If you are new to WordPress, make sure to read our overview of WordPress themes. The in-depth article explains what themes are and how using themes can save business owners significant time and money.
This step-by-step tutorial will show you how to update themes inside the admin area.
Upgrading Themes – Best Practices Checklist
We recommend going through the handy checklist below before attempting the upgrade process, to make sure that your update goes smoothly.
1. Make A Full Site Backup
Backing up your website before making any updates to your site is vital. This way, if things don’t go as planned, 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 fully automate your site backups here:
2. Check The Theme Update Notes
Changes made to the WordPress software can affect the functionality of certain themes. Depending on the theme you are using, there may be a changelog file accompanying an update which provides an overview of any new features, improvements, security fixes or any other information pertaining to the new theme version.
If the theme changes seem irrelevant or unimportant, you can skip the update. Otherwise, it’s best to update.
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 a theme, track bugs and check if all plugins are working fine with the new theme before installing and activating it on a live site.
If you’re managing your own website, you can install a test WordPress site on a subdomain or a separate domain with the same plugins and configuration settings and test new theme versions on your test site before applying it to your live site.
4. Search Online
Before updating your theme, it’s a good idea to do a quick search online and see if other theme users have reported any serious problems 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 provide forums for paid WordPress themes, and even for some free plugins).
5. Is Your WordPress Theme Customized? Use A Child Theme
If you have made extensive customizations to your existing theme files, updating your theme may 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 the use of child themes, especially if you plan to 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 preparation involved prior to upgrading.
Some people don’t upgrade their WordPress themes regularly, while others upgrade without going through some or 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.
Upgrading Your Themes – Step-By-Step Tutorial
Updating your WP themes in the WP dashboard is easy.
Log into your WordPress admin area …
Depending on the theme(s) you have installed on your site, you may receive an occasional notification in your dashboard that your theme(s) need updating …
Updating WordPress themes in the dashboard is easy. You can update your WordPress theme using the “Themes” screen, or the “Updates” section.
Updating Your Themes Via The “Themes” Section
To see which themes need to be updated, go to your Themes page.
Choose Appearance > Themes in your WP dashboard menu …
This opens up the “Themes” screen …
Themes that need updating 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 WordPress theme is now updated …
Repeat the above to update all of your out-of-date themes, or use the method below to update multiple themes at once.
Updating Your Site Themes Via The “Updates” Screen
Update your WordPress theme using the “Updates” section as shown below:
To view all themes installed in your website that require updating, click on Dashboard > Updates …
This brings up the Updates screen. Scroll down to the Themes section …
Select 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 WordPress themes from your admin dashboard.
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