The Art of WordPress Theme Design

S ince 2006, I’ve been on a mission to improve and perfect the WordPress theming process. This journey continues today with my two flagship projects— Thesis , which is a WordPress Theme engine, and Focus , which is a Thesis Skin.

What’s a Thesis Skin, you ask? Well…

With traditional WordPress Themes, the designer must consider far too many technical things like standardized HTML markup, SEO concerns, and WordPress and Plugin compatibilities.

Thesis Skins eliminate the need for website owners, designers, and developers to consider hardcore technical stuff.

Even better, they open the door to amazing new possibilities thanks to a deep WordPress integration and a powerful API that makes it easy to do anything with your website.

Below you’ll find the original introductory articles to my WordPress Themes. For current information on Thesis and Focus , please check out my business website, DIYthemes .

  • 📖 Cutline and PressRow Removed from WordPress.com
  • 📖 Thesis Theme for WordPress
  • 📖 The Neoclassical 3-Column Theme for WordPress
  • 📖 Copyblogger Theme for WordPress
  • 📖 Cutline Theme for WordPress
  • 📖 PressRow Theme for WordPress

© Chris Pearson 2005-2024. All rights reserved.

Thesis WordPress Theme Review

wp thesis theme

Before starting the review I want to make a few things clear. First, I have worked with Thesis many times for client websites and Second, wpexplorer.com is an affiliate of Thesis which means that I make a commission from any Thesis sale generated through my affiliate link. This said, I wanted to let you know that this is not your average bs review that sounds more like an advertisement. Rather I wanted to create an Informative Review of Thesis so you can better understand everything about the theme.

I could sit here for hours and write about how awesome thesis is, however, you probably rather read about the factual in-and-outs of this theme.

There is a lot to read on this Thesis Review…This is why I have provided these nice big headers so you can skip to whatever sounds interesting. Enjoy!

Visit Thesis

What is the Thesis WordPress Theme Framework?

Thesis is a Premium WordPress Theme Framework developed by Chris Pearson and has become one of the most popular and downloaded/purchased Premium themes out there. In fact, I can not go a single day without browsing the web and seeing a site running on thesis. It is unbelievable.

You have probably encountered many blogs or sites that are using thesis and possibly recognized their similar appearances. At the same time, you may have also seeing many sites that were using this framework and you had no idea. The reason for this, is that Thesis is an awesome theme right “out-of-the-box” but it can also be customized really easily too look like “anything”.

But what actually is Thesis? I guess you could call Thesis a WordPress Theme, however, it is much more then that. It is a code and design Framework built around WordPress that delivers a rock-solid SEO website code plus design flexibility that requires no knowledge of HTML or CSS to make customizations to your website’s design.

Thesis Admin Control Panel

The Thesis Admin Panel is what makes this platform truly stand out (in my opinion). Sure many themes out there let you customize your twitter account or upload a logo for your header, but Thesis is different. This powerful platform will allow you to make tons of adjustments from including pages in the navigation bar to selecting a custom CSS style-sheet. You will have the power to customize your site completely, right through your WordPress administration area.

The admin panel makes it really easy for bloggers that do not want to get their hands dirty with any code but still want to do some basic editing to their website design and make customizations to their on-page Search Engine Optimization.

Admin Panel Screenshot

Here is a quick screenshot of one of the admin setting pages so you can see more or less what they look like. The control panel is really clean and makes use of drop down containers so everything is nicely organized and you can find what you need without having to scroll down forever.

Thesis Theme Panel

Customizing Thesis & Thesis Skins

As mentioned earlier, one of the best things about the DYI Thesis Theme is the ability to customize the look and function of your site via theme control panel which is easy to use and very intuitive. But you can also customize the look of your site via what are called “child themes”, which are themes designed to work with the Thesis Framework and can be uploaded via your theme panel and they will automatically add a new style/design to your site. There are many places where you can find Thesis skins and they are available both for free and for purchase. This ability makes Thesis great for bloggers who don’t want to spend anytime customizing their site or need some extra features that are available via other skins. And it is also a great for web designers who are looking to use the Thesis Framework for all their clients.

Is Thesis Really That Awesome for SEO?

While any theme or site can be edited for Search Engine Optimization many are not optimized to start with. This can be a real hassle for amateur/inter-mediate bloggers which is why the Thesis Framework has been designed to be search engine friendly right out-of-the-box. In fact, most people download external plugins such as “All In One SEO”. But what if you could have your SEO built into your theme? This would make everything run more smoothly with cleaner code and it will make it much easier for you to make overall SEO changes to your site. Plus, Thesis is already very SEO-Friendly right out-of-the-box, so you can install it and feel comfortable that your site will be indexed.

Some of the key components that makes this framework good for SEO purposes are:

  • Title tags and Meta Description fields on pages/posts
  • Noindexing options for pages and psots
  • Alt text for images
  • Clean and simple back-end code
  • Simple design – faster loading (google has added speed as a measure of search engine rankings)

You must remember that simply by installing Thesis on your site you will not automatically rank number 1 on Google, rather the framework provides a very good base and clean code to help make your SEO efforts easier and possibly more successful.

Target Advertisement with Thesis & Thesis For Affiliates

Now here is a really neat feature about Thesis you are going to love: “The Multimedia Box”. This is a 300px by 250px (size can be changed) advertisement block that is by default on the top of the sidebar and it will allow you to rotate between different media (images, video, adsense).

So what? A rotating media box. Sure this is true, but what makes the multimedia box of Thesis so unique is that you can edit what appears in that area for every page. This means that you can provide better targeted advertisement based on your page content. So for example on a Thesis Review post you could have an affiliate banner for DIY Themes and on a post about WordPress SEO you may want to have an amazon link to a corresponding SEO book. For posts that you do not have any affiliate links to post you may consider using that spot for adsense.

Ultimately with the media box you will be able to provide relevant advertisement to your visitors and help increase your affiliate sales.

With the latest version of Thesis (1.7) there is a new feature that affiliate marketers will love and it is the ability to easily create 301 redirect links out of your affiliate links. This means that you can transform all your ugly affiliate links into ones that look like they are on your site and with pretty slugs. This way people will not be discourage to click on them and you can help increase your click-through rates.

How Unique is Thesis?

Uniqueness is very important to generate visitor loyalty and help encourage a community on your site. The problem is that many people are using the same WordPress Themes as everyone else, so when you browse the web you find sites that look just like every other site. At least for me, this is a real turn-off.

There are currently thousands of people using Thesis and many people are using thesis with the basic settings applied and nothing customized. The beauty is that this framework is so easy to customize that you can make your site look 100% unique in just minutes. Ultimately it is up to you…You can go for the plain and basic design or you can edit it a bit and no one will even know you are using the Framework.

This is what makes Thesis so great. Unlike many other themes out there you will have to do a lot of CSS and XHTML editing to make your site look unique, but with Thesis you can log into your admin panel the second you activate it and make some changes really quickly and easily. Or you can upload ad use your own custom style-sheet.

Is Thesis The Perfect Theme?

No theme is “Perfect”, as any theme can virtually be improved in one way or another, however, there are probably many users out there that would argue that Thesis is very close to being a perfect theme. Below I highlight some of the advantages and disadvantages of Thesis so you can see what things are awesome and what could be improved.

Thesis WordPress Theme Advantages

  • Clean code and minimalistic design
  • Search Engine friendly and optimized
  • Make easy theme customizations without touching any code
  • Streamlines with custom child themes
  • Relatively cheap developer license

Thesis WordPress Theme Disadvantages

  • Plain and simple default design
  • Blogger layout – may not be as good for businesses without a child theme
  • CSS knowledge is still highly recommended to be able to make design changes to your site

How Much Does It Cost and Is It A Good Deal?

There are 2 pricing options for Thesis, the Developer option and the Personal option. The developer license costs $164 while the personal one is only $87. And while this may seem expensive, especially in comparison to the price of other themes, it is in fact a very good deal for what you are getting. You could spend over $500 paying someone for a custom designed website or you can buy this theme for $87 and customize it yourself. If you want your site to look and function great as well as rank on search engines, then it may be worth the money.

