress Themes

Next, it’s important to know that you will find thousands of Free and Paid themes made available. Free WordPress themes are normally distributed as Open Source Software under the terms of the GNU General Public License, or they are made available to users as Premium (paid) themes.

WordPress Theme Marketplaces & WP Theme Developers

There are 2 places where you can find themes. The first type of place is in theme marketplaces and WP theme directories. The second place are the commercial and independent theme stores.

Theme marketplaces and WP theme directories are large aggregators of themes. theme developers (both commercial and independent) list their themes (both free and paid) in the marketplace or directory and buyers find these just like they would if they were shopping for apps on an app store or software directory.

Some of the larger directories don’t just sell WordPress themes. They can also sell WordPress plugins and templates for other web applications (e.g. Joomla, Drupal, etc.)

Commercial and independent WP theme developers can create both free and paid themes, and can vary in size, from an individual developer or a small team of theme designer, to large theme design and development companies.

Many commercial or independent theme design firms sell their themes exclusively on their own web sites, but some will also list their themes in marketplaces and directories, or even create a free or “lite” version of their themes for free WP theme directories .

Let’s now show you where to find great themes for your website or blog.

Choosing The Best Themes For Your WordPress Website Or Blog

WordPress.org

(WordPress.org – Themes Directory)

The official WordPress theme directory is the largest and best place to find free WordPress themes. In fact, it’s probably the only free directory you should use when looking for free WordPress themes. The reason why, is because –as many free software users have discovered– downloading free software, add-ons, apps, templates or themes from untrustworthy places can put your computer, digital presence … even your entire business at risk.

The WP theme directory is not only a trustworthy and reputable place to download themes for your WordPress site, but it also relies on a team of theme reviewers comprised of dedicated and code-savvy volunteers to review and ensure that each theme in the directory meets high standards of quality and security.

To browse thousands of professionally-designed FREE WordPress themes from the official Themes Directory, go here:

http://www.wordpress.org/extend/themes

Search For Free Themes Without Leaving Your Own WP Dashboard

Useful Tip: You can easily browse through every theme in the WordPress.org directory and not only find a great theme for your website or blog, but also easily install and start using it directly from within your WordPress admin panel with just a few mouse clicks.

Use The WordPress Theme Filters

WordPress provides a filtering function inside the admin area that lets you narrow down your search for themes based on criteria like Colours, Layout and Features …

This makes it easy to find themes with specific features. For example, you could search for themes with predominantly pink colour design, with a three-column layout and a full-width template, or themes that support custom menus, etc.

Note: in another article where we discuss the importance of choosing “responsive” themes, we explained how these allow your site to be viewed without problems across all devices (e.g. your computer, smartphone and tablet) …

You should use responsive themes, and the WordPress theme filter lets you do just that …

… and bring back only themes that use “responsive” design standards …

Pros & Cons Of Using Free WP Themes

The obvious “pro” to using free WordPress themes is that it costs nothing to download and use the theme. An added plus, is that many free themes are professionally designed and offer a number of built-in customizable options, giving you great flexibility and choice in how you configure all of its various layout elements.

The ”cons” of using free WP themes are that your themes may not get updated as often with new features and bug fixes, and you shouldn’t expect the developer to provide urgent support, especially if they are not getting paid. Many free themes ask users for donations to help cover their support costs.

When downloading free themes, therefore, check to see when the theme was last updated. If it’s been more than a year since any updates were last made, then it’s best to think carefully about downloading it, as the WordPress software is frequently updated and new features can create conflicts and errors with older code.

If you’re just getting started and your site is still quite new, it’s a good idea to start with a free theme until you have a better idea of the kind of site design that would work best for your site before spending money on paid themes. Who knows, the theme you downloaded for free could be exactly what works for you and for converting your site visitors into customers.

Now that we’ve seen how to find free WordPress themes in the WordPress theme directory and how to filter your search for themes that meet specific criteria, it’s time to turn our attention to paid WordPress themes.

Paid Themes

If you are looking for themes with stunning design, or professional quality yet highly affordable WordPress web design themes with a distinctive look, unique customizable options and ongoing support, you can search through the WordPress theme galleries of the “Premium” theme design agencies listed below:

Theme Marketplaces And Directories

ThemeForest

ThemeForest is one of the largest and most popular WP theme directories online.

ThemeForest allows many professional WordPress theme developers to showcase their designs through their online marketplace. There are well over 15,000 premium themes to choose from (some starting from as little as $3) …

(click on the images above to see all ThemeForest themes)

If you visit the ThemeForest theme marketplace, you will be able to browse for specific themes in various categories, such as:

• Blog/Magazine – themes for general blogs and political blogs, etc.
• Corporate – themes suitable for medical sites and advertising purposes.
• Creative – themes for portfolios, freelancers, etc.
• Directory Listings – themes that suit sites related to employment opportunities, dining out & restaurants, social directories, etc.
• eCommerce – themes for online shopping, membership sites, etc.
• Education – themes that suit sites related to training, etc.
• Entertainment – themes for music and bands blogs, cafes, etc.
• Mobile – e.g. mobile-switching themes.
• NonProfit – themes for nonprofit organizations, churches, etc.
• Real Estate – themes for real estate and real estate listings (e.g. commercial property, etc.)
• Retail – themes for beauty products, trades or professionals (plumbers, chiropractors, etc.)
• Technology – themes related to technology, landing pages, etc.
• Wedding – e.g. themes for wedding sites and romance tips and advice blogs
• Miscellaneous – themes suitable for topics related to activism, parenting sites or blogs … even themes you can use if your site is still under-construction!

