Where To Find The Best WordPress Themes

In another post, we provide a comprehensive overview of WordPress Themes.

If you would like to know more about themes and what makes themes so revolutionary in terms of website design, then go here to read the article: A Non-Technical User’s Guide To WordPress Themes

In this blog post, you will learn where you can find many professional free and paid themes for your WP website. 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 having to deal with problems like lack of customer support and poorly-coded themes.

As explained in our previously-mentioned post, a theme is a unique kind of web template that is used on WordPress-driven websites and blogs and designed to work specifically on WordPress.

Many talented web designers and web development houses create themes for WordPress. Consequently, members of the WP community enjoy access to thousands of quality WordPress themes designed to cover many purposes and needs.

Finding Themes: Too Much Information … Where To Begin?

If you were to go to Google and search for key phrases like this:

• best themes for WordPress
• best premium WordPress themes
• best responsive WordPress themes for musicians (or whatever your business, search topic or blog is about)

Chances are that you are going to get an overwhelming amount of disorganized 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 WP themes 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 explain these differences in a later article. For now, please note that we will only focus on 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 Themes

Next, it’s useful to know that there are both Free and Paid WordPress themes being made available. Free themes are generally distributed as Free Software under the terms of the GNU General Public License, or they can be licensed for use as Premium (paid) themes.

WP Theme Marketplaces vs Commercial Theme Stores

There are two types of places where you can find WordPress themes. The first type of place is in theme marketplaces and WP theme directories. The second type of place are the commercial and independent theme vendors.

WordPress theme marketplaces and WordPress theme directories are large aggregators of themes. theme developers (both commercial and independent) list their themes (both free and paid) in the marketplace or directory and buyers shop for these just like they would if they were shopping for apps on an app store or software marketplace.

Some of the larger marketplaces 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 vendors typically design both free and paid themes, and can vary in size, from an individual developer 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 blog.

Choosing Responsive Themes For Your WordPress Website

WordPress.org

(WordPress.org – Free WordPress Theme Directory)

The official WordPress.org theme directory is the biggest and best place to find free WP themes. 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 discovered– 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 website, but it also relies on a review team comprised of dedicated and hard working volunteers to review and ensure 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 WordPress Themes Directory, go here:

http://www.wordpress.org/extend/themes

You Don’t Even Have To Leave Your WP Dashboard

Useful Tip: You can easily browse through every theme in the WordPress.org directory and not only find what you are looking for, but also easily install and start using it directly from inside your WordPress dashboard with a few mouse clicks.

Use The Theme Feature Filter

WordPress has a built-in 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 easier to find what you are looking for. For example, you could search for themes with a gray colour design, with a 2-column layout and a full-width template, or themes that support custom menus, etc.

Note: in the post where we discuss the importance of choosing “responsive” WP themes, we explained how responsive themes allow your site to be viewed without problems on all devices (e.g. computers, tablets and smartphones) …

You should use responsive themes, and the WordPress theme filtering function lets you do just that …

… and bring back only themes that are “responsive” …

Pros & Cons Of Using Free Themes

The obvious “pro” to using free WordPress 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 downside 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 personal support, especially if they are not getting paid. Many freely distributed themes ask users 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 well over 1 year since any changes were last made, then think twice about downloading it, as the WordPress software changes quite often and these changes can create conflicts or errors with older code.

If you’re just getting started and your website 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 money on a paid theme. 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 themes in the WordPress.org theme directory and how to filter your search for themes that meet your specific criteria, it’s time to turn our attention to premium themes.

Premium 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 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 largest and most popular theme directories online.