Below you can see what each of the different plans comes with…As you can see, if you are planning on using this theme on multiple sites, the Developer option is still cheaper then purchasing 2 personal option licenses!

Developer’s Option $164

  • Unlimited use of Thesis on sites that you own1
  • Access to all-new beta versions of Thesis before final release!2
  • Access to Client Site Options, which allow you to deploy Thesis on sites for clients3
  • Access to members-only Answers and Forums
  • Lifetime Thesis upgrades
  • 30-day money back guarantee

Personal Option $87

  • Use of Thesis on one live website and one localized development server
  • Access to the Developer’s Option Upgrade for only $774

Paying For A WordPress Theme

I remember when I first started with WordPress I was very skeptical and reluctant to buy any template and there are thousands of people out there that currently do not like the idea of paying for a theme when there are thousands if not millions of free themes out there. However, I have changed and hopefully I have somewhat convinced you other wise as well.

When you think about the TONS of extra features you will get by paying a little but for a Premium template. Think about it…If purchasing a premium theme helps your search engine rankings and increases even just a few more conversions from your site’s advertisements or products than it has been totally worth it.

And best of all with Premium Themes you do not need to worry about having to keep any footer links, spam that could have been added to a free theme, and most importantly you will be able to edit your site much more easily so you can avoid tons of hardship when trying to customize your site.

Should I Buy Thesis?

Of course since I am trying to make some affiliate sales here I would say YES click on the link below and buy this wicked-awesome theme. However, instead I want to give you a list of some things you can think about and possibly write down your answers so you can see if it really is worth it for your. And if you do consider purchasing this theme, you can do so through my links and I will get my respective commission. Thanks!

Things To Think About Before Purchase

  • $87 for a theme you can easily customize and make it look like anything, is that a good deal?
  • If you are a developer could Thesis make your life easier by providing you with a faster way to create client sites?
  • Thesis has some great SEO features and comes with a nice clean code. Is SEO a concern for you?
  • Would editing one theme over and over again be more efficient that buying or finding a new free theme for every new site or whenever you want to change the look of one.
  • Will Thesis make your life easier? (it has for many)
  • “22,100 savy webmasters rely on this framework” would you care to join?
  • If you buy it and it wasn’t as cool as you thought it would be, was $80 worth the try? (there is a 30-day money back guarantee)

Thesis Now With A Split License

For those of you concerned about the GPL license of WordPress, DYI Thesis announced just a couple weeks ago that they have added a split license to their theme making everything to do with WordPress GPL and all the Thesis Framework code to be the property of DYI Themes.

Visit Thesis To Learn More & Purchase Today

wp thesis theme

How to Offer Free Gifts for WooCommerce

wp thesis theme

How to Use CM WordPress Search and Replace

wp thesis theme

Is the CM Free Pass Plugin Suite Worth It?

Get our latest news, tutorials, guides, tips & deals delivered to your inbox.

When I first uncovered Thesis about 10 years ago, it really was the best. Mostly it was easy to use. But now, Thesis is extremely user-UNfriendly. For reasons I cannot imagine, Thesis has been redesigned to make the easiest things impossible to accomplish. I found myself Googling for how to do things that were so simple in earlier versions. For example, what did happen to the “Admin Panel Screenshot” where a user could define columns and widgets and search bars and colors, etc.? Everything was nicely in one place. Now, a user must go back and forth all over the Theme for perhaps hours trying to accomplish what once was done in 10 minutes. It looks like an intentional effort to make the Theme complicated. But why? After several hours of looking, I was never able to find how to remove the widgets from the sidebar, despite the fact that my site was one column. How can there be widgets in the sidebar when I should not have a sidebar? I had no choice but to use another theme. So extremely disappointed.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Linkedin
  • Share via Email

GrowMap

MAP Your Path To GROW Your Business

Thesis WordPress Theme Review – Why We Use It

Thesis Theme for WordPress:  Options Galore and a Helpful Support Community

Almost every blog I comment on that belongs to my favorite bloggers uses Thesis. It is the first theme I recommend to small businesses and clients and there is only one other theme I even suggest they consider: the Genesis Framework.

IS THESIS BETTER THAN GENESIS?

Thesis and Genesis are different.  I prefer Thesis for my blogs and believe you might want to consider Genesis for a more product oriented blog.

We Recommend Serious Bloggers and Businesses Use ONLY Either Thesis Or  StudioPress Genesis for their blogs.

If you want to know more about Genesis or to compare the Genesis Framework to Thesis use these links:

  • WordPress: StudioPress Genesis Framework
  • See Ron Cripps’ @AffiliateXFiles WP Genesis Review
  • See Kristi Hines @Kikolani Thesis vs Genesis – Comparing Premium WordPress Themes

Both of these themes are on my AAA Recommended Brands list that is linked from the top of the center column on every page of this blog and they are the only two I would seriously recommend anyone consider.

Why I NEVER Recommend Using Free WordPress Themes:

I’ll let these other experts explain the myriad reasons (that means too many to count!) for avoiding free WordPress Themes:

  • ReadWriteWeb: The Hidden Dangers of Free WordPress Themes by Audrey Waters
  • WPMU.org: Why You Should Never Search For Free WordPress Themes in Google or Anywhere Else By Siobhan McKeown

WHY USE THESIS THEME on WordPress?

Less down time (and tech support can be really expensive).

Whenever WordPress or a plugin gets updated there is a risk that the new version will not be compatible with WordPress,  your theme, or one of the plugins you’re using.

The more plugins you run and the more advanced your skills the higher the risk of conflicts.

There is an entire team behind Thesis that makes sure commonly used plugins are compatible and continue to be compatible BEFORE they roll out a new version.

They know when WordPress is going to be updated and they ensure that Thesis and common plugins are still going to work as expected. That means our blogs running Thesis will keep running.

Use a free theme and the next WordPress update may take you down – or worse – take the entire server you are on down – along with dozens of other sites.

Your hosting company will be VERY UNHAPPY and the first thing they will do is delete all your plugins. Hostgator has been known to flat out tell bloggers they can’t reinstall CommentLuv because they blamed it for a problem.

Hosting companies don’t want to diagnose the problem – they just want to make it go away. They are far more likely to tell you not to run your favorite plugins than to assist you in figuring out where the conflict is or even let you do it yourself because they don’t want to risk your blog taking down the server. They may want to charge you for tech support which could run into $100s or $1000s.

Running the Thesis Theme on your WordPress install = priceless peace of mind, tons of hours and aggravation saved, and a blog that stays online.

I have NEVER in ANY blog had a Thesis update cause a problem. I am NOT saying that could never happen because anything humans do is not infallable – but the team behind Thesis is super-sharp and they test thoroughly BEFORE our blogs are exposed to potential conflicts. That is priceless.

Free Themes Can Be Used for Nefarious Purposes Such as Including Security Exploits, replacing YOUR links with someone else’s affiliate links or linking your blog to bad neighborhoods and getting you banned.

PROFESSIONAL THEMES MANAGE INFRASTRUCTURE:

Advanced themes like Thesis manage much of what goes on behind the scenes in a blog such as no-following unimportant links, how comments are displayed and how the blog operates and is laid out.

AUTOMATIC FORMATTING

Thesis automatically formats your blog for different devices, monitor sizes and browsers. You need your blog (or what looks like a static site but is actually running on WordPress using Thesis) to display perfectly on EVERY visitors screen.

If you don’t use Thesis someone should be testing every resolution, browser, monitor size, device – that is a nightmare I don’t even want to think about – and because the Thesis Team does this so well I don’t have to worry about it!

MOBILE READY

Thesis automatically formats your blog for every device so you don’t have to use something else to make that happen.

I know Thesis does this well because when I’m in direct contact with someone I ask them what they are using and how well this blog displays and navigates on THEIR device. In every case they say the formatting is fine, they can navigate the site, and read and leave comments.

BUILT IN SEO

Thesis has built in SEO fields that allow you to optimize every page and post individually. This eliminates the need for plugins like All-in-one-SEO, Platimum SEO, etc. that are really necessary if you use a less advanced theme and want as much organic traffic as possible.

