In an earlier article, we provide a comprehensive overview of WordPress Themes.
If you would like to know more about themes and what makes themes so special, then go here to read the post: An Introduction to WP Themes
In this blog post, you will learn where to browse hundreds of 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 how to avoid dealing with problems like lack of product support and poorly-coded themes.
As explained in another post, a WordPress theme is a unique kind of web design template that is used on WordPress-driven sites and designed specifically for WordPress.
Many website designers and web design firms create themes for WordPress. Consequently, members of the WordPress community enjoy access to thousands of excellent WP themes covering a wide-range of uses.
Finding Great Themes: Let’s Simplify Things!
Let’s say you were to launch Google and search for a key phrase like the following:
- best themes for WordPress
- WordPress themes free
- 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 disorganized information to sort through in the search listings.
So, to help you save time and make your life easier, let’s just cut through the clutter and make the process of finding great WordPress themes really simple.
WordPress.com vs WordPress.org Themes
Before we start, you need to know that WordPress offers both a hosted and a self-hosted version. We’ll cover these differences in another article. In this article, let’s just focus on finding themes for the self-hosted version of WordPress (WordPress.org) in this post, as these give you more freedom, more options and more control over your web design.
Free vs Paid WordPress Themes
Next, it’s useful to know that typically, you’ll find both Free and Paid themes made available. Free WP themes are generally distributed as Free Software under the terms of the GNU General Public License, or they will be made available to users as Premium (i.e. paid) themes.
WordPress Theme Marketplaces vs Commercial WP Theme Shops
There are mostly two types of places where you can find themes. The first place is in WP theme marketplaces and theme directories. The second type of place are the commercial and independent theme development firms.
Theme marketplaces and WP theme directories are big aggregators of themes. WordPress theme developers (both commercial and independent) list their themes (both free and paid) in the marketplace or directory and visitors shop for these just like they would if they were shopping for apps on an app store or software marketplace.
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 stores typically develop both free and paid themes, and can vary in size, from an individual theme designer or a small team of designer, to large web and theme design companies.
As you will see, most commercial or independent theme design houses sell 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 search for the best WordPress themes for your website.
Finding WordPress Themes For Your Website Or Blog
WordPress.org
(WordPress.org – WordPress Themes Directory)
The official WordPress theme directory is the largest and best place to search for free WP themes. In fact, it’s probably the only free theme directory you should use when looking for free WP 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 contain malicious code and 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 site, but it also relies on a team of theme reviewers to review and make sure that each theme in the directory meets certain 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
Find Free Themes Without Leaving Your Own WP Dashboard
Useful Tip: You can easily browse through every theme in the WordPress directory and not only find a great theme for your website or blog, but also easily install and activate it directly from inside your WP admin panel with just a few clicks.
Use WP Theme Feature Filters
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 light colour design, with a 2-column layout and a full-width template, or themes that support custom menus, etc.
Note: in the article mentioned earlier where we present an overview of WordPress themes and discuss the importance of using “responsive” themes, we explained how responsive themes ensure that your theme will display correctly across all devices (e.g. your visitors’ PCs, tablets and smartphones) …
It’s a good idea to use responsive themes, and the WordPress theme filter lets you search across its entire database of free themes …
… 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’s free to download and use the theme on your site. Additionally, many free themes are professionally designed and provide a number of customizable settings, 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 it’s unrealistic to expect the theme developer to provide immediate support, especially if they are not getting paid. Most freely distributed themes ask for donations to help cover costs of providing support.
When downloading free themes, therefore, check to see when the theme was last updated. If it’s been more than a year since any change was made, then we advise you to think carefully about using it, as WordPress is frequently updated and this can result in conflicts or errors with older code.
If you’re just getting started and your website is still relatively 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 any money on premium themes. Who knows, the free theme you’ve downloaded may just be the thing that works for your site and your business.
Now that we’ve seen how to find free themes in the WordPress.org theme directory and ways to narrow down your search for themes that meet specific requirements, let’s turn our attention to finding paid WP themes.
Paid WP 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, then search through the WordPress theme galleries of the “Premium” theme design agencies listed below:
Theme Directories
ThemeForest
ThemeForest is one of the biggest and most popular WP theme marketplaces online.
ThemeForest allows many professional WP theme designers to showcase their designs through their online marketplace. There are currently over 17,500 premium themes to choose from (some starting from as little as $3) …
(click on the above images to browse more ThemeForest themes)
If you visit the ThemeForest theme marketplace, you will be able to browse for specific WP themes in various categories, such as:
- Blog/Magazine – themes for general blogs and administration sites, etc.