ThemeForest allows many professional WordPress theme creators to showcase their designs through their online marketplace. There are currently over 17,000 premium themes to choose from (you can find great themes from as little as $3) …

(click on the above images 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 general blogs and political blogs, etc.
• Corporate – themes suitable for medical sites and advertising purposes.
• Creative – themes for visual galleries, writers, etc.
• Directory Listings – themes that suit sites about employment opportunities, dining out & restaurants, , etc.
• eCommerce – themes for online shopping, event bookings and registrations, etc.
• Education – themes that suit sites related to training, etc.
• Entertainment – themes for film & tv blogs, restaurants, 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. rentals, etc.)
• Retail – themes for shopping, trades or professionals (electricians, dental practitioners, etc.)
• Technology – themes related to software, affiliate marketing, seo, product reviews, direct sales, 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 emails you theme update notifications)

Go here to find great premium WordPress themes in the ThemeForest directory:

• ThemeForest

Creative Market

(click on the above images to browse all Creative Market themes)

Creative Market is another leading WP theme marketplace where you can search through many 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 find WordPress themes and narrow your search using theme categories (e.g. Magazine or Wedding themes, etc.) using the site’s dropdown “Themes” menu …

Browse through hundreds of great WP themes crafted by independent WP theme developers in the Creative Market directory here:

• Creative Market

Mojo Themes

(click on the images above to view all WordPress themes at Mojo)

Mojo is a marketplace for premium WP 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 browse hundreds of WordPress themes and narrow your search with theme categories (e.g. Portfolio or Photography themes and theme frameworks, etc.) by using the site’s dropdown “WordPress Themes” menu …

Visit the site to find great themes in the Mojo themes marketplace here:

• Mojo

Now that we have looked at WordPress theme directories, let’s turn our attention to commercial and independent WP theme shops.

Commercial Theme Development Firms

SoloStream

SoloStream provides WordPress users with a great selection of high quality WordPress themes and the option of accessing all themes through a WordPress theme membership.

(click on images above to see all themes from SoloStream)

Woo Themes

Woo Themes designs eye-catching premium themes and offers a membership option that gives you access to all themes in their growing theme portfolio.

(click on the above images to see all WooThemes themes)

StoreFront

StoreFront Themes creates beautiful WordPress 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 themes from StoreFront)

StudioPress

StudioPress builds WordPress themes based on a framework (called the “Genesis” framework) that allows you to quickly and easily build a professional and search optimized WordPress website, 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 prefer using this framework not only because it’s well-coded and well-supported (the development team at StudioPress keeps the framework regularly updated to reflect best coding practices and to ensure that it always remains compatible with the latest WordPress version, 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 a paint job that sits on top of the framework and gives your site its unique look and feel.

If this sounds 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 allows 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 StudioPress themes)

Theme-Checking Tools

Let’s finish this post with a couple of useful WordPress theme-related tools worth keeping in mind:

What WordPress Theme Is That

What WordPress Theme Is That.com is a free WP theme and plugin-checking tool that allows you to easily detect what WP theme a website uses.

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 site.

Tip: If you can’t tell whether a site runs on WordPress or not, we have published a a great tutorial that shows you how to tell whether or not a web site is WP-driven: How Can I Tell If My Site Was Built With 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 whether or not the site is powered by WordPress, but it will also list the WordPress theme being used on the site and list any WP plugins detected.

• To use the tool visit the website here: What WordPress Theme Is That?
• To learn how to use this tool go here: The Easy Way To Tell If Your Web Site Was Built Using WordPress

Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC) – Plugin

A word of warning: If you decide to use FREE themes for your WordPress site, we highly recommend sticking with the approved WP themes listed in the official WordPress theme repository.

A commonly-used strategy employed by many hackers and cyber criminals is to put up sites and directories offering “Free” WordPress 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 come up on Google for phrases like “free WordPress themes“, “best free themes for WordPress”” etc. It’s best, therefore, to stick with the official WordPress.org theme repository, or use established and reputable sites.

If you are concerned about whether a WordPress theme installed on your blog could contain potentially malicious or unwanted code, use a free WordPress plugin like Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC) to run a scan of your WP theme files. The TAC plugin scans the source files of every them you have installed on your site for signs of malicious code and then presents you with a report as shown in the screenshot below …

(Theme Authenticity Checker Report Page – Screenshot: WordPress.org Plugin)

We hope that you have found this information useful.

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