In a separate article, we provide a comprehensive overview of WordPress Themes.
If you would like to know more about WordPress themes and what makes themes so attractive to website owners, then go here to read our article: An Introduction to WP Themes
In this article, you will learn where to look for free and paid themes for your WordPress website. You will also learn about the different types of WP theme resources and get tips on how to ensure that you get the right themes for your needs and avoid experiencing problems like lack of support and poorly-coded themes.
As we’ve explained in another post, a theme is a unique type of web design template used on WordPress-driven blogs and designed specifically with WordPress in mind.
Many talented web designers and web development agencies create themes for WordPress. Consequently, WordPress users can access thousands of professional-quality WordPress themes designed for a wide range of purposes and needs.
Finding WP Themes: Too Much Information … Where To Begin?
If you were to open up Google and search for the following:
- best free themes for WordPress
- best responsive themes for WordPress
- best paid WordPress themes for artists (or whatever your business, search topic or blog is about)
Chances are that you are going to get an overwhelming amount of information to sort through in the search results.
So, to help you save time and make things easier, let’s just cut through the clutter and make the process of finding great WordPress themes simple.
WordPress.com vs WordPress.org Themes
Before we get started, you should know that WordPress offers both a hosted and a self-hosted version. We’ll cover these differences in another post. To keep things simple, please note that we will only cover the topic of finding themes for the self-hosted version of WordPress (WordPress.org) in this article, as these give you more freedom, more options and more control over your site’s web design.
Free vs Paid Themes
Next, it’s useful to know that you can find thousands of Free and Paid themes being made available. Free themes for WordPress are normally distributed as Open Source Software under the terms of the GNU General Public License, or they are listed as Premium (i.e. paid) themes.
Theme Directories Commercial And Independent WordPress Theme Design Companies
There are two places where you can find themes. The first type of place is in WP theme marketplaces and theme directories. The second place are the commercial and independent theme companies.
WordPress theme marketplaces and theme directories are large theme aggregators. WordPress theme developers (both commercial and independent) list their themes (both free and paid) in the marketplace or directory and buyers search for these just like they would if they were shopping for apps on an app store or software marketplace.
Some of the bigger marketplaces 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 theme vendors can also develop both free and paid themes, and can vary in size, from an individual theme designer or a small team of designer, to large theme design companies.
Most commercial theme stores 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 WordPress theme directories .
Let’s now show you where to search for great themes for your website or blog.
Finding Themes For Your Website Or Blog
WordPress.org
(WordPress.org – Themes Directory)
The official WordPress theme directory is the biggest and best place to download free WP themes. In fact, it’s probably the only free directory you should use when looking for free WordPress themes. The reason for this, is because –as some free software users have discovered– downloading free software, add-ons, apps, templates or themes from untrustworthy places can contain malicious code and place your computer, digital presence and even your entire business at risk.
The WP directory is not only a trustworthy and reputable place to download themes for your website, but it also relies on a review team comprised of dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers to review and make sure that each theme in the directory meets high quality and security standards.
To browse thousands of professionally-designed FREE WordPress themes from the official Themes Directory, go here:
http://www.wordpress.org/extend/themes
Find Free WordPress Themes Inside Your Own WordPress Dashboard
Useful Tip: You can easily browse through every WP theme in the WordPress.org theme 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 dashboard with just a couple of mouse clicks.
Use The Theme Filters
WordPress has a built-in filtering function inside the admin area that lets you narrow down your search for themes based on criteria like Colors, Layout and Features …
This makes it easier to find what you are looking for. For example, you could search for themes with a dark color design, with a 3-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 responsive themes ensure that your theme will display correctly on all devices (e.g. your computer, tablet and smartphone) …
It’s a good idea to use responsive themes, and the WordPress theme filtering option lets you do just that …
… and find only themes that have been built using “responsive” design standards …
Pros & Cons Of Using Free WP Themes
The obvious “pro” to using free themes is that it’s free to download and use the theme on your site. An added plus, is that many free themes are professionally designed and come with 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” 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 dedicated support, especially if they are not getting paid. Most free themes ask for donations to help cover their 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 changes were last made, then we advise you to think carefully about using it, as the theme may have been abandoned by its developer.
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 premium themes. Who knows, the free theme you’ve downloaded may just be the thing that works for your site and for converting your site visitors into customers.
Now that we’ve seen how to find free WordPress themes in the WordPress.org theme directory and how to filter your search for themes that meet specific criteria, let’s turn our attention to finding premium WP themes.