THESIS TECH SUPPORT

Thesis has exceptional people who provide tech support, a strong community who helps each other in their forum, and with almost all of our favorite collaborators using Thesis if you run into trouble we can help you get it fixed -fast!

I have asked for assistance for a blogger who accidentally broke something or got hacked or couldn’t get into their WP install and tagged a few people on Twitter and had 3-4 bloggers IMMEDIATELY offer to drop everything and assist!

I can’t guarantee that will always happen because even we have to eat and sleep sometime, but the odds are good other bloggers will come to your aid and if you’re running Thesis they will more easily be able to assist you.

If you are considering upgrading your theme we highly recommend Thesis .

THEME DESIGN

Thesis allows you to use ONE theme but make every site totally unique.  This blog, our golf store blog , our gift store blog , and thousands of other blogs use Thesis and no two look alike.

If you aren’t a designer or don’t have the time or desire to learn to customize Thesis do what we do – get a talented Thesis savvy blogger to do it for you! 

We know many bloggers who can do basic Thesis customization and if you need a real designer for a fancy custom graphic like the one in the image below, click that image to see what the best all-around WordPress expert we know and Thesis Skins provider Derek Semmler   can do for you.

Since we’re on the subject you might be interested in checking out all the cool blogs that are based on Thesis. Here are two galleries you can visit to see more customized Thesis themes:

  • Thesis WordPress Theme Showcase Gallery – Almost 200 sites – all very different – based on Thesis
  • Thesis Gallery Showcase – Here are 46 featured sites (some are on both lists).
  • Official Thesis Web Site – Disclaimer: This link contains OUR affiliate link as does the yellow ad in the left column of our blog.

POWER BLOGGERS WHO USE THESIS:

Most of the major blogs about blogging that we frequent have selected it as “ THE ” Theme to use including these:

  • Kristi Hines – @KristiHines 12 12 12 / @Kikolani 52 52 52 – Kristi knows and uses both Thesis and Genesis and has Thesis running on Kikolani.com – see her posts on Getting Started with Thesis (which covers how to actually hand code AND use Thesis), her three part series on WordPress Thesis Theme Customization , and her Thesis versus Genesis comparison .
  • Kimberly Castleberry @AskKim WordPress Thesis 2.0 Release 
  • Michael Gray – @GrayWolf – GrayWolf’s Wolf-Howl SEO Blog – His Take on the Benefits of Thesis

INTERVIEW WITH THESIS THEME DESIGNER CHRIS PEARSON:

  • ProBlogger interview with Chris Pearson about Thesis

NEGATIVE REVIEWS OF THESIS:

The ONLY bloggers I have ever run across who do NOT like Thesis are those who are programmers and like to write their own code to control every aspect of their blogs. If that isn’t you, you can skip this section.

  • WassupBlog – My First Impression of the Thesis Theme + Thesis Theme is Just Not Flexible Enough

MORE THESIS REVIEWS:

  • SugarRae – @SugarRae 49 49 49 49 49 – Review of the Thesis WordPress Theme
  • PremiumThemesReview – Thesis WordPress Theme Review
  • Binary Turf @BinaryTurf 11 11 11 11 11 – Thesis WordPress Theme – A Critical Take
  • Logos for WebSites – Recommends Thesis WordPress Template
  • I’m sure I’ve forgotten some in my niche so if I forgot you don’t stress – just let me know and I’ll add your link

CUSTOMIZING THESIS WORDPRESS THEMES:

  • 4 Great Ways to Customize a Thesis Theme

WHICH THESIS LICENSE TO CHOOSE:

If you have or plan to build many blogs get the developer’s license. If you only need it for one blog now, buy the personal license. You can always upgrade later.

If you plan to have someone else install your blog for you, obtain your license to use Thesis through them. You pay them and they pay DIYThemes for an additional blog under their developer’s license.

WHERE TO GET THESIS WORDPRESS LICENSES:

[DISCLAIMER: The links to Thesis in this post are affiliate links. Any blogger using Thesis probably has an affiliate link to Thesis so if decide to buy it you can support your favorite blogger by clicking on the link in their blog just before you buy. It does not cost you any more money to do this and bloggers are using it because it is that good – not because they might receive a commission.  ]

Published by

' src=

Gail Gardner

Founder of GrowMap, Small Business Marketing Strategist, freelance writer and BizSugar Mastermind Community Manager. View all posts by Gail Gardner

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Thesis WordPress Theme

DIYthemes Thesis WordPress Theme

Thesis WordPress Theme By DIYthemes, Theme Type: Blogging, Minimal, Multi-Purpose , free trial: available The Thesis Theme for WordPress is a high-quality template system that you can use to improve your site immediately.

Thesis boasts the strongest SEO of any theme on the market today thanks to its expertly-coded HTML + CSS + PHP framework. Not only that, Thesis also contains additional options that will allow you to fine-tune each and every page of your site. The days of worrying about your in-site SEO are over—with Thesis , your strategy is “just add killer content.”

Not a coder? Not a problem. The Thesis option panels allow you to command your site with ease, while Thesis does all of the heavy lifting behind the scenes. You’ve never had this much control over your site before, and this is precisely what makes Thesis indispensable to critical webmasters all over the globe.

The difference is in the details. You may not know it, but typography and visual clarity are two of the most important aspects of your site. Properly setting type on the web is an exercise in mathematical precision, and this is not an area where you want to compromise. After all, typography is the primary vehicle for the most important thing on your site—your content!

What about customizations and design changes? Thesis contains a futureproof customization system that allows you to produce unique designs, all while keeping your changes isolated to just two key files! And thanks to a revolutionary layout generator (with 1, 2, and 3-column layout combinations) and pinpoint font controls, testing tons of different layout variants has never been easier!

In addition to our in-house support staff, there are also tons of amazingly talented users who help newbies and veterans alike in our forums. On top of that, we’re ratcheting up the support with the addition of video tutorials, so now you’ll be able to do more with Thesis than ever before!

Thesis Theme General Features

Theme options, thesis theme other features.

  • jQuery Integration
  • integrated Advertising Management
  • Square Corner
  • Widget Ready
  • Threaded Comments
  • Color: Gray , Yellow , White ,
  • Layout: Three Columns , / Right Sidebar , Fixed Layout ,

Thesis Related Themes

briefcase theme

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

WordHerd WordPress Migration

WordHerd WordPress Migration

Website Migration Services

Thesis WordPress Theme – Mastering Custom Hooks and Functions in Thesis

Thesis is a really versatile theme. It may be custom-made very simply utilizing what builders name “Thesis Hooks.”

Thesis Hooks can change each a part of your WordPress weblog. On this WordPress tutorial, I’ll present you how you can modify your Navigation Menu.

You’ve in all probability observed that the default set up all the time has the Navigation Menu on prime of the default display. You’ll be able to change the default location through the use of Thesis hooks. Through the use of Thesis Hooks, you possibly can transfer the Navigation menu to seem under the weblog title and weblog description.

So, let’s get began with utilizing customized hooks and features within the Thesis theme for WordPress.

Comply with theses steps:

  • Entry the Consumer Information
  • Discover the help web page
  • Click on on Thesis Default Hook Utilization
  • Entry the Member’s Space
  • Discover, click on, and skim the web page referred to as “Learn how to Customise Like a Professional with Thesis Hooks”
  • Entry the hyperlink “Make Your Header Show Above your Navigation Menu”
  • Discover the suitable code, and replica it
  • Return to your WordPress weblog
  • Paste the code within the entry field in Customized File Editor

Thesis Default Hook Utilization:

Go forward and entry the Thesis Theme Member’s Space to get began. On this web page, you possibly can entry details about Thesis Hooks and which precise hooks are wanted to realize totally different seems on Thesis. Usually talking, every perform requires a pair of codes. The primary code is known as the perform. The second code is known as the hook. It’s essential enter each of those codes in an effort to construct a customized perform in Thesis.

Discover the web page referred to as “The right way to Customise Like a Professional with Thesis Hooks.” There, you will see that a tutorial together with actual examples. Go forward and click on on the hyperlink to entry the tutorial. Be happy to learn by means of all the web page.

