In a previous post, we have written a comprehensive overview of WordPress Themes.
If you would like to learn more about WP themes and what makes themes unique, then make sure to check out the article here: An Overview of WP Themes
In this blog post, you will learn where you can browse hundreds of free and paid themes for your WP website or blog. You will also learn about the different types of WordPress theme resources and get tips on how to make sure that you get the right themes for your needs and avoid having to deal with problems like lack of product support and poorly-coded themes.
As explained in another post, a theme is a unique type of web template that is used on WordPress-powered sites and designed specifically in the WordPress CMS platform.
Many professional web designers and website development firms create themes for WordPress. Consequently, WordPress users can access thousands of great themes covering a wide-range of uses.
Finding Great WP Themes: Let’s Keep It Simple!
If you were to open up Google and type key phrases like the following:
- best WordPress themes
- best free WordPress themes
- best responsive WordPress themes for business (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, 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 get started, you need to know that WordPress offers users both a hosted and a self-hosted version. We’ll explain these differences in another article. To keep things simple, let’s just cover the topic of finding themes for the self-hosted version of WordPress (WordPress.org) in this article, which gives you more freedom, more options and more control over your web design.
Free vs Paid WP Themes
Next, it’s important to know that you can find thousands of Free and Paid themes 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 sold as Premium (paid) themes.
WordPress Theme Marketplaces And Directories vs WordPress Theme Design Companies
There are two kinds of places where WP themes can be found. The first type of place is in WordPress theme marketplaces and theme directories. The second place are the commercial and independent theme shops.
WordPress theme marketplaces and WordPress theme directories are big theme stores. 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 larger directories 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 WordPress theme design houses typically will create both free and commercial themes, and can vary in size, from an individual developer or a small team of theme designer, to large theme design companies.
As you will see, many commercial theme shops 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 find great themes for your website.
Finding A Theme Themes For Your Website Or Blog
WordPress.org
(WordPress.org – WP Theme Directory)
The official WordPress theme directory is the biggest and best place to find WP themes for free. In fact, it’s probably the only free theme directory you should use when looking for free WP themes. The reason for this, is because –as many free software users have learned– downloading free software, add-ons, apps, templates or themes from untrustworthy places can contain malicious code and place your computer, digital presence … even your entire business at risk.
The WordPress directory is not only a trustworthy and reputable place to download themes for your site, but it also uses a review team to review and make sure that each theme listed in the directory meets certain quality and security standards.
To browse thousands of great-looking FREE WordPress themes from the official WordPress Themes Repository, go here:
http://www.wordpress.org/extend/themes
Search For Free WP Themes Without Leaving Your Own WordPress Dashboard
Useful Tip: You can easily browse through every WP theme in the WordPress directory and not only find what you are looking for, but also easily install and activate it directly from within your WP dashboard with just a few mouse clicks.
Use The Theme Filtering
WordPress provides a filtering function inside the admin area that lets you narrow down your search for themes based on criteria like Colours, Layout and Features …
This makes it easier to find themes with specific features. For example, you could search for themes with predominantly pink color design, with a 3-column layout and a full-width template, or themes that support custom menus, etc.
Note: in the post mentioned earlier where we present an overview of WordPress themes and discuss the importance of using “responsive” themes, we explained how these ensure that your theme will work on all devices (e.g. the PCs, tablets and smartphones used by visitors to browse your site) …
It’s a good idea to use responsive themes, and the WordPress theme filtering function lets you do just that …
… and bring up only themes that are “responsive” …
Pros & Cons Of Using Free WordPress Themes
The obvious “pro” to using free WordPress themes is that it’s free to download and use the theme. An added plus, is that many free themes are professionally designed and offer a number of customizable settings, giving you great flexibility and choice in how you configure all of its various layout elements.
The downside of using free WordPress 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 urgent support, especially if they are not getting paid. Most freely distributed themes ask 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 over one year since any updates were last made, then we advise you to think carefully about downloading it, as the theme may have been abandoned by its developer.
If you’re just getting started and your site is still quite 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 any money on a theme. Who knows, the free theme you’ve downloaded could be exactly what works for you and helps to convert your site visitors into customers.
Now that we’ve seen how to find free WP themes in the WordPress.org theme directory and ways to narrow down your search for themes that meet your specific requirements, it’s time to turn our attention to finding paid WP themes.
Premium 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 responsive support, then search through the WordPress theme galleries of the “Premium” theme design agencies listed below:
Theme Marketplaces And Directories
ThemeForest
ThemeForest is one of the biggest and best-known WP theme directories online.
