Tag: Free WordPress Themes

In a separate post, we provide a comprehensive overview of WordPress Themes.

If you would like to know more about WordPress themes and what makes themes unique, then go here to read our article: About WordPress Themes – A Beginner’s Guide

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

As explained in our previously-mentioned post, a theme is a unique type of web template that is used on WordPress-powered blogs and designed to work specifically with WordPress in mind.

Many individual web designers and web design agencies create themes for WordPress. Consequently, WordPress users can access thousands of professional-quality themes covering a wide-range of uses and applications.

Finding Great Themes: Let’s Simplify Things!

If you were to browse over to Google and search for the following:

• best free themes for WordPress
• best paid WordPress themes
• best paid WordPress themes for writers (type in whatever your business, search topic or blog is about)

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

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

WordPress.com vs WordPress.org Themes

Before we start, you should know that WordPress offers both a hosted and a self-hosted version. We’ll explain these differences in a separate article. In this post, let’s just cover 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 WP Themes

Next, it’s useful to know that there are both Free and Paid WordPress themes made available. Free themes are generally distributed as Free Software under the terms of the GNU General Public License, or they are sold as Premium (paid) themes.

WP Theme Marketplaces vs Theme Developers

There are two types of places where WP themes can be found. The first is in theme marketplaces and WP theme directories. The second type of place are the commercial and independent WP theme stores.

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

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

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

As you will see, many commercial or independent theme shops 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 directories .

Let’s now show you where to find the best WP themes for your blog.

Finding Great Themes For Your WordPress Website

WordPress.org

(WordPress.org – WordPress Theme Directory)

The official WordPress theme directory is the largest and best place to download free WP themes. In fact, it’s probably the only free WP theme directory you should use when looking for free WP themes. The reason why, is because –as some 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 WordPress.org directory is not only a trustworthy and reputable place to download themes for your website or blog, but it also relies on a team of theme reviewers to review and make sure that each theme listed in the directory meets specific quality and security standards.

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

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

Search For Free WordPress Themes Without Leaving Your Own WP Dashboard

Useful Tip: You can easily browse through every WordPress theme in the WordPress.org directory and not only find what you are looking for, but also easily install and activate it directly from within your WP dashboard with a few clicks.

Use The Theme Feature Filter

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

This makes it easy to find themes with specific features. For example, you could search for themes with a pink colour design, with a 2-column layout and a full-width template, or themes that support custom menus, etc.

Note: in another post where we discuss the importance of choosing “responsive” WordPress themes, we explained how responsive themes allow your site to be viewed without problems on all devices (e.g. the PCs, tablets and smartphones used by visitors to view your site information) …

It’s a good idea to 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 Themes

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

The ”cons” to using free 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 dedicated support, especially if they are not getting paid. Many free themes ask users for donations to help cover support costs.

When downloading free themes, therefore, check to see when the theme was last updated. If it’s been well over 1 year since any updates were last made, then think twice about using it, as the WordPress software is frequently updated and this can create conflicts or errors with older code.

If you’re just getting started and your website is still relatively new, there is nothing wrong with using 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 a paid theme. Who knows, the free theme you’ve downloaded could be exactly what works for you and your business.

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

Paid WordPress 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 great support, you can search through the WordPress theme galleries of the “Premium” theme design agencies listed below:

Theme Directories

ThemeForest

ThemeForest is one of the biggest and best-known WP theme directories online.

