If you are new to WordPress, make sure you read our overview of WordPress themes. This in-depth article explains what themes are and how they can be cost-effective and time-saving for website owners.

This tutorial will show you how to upgrade a theme inside the admin area.

Upgrading WordPress Themes – Best Practices Checklist

Before updating any themes, we recommend going through the checklist below to make sure that no theme settings or customizations are lost and your update goes smoothly.

1. Back Up Your Website Fully

Backing up your website before making any updates to your site is essential. This way, if something goes wrong, you can always restore.

If you don’t want to perform manual backups, there are many plugins you can use. Learn about a WordPress backup plugin that can automate your site backups here:

• Backup, Clone And Keep Your WordPress Websites And Blogs Protected With Backup Creator Plugin For WP

2. Check The Theme Update Notes

Changes made to the WordPress software can affect the functionality of certain themes. Depending on the theme you have installed, there may be some release notes included with an update listing any new features, improvements, bug fixes or important information pertaining to the new version.

If the changes seem irrelevant or unimportant, you can skip the update. Otherwise, you should 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 bugs and verify 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 install a test WordPress site on a subdomain or a separate domain name with the same plugins and configuration settings and test 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 anyone has reported any issues with the new theme version.

You can type the theme name and version into Google, and search the theme developer’s support forum (many developers offer this for paid WordPress themes, and even for some free plugins).

5. Use Child Themes For Heavily Customized WordPress Themes

If you have made extensive customizations to your existing theme files, updating 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 child themes, especially if you plan on using 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:

• WordPress Codex: Child Themes

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.

Many people don’t upgrade their themes regularly, while many upgrade without going through all of the steps listed in the section above. As mentioned earlier, the above are recommended “best practice” methods for ensuring problem-free upgrades. Ultimately, as a website owner, it is your responsibility to protect your digital properties.

Updating Your Themes – Step-By-Step Tutorial

Updating your themes in your admin dashboard is easy.

Log into your WordPress administration area …

Depending on which theme(s) you have installed on your website, you may receive an occasional notification in your dashboard that new theme versions are available and require updating …

Updating themes in your WP dashboard is easy. You can update your WordPress themes using the “Themes” section, or the “Updates” feature.

Updating WordPress Themes Via The “Themes” Area

To see which themes need updating, go to your Themes area.

Choose Appearance > Themes in your WordPress dashboard menu …

This brings you to the “Themes” page …

Themes that need updating display an “Update Available” message over the theme’s thumbnail image …

Locate the theme that needs to be updated and click on the “Update Available” notice.

When the theme details window opens up, click on update now …

WordPress automatically updates your theme …

Your WordPress theme is now up-to-date …

Repeat the above to update all of your outdated themes, or use the method described below to bulk update multiple themes.

Updating WordPress Themes From The “Updates” Screen

Update your theme from the “Updates” area as shown below:

To view all themes installed on your site that need 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 bulk upgrade process …

WordPress automatically updates all of the selected themes …

Congratulations! Now you know how to update your themes in the WP dashboard.

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