- Corporate – themes suitable for business sites and advertising purposes.
- Creative – themes for portfolios, freelancers, etc.
- Directory Listings – themes suitable for sites related to directory listings, buy & sell, tourism directories, etc.
- eCommerce – themes for online shopping, event bookings and registrations, etc.
- Education – themes that suit sites related to training, etc.
- Entertainment – themes for gossip blogs, nightlife, 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. home sales, etc.)
- Retail – themes for retail stores, trades or professionals (plumbers, legal practitioners, etc.)
- Technology – themes related to hosting, landing pages, etc.
- Wedding – e.g. themes for wedding sites and marriage consellor 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 emails you theme update notifications)
Browse lots of great WordPress themes in the ThemeForest theme marketplace here:
Creative Market
(click on the above images to view more Creative Market themes)
Creative Market is another leading WordPress theme directory where you can search through thousands of quality premium WP 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 WordPress themes in its directory, but you can easily go through all of their themes for WordPress and search through their theme categories from the site’s dropdown “Themes” menu …
Browse through hundreds of great premium themes crafted by independent WordPress theme designers in the Creative Market directory here:
Mojo Themes
(click on the above images to browse more themes at Mojo.com)
Mojo is a directory for premium-quality WordPress 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 go through all of their themes for WordPress and search through their theme categories by using the dropdown “WordPress Themes” menu …
Visit the site to find great themes in the Mojo directory here:
Now that we have looked at WP theme directories, let’s take a look at commercial and independent theme design companies.
Commercial Theme Developers
SoloStream
SoloStream provides WordPress users with a selection of professional quality themes and the option of accessing all themes through a WordPress theme membership.
(click on images above to browse all themes from SoloStream)
Woo Themes
Woo Themes creates eye-catching premium themes for WordPress and offer a membership option that lets you access all themes in their growing theme collection.
(click on the above images to browse more WooThemes themes)
StoreFront
StoreFront creates amazing WordPress themes for e-commerce. StoreFront themes also integrate well with some of the most powerful e-commerce platforms and plugins available.
(click on the images above to view more themes from StoreFront)
StudioPress
StudioPress builds WordPress themes based on a framework that lets users quickly and easily build a professional and search optimized WordPress site, and provides a self-updating design architecture, turn-key designs with beautiful frames for the content and unprecedented control of the framework.
Many web developers prefer using the Genesis framework not only because it’s well-coded and well-supported (the development team at StudioPress keeps the framework regularly up-to-date to reflect best coding practices and to ensure that themes remain always compatible with the latest version of WordPress, 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 using 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 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 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 see all themes from StudioPress)
WordPress Theme-Checking Tools
Let’s finish this post with some useful WordPress theme-related tools worth knowing about:
What WordPress Theme Is That WP Theme Checker
What WordPress Theme Is That? is a free online tool that allows you to easily detect what WP theme a website or blog is using (including parent and child WordPress themes).
This is a great resource if you ever come across a WordPress site that you like and would like to know what theme is being used on the website.
Tip: If you don’t know if a site runs on WordPress or not, we have posted a a great tutorial that helps you tell if a web site was built using WordPress: Is It A WordPress Website?
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 not only confirm whether or not a site is built on the WordPress CMS platform, but it will also list the WordPress theme being used by the site and list any plugins it detects.
- To use this tool go here: What WordPress Theme Is That
- To learn how to use this tool go here: Is It A WordPress Site?
Theme Authenticity Checker - WordPress Plugin
We said this before and it’s worth repeating again: If you decide to use FREE themes for your WordPress site, we recommend sticking with the reviewed and approved WP themes listed in the official WordPress theme repository.
A well-known tactic used by a number of hacking groups and cyber criminals is to put up websites offering “Free” WordPress themes all over the web and distribute modified themes with malicious code embedded in their files. In fact, some of these sites even come up on search engine results for phrases like “free WordPress themes“, “best free WordPress themes”” etc. It’s best, therefore, to only download free WordPress themes from the official WordPress.org directory, or use well-known and trusted theme vendors.
If you have any concerns about whether a WordPress theme installed on your blog may be infected with potentially malicious or unwanted code, use a free WordPress plugin like Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC) to run a scan of your WordPress theme files. The TAC plugin scans the source files of every installed theme on your site for signs of suspicious code and then presents you with a report with the results …
(Theme Authenticity Checker Report Page – Source: Plugin)
I hope that you have found the information on how to find great WP useful.
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"If you're new to WordPress, this can stand on its own as a training course and will stay with you as you progress from beginner to advanced and even guru status." - Bruce (Columbus, Ohio)
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