When you purchase WordPress themes from ThemeForest, you will receive email notifications when a new update is available for your theme …

(ThemeForest emails you theme update notifications)

Go here to find great premium WP themes in the ThemeForest marketplace:

• ThemeForest

Creative Market

(click on the above images to browse all Creative Market themes)

Creative Market is another leading WP theme directory where you can browse thousands of quality premium themes from independent theme creators.

As stated on their website …

“Creative Market is a platform for handcrafted, mousemade design content from independent creatives around the world.”

Creative Market doesn’t just sell WP themes in its marketplace, but you can easily find WordPress themes and search through their theme categories (e.g. Minimal or Photography themes, etc.) using their dropdown “Themes” menu …

Browse through hundreds of quality premium WP themes crafted by independent WordPress theme developers in the Creative Market theme directory here:

• Creative Market

Mojo Themes

(click on the images above to view more themes at Mojo.com)

Mojo is a directory for premium-quality WP themes where theme vendors are strongly encouraged to provide customers with lifetime support and upgrades.

According to their website …

“Mojo is a marketplace where anyone can find, rate and buy quality themes & templates in one trusted place.”

Like Envato and Creative Market, Mojo doesn’t focus exclusively on WordPress themes, but you can easily go through all of their themes for WordPress and search through their theme categories (e.g. BuddyPress or Business themes and theme frameworks, etc.) by selecting the dropdown “WordPress Themes” menu …

Visit the site to find quality premium WP themes in the Mojo themes directory here:

• Mojo Themes

Now that we have looked at WordPress theme directories, let’s look at commercial and independent theme development firms.

Commercial And Independent WordPress Theme Design Companies

SoloStream

SoloStream provides WordPress users with a great selection of high quality premium themes and the option of accessing all themes through a WordPress theme membership.

(click on images above to see more themes from SoloStream)

Woo Themes

Woo Themes designs eye-catching WP themes and offer a membership option that allows members to access their entire WP theme portfolio.

(click on the above images to browse more WooThemes themes)

StoreFront

StoreFront Themes specializes in creating WP themes for e-commerce. Their themes also integrate well with some of the most powerful e-commerce platforms and plugins available.

(click on the images above to browse all StoreFront themes)

StudioPress

StudioPress designs WordPress themes based on a framework that lets users quickly and easily build a professional and search optimized WordPress website, and provides a self-updating design architecture, turn-key designs with beautiful frames for your content and unprecedented control of the framework.

Many web developers like the Genesis framework not only because it’s well-coded and well-supported (the development team at StudioPress keeps this framework consistently updated to reflect best practices for coding and to make sure that it is always compatible with the latest WordPress version, but because you can update themes built using the Genesis framework without losing any customizations you have made to your theme.

This is because themes built with the Genesis framework use something called “child themes,” which are like a paint job that sits on top of the framework and gives your site its unique look and feel.

If this all sounds way too technical, there’s no need to feel concerned about it. StudioPress themes are easy to work with, just like all other WordPress themes. The great thing about choosing themes from StudioPress is that one low price entitles you to receive unlimited support and updates, and you can install your themes on unlimited domains.

For more details, click here: StudioPress.

(click on the images above to browse all themes from StudioPress)

Theme-Checking Tools

Let’s finish this article with a few more useful WP theme-related tools worth knowing about:

What WP Theme Is That? WP Theme Checker

What WordPress Theme Is That? is a free WordPress theme-checking tool that allows you to easily detect what WordPress theme and plugins a website uses.

This is a great resource if you have come across a WordPress site that you like and would like to know what WordPress theme the site uses.

Tip: If you can’t tell if a site uses WordPress or not, we have posted a a great tutorial that helps you tell if a site uses the WP CMS platform: Tell-Tale Signs It’s A WordPress Blog And WordPress-Checking Tools

Using this tool is very simple. Just enter the site’s domain name into the field and click the search icon or hit “Enter.” The tool will then not only confirm if the site was built using the WordPress CMS platform, but it will also list the theme being used and list any plugins it detects.

• To use this tool go here: What WordPress Theme Is That?
• To learn more about this tool go here: Does My Website Run On WordPress?

Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC)

A word of warning: If you decide to use FREE themes for your WordPress site, we recommend sticking with the approved WordPress themes listed in the official WordPress theme directory.

A commonly-used strategy employed by a number of hacking groups and cyber criminals is to put up sites offering “Free” WordPress themes all over the web and distribute modified themes containing malicious code. In fact, some of these sites even come up on search engine results for key phrases like “free WordPress themes“, “best free themes for WordPress”” etc. It’s safer, therefore, to only download free themes from the official WordPress.org repository, or use established and trusted sites.

If you are concerned about whether a WordPress theme that you have installed on your blog could contain malicious or unwanted code, you can use a free WordPress plugin like Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC) to scan your theme files. The plugin searches the source files of every installed theme on your site for signs of malicious code and outputs a report …

(TAC Report Page – Screenshot: Plugin, WordPress.org)

I hope that you have found the information on how to find the best WP useful.

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