ThemeForest lets many professional WordPress theme designers showcase their designs through their online marketplace. There are currently over 17,000 premium WordPress themes to choose from (you can find great themes from as little as $3) …

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

If you visit the ThemeForest theme directory, you will be able to browse for specific themes in a range of categories, such as:

• Blog/Magazine – themes for general blogs and political blogs, etc.
• Corporate – themes suitable for business sites or advertising purposes.
• Creative – themes for creative work, kindle book authors, etc.
• Directory Listings – themes suitable for sites about employment opportunities, buy & sell, social directories, etc.
• eCommerce – themes for selling products online, membership sites, etc.
• Education – themes that suit sites related to tutoring, etc.
• Entertainment – themes for entertainment blogs, restaurants, etc.
• Mobile – e.g. retina-ready themes.
• NonProfit – themes for nonprofit organizations, charities, etc.
• Real Estate – themes for real estate and real estate listings (e.g. commercial property, etc.)
• Retail – themes for retail stores, trades or professionals (repairers, medical practitioners, 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, green living 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 sends you theme update notifications)

Browse lots of great premium themes in the ThemeForest theme marketplace here:

• ThemeForest

Creative Market

(click on the above images to see more themes on Creative Market)

Creative Market is another leading WordPress theme marketplace where you can browse many quality premium WordPress 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 go through all of their WordPress themes and narrow your search using theme categories from the site’s dropdown “Themes” menu …

Browse through hundreds of great WordPress themes crafted by independent WP theme developers in the Creative Market themes marketplace here:

• Creative Market

Mojo Themes

(click on the images above to view all Mojo themes)

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 WP themes, but you can easily find themes for WordPress and narrow your search with theme categories (e.g. BuddyPress or Business themes and theme frameworks, etc.) using the dropdown “WordPress Themes” menu …

Visit the site to find great WP themes in the Mojo theme marketplace here:

• Mojo Themes

Now that we have looked at WordPress theme aggregators, let’s take a look at commercial and independent theme shops.

Commercial Theme Agencies

SoloStream

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

(click on images above to view all SoloStream themes)

Woo Themes

Woo Themes creates eye-catching premium themes for WordPress that are very popular and highly sought after by website users and offers a membership option that allows you access to all themes in their WP theme collection.

(click on the images above to see all themes from WooThemes)

StoreFront

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

(click on the above images to see more StoreFront themes)

StudioPress

StudioPress provides WordPress themes based on a framework that allows users to quickly and easily build a professional and search optimized WordPress site, and provides an auto-updating design architecture, turn-key designs with beautiful frames for the content and unprecedented control of the framework.

Many website developers like this framework not only because it’s well-coded and well-supported (the development team at StudioPress keeps this framework frequently up-to-date to reflect best coding practices and to make sure that themes remain always compatible with the latest version of WordPress, but because you can update your themes without losing any customizations you have made to your theme.

This is because StudioPress themes 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 very easy to work with, just like all other WordPress themes. The great thing about choosing themes from StudioPress is that you pay one low price 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

Here are some useful WP theme-related tools worth keeping in mind:

What WordPress Theme Is That? – WordPress Theme And Plugin Search Tool

What WordPress Theme Is That.com is a free web tool that lets you easily detect what WordPress theme a website uses.

This is a great resource if you ever come across a WordPress site that you like and would like to know what WP theme is being used on the site.

Tip: If you don’t know whether a site runs on WordPress or not, we have published a a great tutorial that shows you how to tell whether or not a site is WordPress-driven: How To Tell If Your Website Was Built Using WordPress

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 is powered by WordPress, but it will also list the theme being used and list any plugins it detects.

• To use the online tool go here: What WordPress Theme Is That?
• To learn how to use this tool go here: How To Tell If A Website Was Built Using WordPress

Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC) – Plugin

We said this earlier and it’s worth repeating it again: When choosing FREE themes for your WordPress site, we strongly recommend sticking with the themes listed in the official WordPress theme repository.

A strategy that is commonly used by a number of hacking groups and cyber criminals is to put up sites offering “Free” themes for WordPress all over the web and then distribute modified themes and plugins with malicious code embedded in their files. In fact, some of these sites even display on Google’s search results for search phrases like “free WordPress themes“, “best free themes for WordPress”” etc. It’s safer, therefore, to stick with the official WordPress.org directory, or use established and trusted theme download sites.

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

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

We hope that you have found this information useful.

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