Subsequent, discover the hyperlink referred to as “Make Your Header Show Above your Navigation Menu.” Discover the code, after which copy it. Subsequent, return to your WordPress weblog. You’ll paste this code in your Customized File Editor.

Allow your Thesis hook features by altering WordPress settings:

  • Discover the Thesis Choices tab
  • Click on on Customized File Editor
  • Choose the custom_functions choice
  • Click on on Edit Chosen File
  • Entry WordPress utilizing FTP
  • Click on on wp-content
  • Click on on Themes
  • Click on on Thesis
  • Click on on Customized
  • Entry the custom_functions.php web page
  • Proper click on the hyperlink
  • Select File Permissions
  • Change the permissions to 777
  • Click on on OK

The subsequent step is to seek out the Thesis Choices tab. Click on on Customized File Editor. Then, from the drop-down menu, you’ll be able to both choose customized.css, format.css, or custom_functions. For this objective, you must choose the custom_functions class. Then, click on on Edit Chosen File. With a purpose to run custom_function, you want to arrange the right file permissions in your WordPress weblog.

Entry your WordPress website utilizing an FTP software. Then, click on on wp-content. Click on on Themes. Then, click on on Thesis. Subsequent, click on on Customized. You will notice the custom_functions.php web page. Proper click on this hyperlink, after which select File Permissions. Change the permissions to 777 after which click on on OK.

Transfer the Navigation Menu through the use of Thesis Hooks

  • Return to Member’s Space
  • Take away the Thesis Navigation menu utilizing thesis_hook_before_header
  • Copy the code
  • Return to Thesis Customized File Editor
  • Discover entry field, paste the copied code
  • Click on on Save
  • Refresh the web page to confirm settings

For now, let’s return to the Members Space code once more. With a purpose to make the Navigation Menu transfer from the highest to the beneath the header, there are two units of actions that must be accomplished. The primary is a take away motion, which is to take away the Thesis Navigation menu from the present location of thesis_hook_before_header.

The second motion is so as to add the motion again into the suitable space on Thesis Hooks. Copy this code, after which return to the Thesis Customized File Editor. As soon as you’re on the Thesis Customized File Editor web page, you will notice feedback and notes that seem by default. These feedback and notes present you learn how to add customized hooks, or customized features. Discover the entry field, and paste the copied code precisely because it appeared within the Members Space instance. Then, click on the Save button.

After you could have clicked save, it is going to affirm the modifications. Refresh the web page. Now, check out the modifications. You possibly can see that the Navigation Menu now seems earlier than the header and beneath the weblog title and outline.

Take away the Thesis Attribution Hyperlink utilizing Thesis Hooks

  • Click on on the hyperlink “Get Sensible with the Thesis WordPress Theme from DIY Themes”
  • Return to Member’s Space to entry the code format to take away a perform
  • Discover the precise Thesis attribution code hyperlink
  • Return to File Editor
  • Paste the copied perform
  • Return to Help Space
  • Click on on Consumer Information
  • Discover Thesis Default Hook Utilization
  • Discover and click on on the pair of codes referred to as Thesis Attribution
  • Copy the perform
  • Paste the perform into the entry field
  • Copy the hook
  • Paste the hook into the entry field alongside the perform copy

Within the subsequent instance, let’s talk about eradicating the Thesis attribution hyperlink. If you wish to take away the default Thesis attribution hyperlink, click on on the hyperlink that reads, “Get Sensible with the Thesis WordPress Theme from DIY Themes.” Return to the Member’s Space to seek out the code format to take away a perform. Discover the code for the Thesis attribution hyperlink. Copy the code, after which return to File Editor. Proper under the physique of textual content, go forward and paste the copied perform.

Subsequent, discover the right hook identify and the right perform to finish the method.

Now, return to the Help Space. Click on on Consumer Information. Then, search for Thesis Default Hook Utilization. Upon getting accessed the web page, you’ll discover a helpful instance as to the pair of codes which might be wanted to make this modification work. Click on on the codes, after which discover the one referred to as Thesis Attribution.

Subsequent, copy the perform. Then, paste the perform within the entry field. Now, copy the hook. You’ll paste the hook into the entry field alongside the perform copy. Click on on Save. Then, you’ll be prompted with a affirmation message. To verify the modifications, refresh the web page and the footer ought to be gone.

Through the use of Thesis Hooks, you possibly can nearly customise Thesis nevertheless you need. For those who want further assist, you need to use on-line help boards and the consumer information. The boards are lively with a whole lot of superior WordPress and Thesis customers. Utilizing the out there assets is useful in case you run into any customization points utilizing Thesis Hooks for WordPress.

Read the full article >

Read more from this author

Key phrases: wordpress

Migrate your Website Today.

Are you interested in migrating your website to WordPress?

Get Articles Like this in Your Inbox!

Thesis – a WordPress Theme Design Worth Considering

Thesis.png

Not it’s not the start to a bad joke and yes the answer could be many things – but today I’m excited because one of my favorite blog designers, Chris Pearson has teamed up with one of my favorite bloggers, Brian Clark from CopyBlogger to put together a fantastic Premium WordPress theme called Thesis .

This theme is already getting some great reviews around the blogosphere (you can see some testimonials here ) and it is no wonder – because it’s got some great things going for it including:

  • SEO – WP is generally pretty well optimized to start with but Thesis takes it a step further and gives you every chance of ranking well in Google.
  • Accessibility – this theme will be able to be accessed by those using all kinds of browsers, mobile browsing and those with special needs
  • Customizable – you don’t want a design that looks exactly the same as everyone else’s – Chris has put together a theme that can have different backgrounds, has support for custom CSS and more. You can have rotating images to make your design even more unique. Alternatively you can use this multimedia box show six 125×125 ads, a video or even disable it. All this is done from within WP’s admin (see picture below) – very cool. Check out the ‘ showcase ‘ page on the Thesis site to see how others have been using the theme already.
  • Feature Rich – it plays nicely with Google Analytics and Mint, manages your RSS feed for you, separates comments and trackbacks, gives you lots of control over whether to show dates and author bylines on posts and much more.
  • Well Laid Out Design – Thesis is easy to get around and quite intuitive for those arriving on your site of all levels of web experience
  • Simple to Use – Thesis is easy to use and while I’m sure Chris will continue to add features and ways to use the theme it’s quite intuitive to get up and running and looking the way you want it.
  • Support – one thing that I love about Thesis is the support forum that Chris has built for those who invests in this theme. It’s already pretty active and covers a lot of the questions that you’d have as someone using it.
  • Free Upgrades – Chris has already released an update to Thesis which gives an indication that he’s still

You’ll want to check out Thesis for yourself – a good place to start is on it’s About Page .

Thesis comes with two license options. The personal license is $87 and the developer’s license is $164. The main difference is that the dev license allows you unlimited use of the theme across as many sites as you like.

If I were starting out today with a new blog and didn’t have the budget to get a custom design or the ability to design my own – Thesis would be something I’d serious look at investing in. In fact if I were starting a blog network today it’d be an ideal investment to grab the dev license as it is a great way to have a variety of blogs that share a similar look yet are customizable.

PS : here’s a look at the fantastic options panel that gives you control over many aspects of this theme (click to enlarge).

thesis-options.png

I’d like to say that the Thesis theme is damn amazing. Its typography and SEO is mouth watering. I’m going to use it for my next blog.

@Ganesh – Be sure to check out the new features in the 1.2 release. I posted about it on my Thesis Theme blog here:

Thesis Theme 1.2 Revealed

There are so many new options that I’m having to do a series of blog posts to cover them all. :-)

Yep, this is the one. I love the fact that you can purchase a personal license then upgrade by throwing another $87 to clench the dream deal on this theme steal. Love it… Just Love it!

Keep Shining

thanks for suggesting thesis. It doesn’t do everything but it is very helpful. Building a website requires A LOT of effort, learning and time. Thesis reduces a lot of that.

wp thesis theme

Just what I need. I’m looking for a good wordpress designer for weeks….I will check these guys out…

wp thesis theme

Rich options, but too expansive for me.

wp thesis theme

Love you blog by the way!!