Premium WordPress Themes
If you are looking for themes with stunning web 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 well known theme directories online.
ThemeForest lets many professional WP theme designers showcase their designs through their online marketplace. There are well over 17,000 premium themes listed (you can find great themes from as little as $3) …
(click on the images above to see all themes on ThemeForest)
If you visit the ThemeForest theme directory, you will be able to browse for specific WP themes in various categories, such as:
- Blog/Magazine – themes for personal blogs and political blogs, etc.
- Corporate – themes suitable for government sites or marketing purposes.
- Creative – themes for photography, writing professionals, etc.
- Directory Listings – themes suitable for sites about employment opportunities, dining out & restaurants, tourism directories, etc.
- eCommerce – themes for ecommerce, membership sites, etc.
- Education – themes that suit sites related to tutoring, etc.
- Entertainment – themes for entertainment blogs, dining out, etc.
- Mobile – e.g. mobile-switching 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, engineering, etc.)
- Technology – themes related to technology, affiliate marketing, seo, product reviews, direct sales, etc.
- Wedding – e.g. themes for wedding sites and marriage consellor blogs
- Miscellaneous – themes suitable for writing or discussing political issues, 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 thousands of quality premium WordPress themes in the ThemeForest directory here:
Creative Market
(click on the images above to browse all Creative Market themes)
Creative Market is another leading WordPress theme directory where you can search through 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 directory, but you can easily browse hundreds of WP themes and narrow your search using theme categories (e.g. Magazine or Photography themes, etc.) from the site’s dropdown “Themes” menu …
Browse through hundreds of great themes crafted by independent WP theme developers in the Creative Market theme marketplace here:
Mojo Themes
(click on the above images to browse more themes at Mojo.com)
Mojo is a marketplace for premium 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 (e.g. Magazine or Business themes and theme frameworks, etc.) by choosing the dropdown “WordPress Themes” menu …
Visit the site to find quality premium WP themes in the Mojo theme marketplace here:
Now that we have looked at WordPress theme aggregators, let’s turn our attention to commercial WordPress theme developers.
Commercial WordPress Theme Design Houses
SoloStream
SoloStream provides WordPress users with a selection of high quality themes and the option of accessing all themes through a WordPress theme membership.
(click on above images to browse more SoloStream themes)
Woo Themes
Woo Themes designs stunning themes for WordPress that are very popular and highly sought after by website users and offers a membership option that gives you access to all themes in their WP theme portfolio.
(click on the images above to view all themes from WooThemes)
StoreFront
StoreFront creates amazing 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 above images to view more StoreFront themes)
StudioPress
StudioPress develops WordPress themes based on a framework (called the “Genesis” framework) that lets you quickly and easily build a professional and search optimized WordPress website, and provides a self-updating design architecture, turn-key site 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 the framework frequently up-to-date to reflect best coding practices and to ensure that themes remain 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 StudioPress themes use something called “child themes,” which are like “skins” that sit on top of the theme framework and gives your site its unique design.
If this 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 StudioPress themes 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 more themes from StudioPress)
WordPress Theme-Checking Tools
Here are 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 online tool that allows you to easily detect what WordPress theme a website or blog is using (including parent and child WP themes).
This is a great resource if you have come across a WordPress site that you like and would like to know what theme the website uses.
Tip: If you don’t know whether a site runs on WordPress or not, go here for a great tutorial that shows you how to tell if a site is powered by WordPress: How Can I Tell If A 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 not only confirm if a site has been built using WordPress, but it will also list the WordPress theme being used and list any WordPress plugins detected.
- To use this online tool go here: What WordPress Theme Is That
- To learn more about this tool go here: Is My Website Built Using WordPress? How To Tell
Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC)
We suggested this earlier and it’s worth repeating again: If you decide to use FREE themes for your WordPress site, we highly recommend sticking with the approved WordPress themes listed in the official WordPress theme directory.
A well-known method used by a number of hacking groups and networks that engage in cyber-crime is to put up sites and directories offering “Free” WP themes all over the web and distribute themes that contain malicious code. In fact, some of these sites even come up on search engine results for 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 directory, or use established and reputable theme download sites.
If you have any concerns about whether a WordPress theme installed on your site could be infected with malware or unwanted code, you can use a free WordPress plugin like Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC) to perform a scan of your theme files. The TAC plugin searches the source files of every installed theme on your site for signs of suspicious code and then outputs a report with the results …
(Theme Authenticity Checker Report Page – Screenshot: Plugin)
We hope that you have found this information useful.
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