ThemeForest lets many professional WP theme creators showcase their designs through their online marketplace. There are over 15,000 premium themes to choose from (you can find great themes from as little as $3) …
(click on the images above to view all ThemeForest themes)
If you visit the ThemeForest theme marketplace, you will be able to browse for specific themes in a range of categories, such as:
- Blog/Magazine – themes for personal blogs and parenting blogs, etc.
- Corporate – themes suitable for government sites and marketing purposes.
- Creative – themes for design, crafts, etc.
- Directory Listings – themes that suit sites related to directory listings, classifieds, social directories, etc.
- eCommerce – themes for online shopping, event bookings and registrations, etc.
- Education – themes that suit sites related to tutoring, etc.
- Entertainment – themes for entertainment blogs, cafes, 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 travel, trades or professionals (repairers, dental practitioners, etc.)
- Technology – themes related to hosting, 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)
Go here to browse many great themes in the ThemeForest themes marketplace:
Creative Market
(click on the above images to view more Creative Market themes)
Creative Market is another leading WordPress theme marketplace 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 go through all of their WordPress themes and search through their theme categories (e.g. Blog or Photography themes, etc.) using the site’s dropdown “Themes” menu …
Browse through hundreds of quality premium WP themes crafted by independent WP theme developers in the Creative Market themes marketplace here:
Mojo Themes
(click on the images above to see more themes at Mojo)
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 WordPress themes, but you can easily go through all of their themes for WordPress and search through their theme categories (e.g. Portfolio or Photography themes and theme frameworks, etc.) by selecting the site’s dropdown “WordPress Themes” menu …
Visit the site to find great WP themes in the Mojo themes directory here:
Now that we have looked at WordPress theme marketplaces, let’s take a look at commercial WP theme development firms.
Commercial And Independent Theme Design Companies
SoloStream
SoloStream provides WordPress users with a selection of high quality WP themes and the option of accessing all themes through a WordPress theme membership.
(click on images above to browse more themes from SoloStream)
Woo Themes
Woo Themes designs functional WordPress themes and offer a membership option that allows you to access all themes in their growing theme portfolio.
(click on the above images to view more themes from WooThemes)
StoreFront
StoreFront specializes in WP 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 see more themes from StoreFront)
StudioPress
StudioPress develops WordPress themes based on a framework (called the “Genesis” framework) that enables 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 your content and unprecedented control of the framework.
Many web developers like the Genesis framework not only because it’s well-coded and well-supported (the development team at StudioPress keeps the framework consistently updated to reflect best coding practices and to ensure that it always remains compatible with the latest version of WordPress, but because you can update themes built using the Genesis framework without losing any customizations you may have made to your theme.
This is because themes built using the Genesis framework use something called “child themes,” which are like “skins” that sit on top of the framework and gives your site its unique look and feel.
If this sounds too technical, don’t worry about it. StudioPress themes are very 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 view all themes from StudioPress)
WP Theme-Checking Tools
Let’s finish this post with a couple of useful WP theme-related tools worth keeping in mind:
What WP Theme Is That? WP Theme Checker
What WordPress Theme Is That is a free WP theme search tool that lets you easily detect what WordPress theme and plugins a website or blog uses.
This is a great resource if you ever come across a WordPress site that you like and would like to know what WordPress theme the website uses.
Tip: If you can’t tell if a site uses WordPress or not, go here for a great tutorial that shows you how to tell if a site uses the WP CMS platform: The Easy Way To Tell If Your Blog 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 was built using WordPress software, but it will also list the theme being used on the site and list any plugins detected.
- To use this online tool visit the website here: What WordPress Theme Is That?
- To learn more about this tool go here: How Can I Tell If My Site Was Built Using WordPress?
Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC)
We said this earlier and it’s worth repeating it again: If you decide to use FREE themes for your WordPress site, we strongly recommend sticking with the themes listed in the official WordPress theme directory.
A commonly-used method employed by a number of hacking groups and cyber criminals is to put up websites offering “Free” WP themes all over the web and distribute modified themes and plugins with malicious code embedded in their files. In fact, some of these sites even display on Google for phrases like “free WordPress themes“, “best free themes for WordPress”” etc. It’s safer, therefore, to only download free WordPress themes from the official WordPress directory, or use established and reputable theme download sites.
If you are in doubt about whether a WordPress theme installed on your blog may contain potentially malicious or unwanted code, use a free WordPress plugin like Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC) to scan your theme files. This plugin searches the source files of every them you have installed on your site for signs of injected code and presents you with a report …
(Theme Authenticity Checker Report Page – Screenshot: Plugin)
We hope that you have found this information useful.
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