I recently have been working as a consultant to hep expand a clients business. I decided a blog was absolutely the way to go in her case in particular. I researched various blogs, and decided that i liked WordPress features the best, but eventually went with Blogger because WordPress wouldn’t allow forms, and i really wanted to include the Feedburner email sign up form, and have the option of perhaps others in the future.

Now i’m confused… i take it this ‘Thesis’ template is in WordPress, and i see you have forms on your page here. Grrrr… was i mistaken/mislead? My client has already posted several successful post on her Blogger blog….

I find the Blogger tempaltes very limited, and the features also…

Any thoughts/advice?

I bought Thesis and am running on my Load of BS blog. Not at all what I expected. I thought it was supposed to be easy to configure but unless you are good with CSS and Hooks it isn’t.

I had earlier heard of Thesis so much.. from so many people that it seemed like a damp marketing squib. But now I stand convinced that Thesis is the best thing to have happened to WP. It is indeed a great piece of code for churning out websites in no time.

My blog looks cleaner with Thesis. It is simply wonderful that a new-bee like me got started on it in no time. The extent of customisation one can do is great. Kudos to CP!

wp thesis theme

The thesis site itself needs work. I have been looking for hours for a screenshot of the admin options page, and finally I find it here on problogger!

Thesis’ features look amazing. However, I’m turned off by the price tag. If they can reduce it a bit, then I’ll consider paying for it.

  • Older Comments

A Practical Podcast… to Help You Build a Better Blog

A Practical Podcast…

Close

BuildThatWebsite

BuildThatWebsite

Better Alternatives to Thesis Theme Framework

Avatar photo

Once upon a time, Thesis Theme was the gold standard for WordPress themes. More of a framework than a standalone theme, Thesis is an incredibly flexible backbone that let you craft nearly any type of design or site.

But several (debatable) missteps by Thesis’s developer (DIY Themes) have damaged its reputation, and dozens of high-profile bloggers have jumped ship. Pat Flynn, Matt Cutts and Harsh Agrawal all dumped Thesis Theme in favor of alternatives (most moved to Genesis).

Nowadays, few new sites are built on Thesis as there are dozens of better (and cheaper) options.

These are the best Thesis Theme alternatives worth considering.

Genesis Framework

Genesis Framework & Genesis Pro

Genesis is easily the closest competitor to Thesis Theme both in terms of design and longevity. Initially launched in 2010 (2 years after Thesis), Genesis is a survivor in a crowded industry. And legions of talented devs swear by it.

Like Thesis, Genesis is a framework, meaning it’s meant to be used with a child theme (to handle the styling) while Genesis powers the functions behind the site.

Benefits of Genesis

  • Steep learning curve
  • Non-devs need to buy a professional child-theme
  • No visual styling controls
  • Many tutorials are gated behind paywalls

Our Take: Genesis is an excellent backbone for sites managed by a developer, but isn’t the best choice for most solo-bloggers. It’s hard to customize and relies on a php-based hook system to change layouts and edit the theme’s front-end. I built my first WordPress site on Genesis, but have since moved it to GeneratePress.

Pro Tip: Dynamik Child Theme adds visual styling controls and pre-built ‘skins’ which makes Genesis much more accessible to non-coders. It’s a great child theme, and one I’ve used personally on multiple sites.

GeneratePress Theme

GeneratePress Theme & Framework

GeneratePress is what Genesis could have been if it was built for the average WordPress user.

It’s an incredibly powerful framework-like theme that can be used to build any type of website. But it’s still accessible to non-coders thanks to the excellent addons bundled with GeneratePress Premium.

The premium version lets you build site components with Gutenberg blocks (headers & footers for example) or inject any type of content into the dozens of hook locations built into GeneratePress templates.

Want to insert a custom opt-in form at the top of posts in a specific category? This is incredibly easy to do with a few clicks inside the GeneratePress Elements module, and you never have to touch PHP code (unlike Genesis).

Advantages of GeneratePress Theme

  • Few 3rd-party child themes available
  • Some customizations require PHP snippets (free via support forum)
  • Prioritizes flexibility over simplicity

I personally use GeneratePress on most of my latest projects (including this website). There’s a bit of a learning curve to harness its full power, but once you do you’ll feel like Neo in the Matrix.

Our Take: If you’re a WordPress power-user or have same basic CSS skills, GeneratePress could be the perfect Thesis Alternative. Especially if you’re speed-obsessed like we are. There’s a free version but it’s quite limited. I highly recommend going pro .

Astra is the #1 most popular theme in the WordPress repository

Astra is the most-downloaded theme in the WordPress repository, surpassing 1 million installs.

In many ways its very similar to GeneratePress. It’s quite flexible with adjustable layouts and relies on a hook system for customization.

The free version of Astra has better styling controls than most of the other themes on this list, and Pro upgrade makes it even better. Pro gives you a hooks module, header builder, more styling controls, and better layout/design options.

Compared to Thesis, Astra is a revelation. Not only is it easily customizable by beginners, even the free version is usable. You can even import full demo sites (from a limited site library) in Astra free.

Personally, I chose GeneratePress over Astra (I own both, though) because of the better quality of the support team, the cheaper lifetime license, and better Gutenberg integration. But I also am well versed in CSS and passable at PHP. For Beginners, Astra may be the better choice.

Advantages of Astra Theme

  • Some frustrating quirks and missing documentation
  • Support can be flaky

Blocksy Theme site library and demos

Blocksy is a relative newcomer, but I’m incredibly impressed by both the quality and general approach Blocksy takes to theming.

Like Thesis (and the other themes above), Blocksy is designed more like a flexible framework. But it packs even more power under the hood than competitors like Astra & GeneratePress.

And it’s even easier to use than those themes too. In fact, the primary drawback of Blocksy might be the shear overwhelming capability it has.

Here’s a sampling of what you get with Blocksy pro:

  • Theme hooks
  • Inject Gutenberg blocks into any hook or layout
  • Custom sidebars (conditionally loaded per category or even per page)
  • Visual menu builder (mega menu)
  • Woocommerce Integration
  • Adobe Typekit and Google fonts integration
  • Local font hosting
  • Per-page CSS and Javascript injection (optional)

Whew, that’s a lot. And if you’re a power-user, Blocksy might be your dream theme.

Kadence Theme

Kadence theme demo pages and examples

Kadence Theme is very similar in concept to Astra and GeneratePress, though the team takes a different approach to customization.

It’s got customizer controls for typography, branding and colors. But that’s just a start. You also get full layout control, including customizable sidebars, headers, footers and menus.

Kadence lets you visually build your header and footer with an intuitive drag-n-drop interface. Or you can just import a pre-built template from their extensive site library.

Advantages of Kadence Theme

  • Support average, not outstanding
  • No Gutenberg integration (insert blocks into hooks)

Avada Theme is a compelling alternative to Thesis if you want a pay-once license.

Avada is one of the bestselling premium themes of all time, and one of the few that I recommend from the Themeforest marketplace.

Not only is it incredibly flexible, but Avada comes with a ton of pre-built layouts and starter sites that can save you hours of time that you’d spend on setup on customization.

Avada is more like a classic theme than Thesis (less of a framework) but is still highly flexible. Add to that an integrated page builder (which also works as a theme builder) and you’ve got a powerful package.

And because of Themeforest’s licensing, you only pay once but get updates for life, which can be a better deal than recurring licenses like Astra and Thesis if you only need it for one site.

Advantages of Avada

  • No lifetime license
  • Support limited to 1 year
  • No Gutenberg integration
  • Theme lock-in

Divi theme

Divi isn’t for everyone, but there’s no arguing with its success. According to WPThemedetector, it’s the #2 most popular WordPress theme (behind Genesis).

Divi’s success is a direct result of it’s usability. Even novice WP users can get full control over their site’s design and layout. It’s infinitely customizable with the integrated Divi page builder.

And you don’t just get to control basics like typography, colors and widget areas. You get full template control and can easily build new templates for your posts, pages, or custom post types. This level of customization usually requires PHP abilities, but Divi makes it drag-and-drop simple.

Of course all of this comes at a cost, mostly speed and lock-in risk (hard to switch to another theme without rebuilding your entire site). That’s not to say Divi is slow, but it’s easy to overdo it with so much power at your fingertips.

Advantages of Divi

  • Can get bloated

OceanWP theme

OceanWP is quite similar to Astra and GeneratePress in its flexible framework-y approach. But this is no cookie cutter clone.

OceanWP differentiates itself with its bundled modular extensions (in pro) which let you bolt on all kinds of functionality. Whether it’s a GDPR cookie notice, off-canvas panel, sticky widgets, or custom footer, OceanWP has you covered.

And you can enable only the modules you need, keeping your site leaner and load times faster.

But OceanWP doesn’t stop there. There’s deep integration with both WooCommerce and Elementor. OceanWP Pro even comes with custom Elementor widgets, making it a great choice if Elementor is your page builder of choice.

Pricing: OceanWP Pro starts at $29/year

What happened to Thesis Theme?

Thesis theme originally launched in 2008 and quickly achieved god-like status in the WordPress community. It was frequently mentioned as the go-to framework for WordPress power-users and high-traffic blogs.

The first spot of tr ouble came when Matt Mullenweg (the creator of WordPress) announced that all WordPress themes needed to be GPL-licensed in order to be listed in the WordPress repository. Matt took it further and contented that anything built atop WordPress was GPL by definition.

Chris Pearson (creator of Thesis) held out and refused to change the theme’s licensing. As a result, sales plateaued and the feud dragged on in public for years.

In the meantime, Thesis angered some of its customizers directly by refusing to support Yoast SEO (the most popular SEO plugin at the time). Despite Thesis’s built-in SEO functionality, this was a dealbreaker for many bloggers. And I don’t blame them.

Eventually, Pearson capitulated and decided that the next generation of Thesis Theme (Thesis 2.0) would be GPL-compatible. Unfortunately, the Thesis upgrade wasn’t managed well (according to several thesis devotees).

One of the most noticeable errors was the lack of good documentation before the release, making the migration from 1.X to Thesis 2.0 incredibly painful. This was the last straw for well-known blogger Harsh Agrawal.

Thesis Theme google trends chart

Since 2012 (the year Thesis 2 was released) interest has dwindled, and it’s well outside the top 25 most popular themes now, behind even aged releases like the official twenty-twelve theme.

Though it’s still around, Thesis Theme isn’t the go-to option for many new sites. There are so many better, more powerful themes available that Thesis has largely fallen by the wayside.

And it’s not just about functionality, it’s about documentation and education too. There are hundreds of free tutorials for Genesis, GeneratePress and Astra that will hand-hold you through the entire site-building process.

But for Thesis? Not so much.

Themes I recommend instead of Thesis:

  • GeneratePress – Best if you know some CSS, want Gutenberg integration and value top-notch support.
  • OceanWP – Great for beginners without being overwhelming. A great choice if you use Elementor.
  • Blocksy – Blocksy is perfect if you want maximum control over the look of your site, without touching PHP code.
  • Genesis – Genesis is really only viable for developers (you need PHP abilities to customize it). But it’s still one of the most popular and best supported frameworks, and is the closest cousin to Thesis.

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

WPLeaders

10 Best “Thesis Theme” Alternatives For WordPress Sites

Istiak Rayhan

wp thesis theme

Thesis Theme (DIYThemes) used to be the best WordPress theme until the year 2012. The theme launched on March 29, 2008, since then the theme got enormous popularity for its wonderful performance. It seemed even more promising when Thesis 2.0 was released.

But Thesis 2.0 came with no proper documentation. A lot of existing users failed to migrate to the new version. And there were a lot of other issues.

On top of that, Thesis 2.0 was contradicting with each WordPress updates. Even it was not compatible with the most popular SEO plugin – Yoast SEO.

Eventually, Thesis Themes started losing its reputation. And the theme has not been updated for a long. That’s why we no longer recommend Thesis Themes.

The good news is, there are some alternatives out there. Here I’ll be sharing a list of 10 Best Thesis Themes Alternatives.

Without spending no more time, let’s get started into the details.

wp thesis theme

Divi is the ultimate WordPress Theme by Elegant Themes that comes with a dynamic page builder. It’s a multi-dimensional theme that can be used for almost every type of site.

There are a bunch of extended features which can be handled by a non-tech savvy user. I can guarantee you that you would be impressed by using this theme.

The most prominent aspect of the Divi Theme is its Visual Page Builder. By using the builder, you can design your site the way you want it without writing any code.

The theme comes with 46 content elements and 20 layouts which allow you to get ready and create your website immediately. This makes the theme completely unique and more comprehensive in terms of user experience.

  • Plenty Of Features And Functionalities.
  • Beautiful From End Editing Options.
  • Versatile 46 Content Modules.
  • Feature-rich Back-end Editor.
  • An Easy Undo/redo Facility.
  • Drag & Drop Facility.
  • Easy To Use Theme Options Panel.
  • Real-time Design And Responsive Customization.
  • 20-row Types, And 3 Section Types.
  • Advanced Design Settings.

The documentation of the theme is incredible that makes it more comprehensive for its users. It almost covers every aspect of its features.

If you are going to buy Divi Theme , here are some discounts for you.

2. GeneratePress

wp thesis theme

GeneratePress is one of the fastest WordPress themes . This multi-purpose theme is a great choice for both blog and business website. It was built with Speed, SEO, and Usability in mind.

The theme has already got a huge popularity in WordPress community. Currently, it has over half a million downloads, 200,000+ active installation with over 700 five star ratings.

We are currently using this theme on this blog (WPLeaders.com) and the theme makes our site insanely faster. The theme is only 30 KB in size that would make any site faster. Here is the speed status of our website:

Let’s see some amazing features of GeneratePress.

  • Lightweight & Super Fast.
  • Lots Of Options For Customization.
  • Modular Designs.
  • Responsive Outlook.
  • Impressive Integration With WordPress.
  • Translation Ready Website.
  • Lots Of Hooks And Filters.
  • Dedicated Support From The Developer.
  • Secure And Stable.
  • SEO Friendly.
  • Page Builders Friendly.

In the past, it was needed to build a website using GeneratePress from a blank canvas which was something very tricky for the casual users. Therefore, later in 2018, the theme added 25+ pre-built demo sites.

It’s pretty easy to use the GeneratePress theme. And that makes it one of the top-rated themes.

3. Authority Pro by StudioPress

wp thesis theme

After the sad downfall of Thesis Theme, a lot of users migrated to StudioPress. At that time, StudioPress themes were the best alternative for Thesis Theme Users.

It has a lot of amazing themes. One of their best creation is Authority Pro.

It’s a clean and minimal theme designed by Rafal Tomal. The theme is aimed to help you put the full extent of your expertise on display.

Authority Pro is designed in such a way that you can easily show and demonstrate your expertise. The theme is super-fast. And it will help you to move your business forward with a smooth visual look.

  • Custom Header Logo/images.
  • Schema And Accessibility-ready.
  • Navigation Options.
  • Ultimate Color Options.
  • Woocommerce Ready.
  • Google Fonts Facility.
  • SEO Settings.
  • Mobile Responsive.
  • Sticky Post.
  • Featured Images.
  • Html Markup Facility.
  • Supports Three Menus.
  • Unique Archive Page Description.
  • Pricing Table Template.
  • Book Cover Templates
  • Easy Product Promotion Facility.

4. Schema by MyThemeShop

wp thesis theme

Schema is a fast loading and SEO friendly WordPress theme. It is the most popular WordPress theme of MyThemeShop. It has built in Rich Snippet tools which will help you improve CTR.

The theme is clearly coded with HTML5 and CSS3. And it was built in keeping mind of User experience and SEO.

Schema is compatible with the most common browsers including old versions of Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox, etc. And comes with a responsive design that supports all devices.

  • Fully Responsive With Mobile-friendly Attire.
  • Built-in Support System.
  • Rich Snippets.
  • Woocommerce Compatible With Built-in Shop Layout.
  • Affiliate Ready And Advertisement Friendly Environment Design.
  • Powerful Admin Panel.
  • Translation Support.
  • Cross Browser Compatible.
  • Three Design Layouts.
  • Built-in Typography And Customization Options.

This theme is a good choice for bloggers.

wp thesis theme

X Theme (by Theme.co) is one of the best selling themes on ThemeForest. It has been sold more than 190,000 times within a short period of time. And you will find it on the top list of Themeforest every week.

This theme comes up with a handful number of extensions which are made by Theme.co themselves.

And users can update these extensions with free of cost.

Now let’s take a look at the features that come with X-theme:

  • Multiple Design Patterns.
  • Support Cornerstone Page Builder Tool.
  • Visual Page Builder Plugin.
  • Customizable The Front-end.
  • One Page Homepages.
  • Multiple Free Extensions.
  • Woocommerce-ready With Four Store Layouts.
  • bbPress And Buddypress Ready Theme.
  • Multiple Contents And Navigation Options.
  • Over 600 Google Fonts Facility.

Undoubtedly, X- Theme is a great theme which can present you more than you’d expect. I really like the way the theme looks and feels.

wp thesis theme

Avada is the best selling WordPress theme of all times on the Themeforest. The theme is created by ThemeFusion, a US based web design team founded by two freelancer Muhammad Haris and Luke Beck.

After launching Avada in 2012, the theme got a popularity and since then it has been constantly the best selling WordPress theme on ThemeForest.

It’s known to almost all the WordPress community that Avada is a well known as the witch army knife of WordPress themes. The theme has gained the popularity because of its huge number of features.

Let’s take a look at the features of Avada Theme:

  • Unlimited Design Pattern.
  • Fully Responsive Outlook.
  • Fully Compatible With bbPress And Woocommerce Platform.
  • Built-in Styles For Different Online Form Like Gravity Forms, Contact Form 7, Wpml.
  • Font Awesome Vector Icon Fonts.
  • Organized Documentation And Support.
  • One Page Parallax And Custom Background.
  • Speed Optimizer.
  • 275+ Premade Page Templates.
  • CSS3 Animations Support.
  • GDPR And Privacy Support.
  • Revolution Slider Option Included.
  • Simple Demo Importer.

Usually, the theme costs $60 and there will have a 6 months support from the developer.

wp thesis theme

Ultra is a feature-rich multi-purpose WordPress theme from Themify.me. If anyone wants to create a fashionable and modern website with WordPress, then this theme is a great option.

The theme is used to create a wide range of websites in a fashionable manner. Most importantly the theme covers multiple demo design layouts. For instance, you can have Themify demo, Agency demo, E-commerce demo, Fitness demo, Lawyer demo, Restaurant demo, Wedding demo etc.

You can easily create a custom website with Ultra theme without any coding knowledge. The theme is prepared with groups of useful features.

  • Pre-built Website Skins And Demos.
  • Import Demo Contents.
  • Themify Builder Page Builder Tool.
  • Theme Customizer.
  • 60+ Pre-designed Layouts.
  • Library Portfolio Templates Available.
  • Rendering 6 Archive Content Layouts.
  • Custom Widgets Facility.
  • Mega Menu Option.

Ultra Theme can provide you with a great outlook in displaying your website. The theme is one of the robust themes for the designers and developers. The code quality of the theme is very high, clean and stable.

wp thesis theme

If you want a theme which is very simple and customizable, you should try Astra Theme. The theme is developed by the Brainstorm Force, the same company who created Convert Pro , Schema Pro , etc.

Astra is designed and developed in such a way that meets all the criterion to be a user-friendly theme. The theme is fast, minimal and fully customizable. It can be used for multiple purposes like a blog, business website, portfolio, and WooCommerce storefront. Moreover, you can also use the theme for food and restaurants, resume, biography, niche-based websites and many other purposes.

The theme difference in terms of its a wide range of features. Some of the core features of the Astra theme are listed below:

  • Demo Import Features Available.
  • Fast Loading Performance.
  • WooCommerce Ready.
  • Properly Documented.
  • Dedicated Support.
  • Translation And RTL Ready.
  • Created For Page Builder.
  • Unlimited Layouts.
  • Page Builders Compatibility.
  • Widget Ready.

Astra has developed meticulously and crafted amazingly for multiple purposes.  The theme poses everything that you need to create a beautiful website in WordPress.

wp thesis theme

OceanWP is a free multi-purpose theme which is lightweight and highly extendable. You can create almost any type of website using the theme. The theme works for any page builder and fully customizable.

The beautiful page design and enough functionality make you run any kind of website. OceanWP has become one of the fast-growing free WordPress themes used by both hobbyist and developers.

What makes the theme unique is its features. The theme has some innovative features that make the product different from others. Now take a look at the features of the theme at a glance:

  • Responsive Design With Mobile-friendly Attire.
  • Support All Popular Page Builders.
  • Menu Icon Integration.
  • Lightning Fast Loading.
  • E-commerce Ready.
  • Advanced Mega Menu.
  • RTL Support.
  • Free Template.

OceanWP is the feature-rich free theme that is available to use in almost any kind of purpose. You can choose the theme for serving your purposes. This could be a great option for you.

10. Highend

wp thesis theme

The Highend is a multipurpose theme which can enable you to create a website easily. If you looking for building a website which is for WooCommerce website, then I would probably suggest you choose the Highend theme.

The theme is fully responsive which aims to create a professional website in a short possible time without any hassle. Highend theme focuses on creating an easy flow for online product selling-store.

Its ultimate color options and different layouts make the theme outstanding in terms of visual outlook. Highend comes with many different unique features for you to create a beautiful website. Here are some features of the theme given below:

  • Multiple Blog Layouts.
  • Customizable Portfolio.
  • Unique Maintenance Support.
  • bbPress Compatible With Creating The Forum.
  • 2d And 3d Animation Supported.
  • Mega Menus Facility.
  • More Than 1600 Icons And 630 Icons.
  • Fully Responsive And Retina Ready.
  • Woocommerce And Widgets Integrated.
  • Drag And Drop Editor.
  • Translation Ready.
  • Documentation And Support.

These are the versatile features of the Highend theme. This could be a simple solution for serving your purpose.

Hope this post helped you to choose the right WordPress theme.

wp thesis theme

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

WP Solver

WordPress Themes

5 thesis child themes for news sites.

' data-src=

Starting a news website using WordPress is not that hard as long as you love covering the news and are passionate about journalism. We have covered plenty of awesome WordPress themes for news sites . These 5 WordPress themes are worth checking out if you are building your news site using Thesis:

quik2

Quik : a modern magazine and news blog theme for Thesis. It has 6 design schemes and a landing page template.

vizio

Vizio : an attractive child theme for news and tech magazines. You can handle videos, images, and all kinds of content using this theme.

magazine

Magazine Thesis 2: this magazine theme is developed for Thesis 2. It is fully responsive and has 18 custom widgets and 15 shortcodes. You can change its colors easily.

foxynews

Foxy News : designed for Thesis 2 and Genesis, Foxy News turns your blog into a news portal. It has a jQuery background slideshow behind your content and multiple article sliders.

cinchpress

CinchPress : a magazine-type child theme for Thesis 1.8.x and Genesis. It has a decent number of custom widgets. CinchPress should work well for small magazine sites.

Thesis makes creating sophisticated WordPress sites easy. The above templates allow you to bring your news magazine online faster.

More WP Tips:

discy

  • Foxy News Theme for Thesis
  • 3 Magazine Child Themes for Thesis 2
  • 5 Genesis Child Themes for Tech Sites
  • Quik: Magazine Theme for Thesis 2

wp thesis theme

More in WordPress Themes

wp thesis theme

Zuri Divi Theme for Churches with 60+ Templates

Every business and organization needs to have a professional online presence these days. People even expect...

wp thesis theme

Petcio WooCommerce Elementor Theme for Pet Stores

There are millions of pet lovers around the world, so you can always come up with...

wp thesis theme

Divi Coworking WordPress Child Theme

Divi is a nifty framework for customizing your website fast via drag & drop. It comes...

wp thesis theme

Solar Divi Child Theme for Green Energy Businesses

The green energy industry is growing every year. If you are involved in it, you need...

wp thesis theme

Kinship Single Property Real Estate WordPress Theme

In the past few years, we have covered plenty of sophisticated real estate themes for agents...

Current Visits:

  • Yoo Bar: WordPress Notification Bar Plugin
  • 5 Ways to Add Amazon Products to WordPress

Top WP Plugins

  • 5 Desktop / Mobile Push Notification Plugins for WordPress
  • How to Stop Brute Force Attacks on WordPress: 7 Plugins
  • 15+ WordPress Themes & Plugins for Nutrition Sites
  • 6 WordPress Plugins to Redirect by Location
  • 3 Facebook Chat Plugins for WordPress

wp thesis theme

StreamVid: WordPress Theme for Streaming Services

wp thesis theme

Plugin Lists

3 wordpress plugins for booking tennis courts.

wp thesis theme

Wordpress Plugins

Raffle play plugin for woocommerce.

wp thesis theme

15 Must See Passwordless Login WordPress Plugins

wp thesis theme

21 Best WordPress Starter Themes for Developers in 2024

Quick Summary ↪ WordPress starter themes are for developers who don’t have the luxury of time or don’t want to build a theme from scratch. They provide the foundation from which you can create a fully functional WordPress theme. Here is the list of benefits of starter WordPress themes: We have collected the best WordPress starter themes that

WordPress starter themes are for developers who don’t have the luxury of time or don’t want to build a theme from scratch. They provide the foundation from which you can create a fully functional WordPress theme.

Here is the list of benefits of starter WordPress themes:

  • Lightweight and fast
  • Customizable
  • Cost-effective
  • Good for beginners

We have collected the best WordPress starter themes that combine great design with the flexibility to be able to customize it easily.

What Is a WordPress Starter Theme?

As mentioned above, a WordPress starter theme is a pre-made theme that can be easily customized to become something similar or completely different.

They can provide the basis from which a busy developer can take the outline of the theme and run with it to complete a project.

They are also useful for those wanting to learn WordPress . You can play around and experiment with them without having to learn the core code and without having to pay for a full theme.

Starter themes are valid WordPress themes but have minimal styling so you can build your own site using it as the foundation. They are designed to be expanded, improved and otherwise worked on by developers.

Some starter themes are very barebones and come with nothing but the site outline. Others will come with all the tools you need to build your site or a mixture of the two. This article covers them both. Tweet

Best WordPress Starter Themes

The following table summarizes the discussion about the WordPress starter themes. If you don’t have the time to go through the entire article, the below 5 themes will do the job just fine.

Astra1,653,898+Free / Starting from $49 €45 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Underscores100000+Free⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
UnderStrap10000+Free⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Ultimatum 100000+Starting from $55⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Basic10000+Free⭐⭐⭐⭐

Let’s get started with our hand-picked list of the best starter WordPress themes.

Astra themes are unique in that they combine already fantastic designs all ready to launch with the ability to customize them as much as you like. The range of starter templates available is impressive, as is the quality of those designs.

What’s more important for developers is the ease at which you can customize each template to suit your own needs. All use clean code, are compatible with Brizy, Beaver Builder, Elementor, Gutenberg and other page builders if you like to build like that or can be fully customized at the back end.

The hard work has been done for you with Astra. All starter templates are coded to load fast, fully compliant, tested to work on all browsers and are fully responsive. What better way to start a project?

Pros of Astra

  • Astra can be used with all popular page builders
  • 250+ Starter Templates cover almost every niche you can name
  • The theme is built for performance and speed
  • Regular fixes and maintenance releases minimize bugs and performance bottlenecks 
  • Compatible with most page builders and WordPress plugins

Cons of Astra

  • Astra comes with a long list of features that might intimidate beginners

2. Underscores

Underscores (_S) is one of the most well-established WordPress starter themes available. It is run by Automatic, the people behind WordPress.com and has been designed to provide a solid base from which you can build your own WordPress website .

While owned by Automatic, the theme has been collaboratively produced to create one of the most flexible and well-coded themes out there. It has everything you need to begin building almost any site you like with all the calls and functions you can think of in a very streamlined package.

Pros of Underscores

  • Highly recommended for experimentations in WordPress theme development 
  • Inbuilt support for WooCommerce
  • The lean design ensures minimum distractions during theme development
  • The theme is regularly maintained by the developers
  • There’s a lot of documentation

Cons of Underscores

  • The theme is not responsive out of the box
  • Underscores is not a beginner-friendly theme 

3. WP BootStrap Starter

WP BootStrap Starter is another very usable WordPress starter theme. It’s based on a combination of Underscores and Bootstrap that utilizes HTML, CSS and JS to deliver a fully responsive, mobile-friendly WordPress theme for any use.

It also works with Font Awesome, WooCommerce, Visual Composer, the Elementor page builder and even Contact Form 7. WP BootStrap Starter has a GPL licence so you can use it however you like too!

Pros of WP Bootstrap Starter

  • Ideal if you wish to use BootStrap as your CSS framework
  • Based on the Underscores theme
  • Compatible with WooCommerce
  • The theme comes with premade page templates
  • A great theme for Elementor page builder 

Cons of WP Bootstrap Starter

  • Little to no RTL support
  • The theme has a significant learning curve
  • You might need to write additional media queries to accommodate custom screen sizes

Naked is a WordPress starter theme designed for those who want to experiment with the design aspect of website design without the development part. The theme includes the basic outline of a WordPress site with individual pages, support for comments, responsive styling and custom options but with no design of its own.

Naked is written in HTML5 and supports custom menus and sidebars, WordPress widgets, a blog, categories and tags and everything you need to get started. The documentation is pretty good too.

Pros of Naked

  • Ideal for beginners who are just starting out with WordPress theme development
  • Fully responsive design 
  • The theme comes with all basic page templates
  • Naked supports custom sidebars, widgets, and menus
  • Extensive template comments greatly help beginners in theme development 

Cons of Naked

  • The page templates are pretty basic and require extensive design 
  • Experienced developers might find the theme too simple 

Tonik is an open source WordPress starter theme available from its website or from GitHub. It depends on having Composer and Node installed and will require a little bit of setup to get started. Once done however, the theme provides everything you need to begin building.

In return for that effort, Tonik provides a preconfigured directory structure, Ajax support, a service container, component support, templating, theme actions and filters, shortcode support, autoloading tools and command line tools.

Pros of Tonik

  • Tonik is an ideal starter theme for experienced developers 
  • The theme comes with a pre-configured directory structure that emphasizes organization 
  • The theme is built for projects that require excellent organization and a well-defined structure
  • The central configuration means you only need to go to one location for theme-wide changes
  • Tonik comes with support for popular frontend frameworks including Bootstrap and Foundation

Cons of Tonik

  • Beginners might find Tonik a bit complex for their requirements
  • Tonik might not be a good fit for single developers or small teams 

6. Responsive

Responsive is a free WordPress starter theme that has a little more meat on the bones than some of these others. While still barebones, there are design elements within the theme so you’re not starting from scratch. If that works for you, this theme could work perfectly.

Responsive is more like Astra than Naked and provides some basic themes that you can import and build as you see fit. They do contain styling elements and functions but you can add, change or remove these at will. While the designs aren’t as flexible as Astra, they can work if you’re looking for a more built-out theme.

Pros of Responsive

  • The theme works with both Elementor and Gutenberg
  • Responsive is fast with a great performance out of the box
  • Responsive has a very lightweight codebase
  • You can use all popular plugins with Responsive
  • You get 15 pre built templates for faster website design and launch

Cons of Responsive

  • The free version might not be a great fit for professional projects

Sage is another very popular WordPress starter theme from Roots. This theme uses a combination of Sass, Bootstrap, Bulma, Foundation, Tachyons, Tailwind and Laravel’s Blade for templating. This provides a very powerful and flexible basis from which to build a website.

Sage has been optimized to deliver efficient building without the need to repeat stages and has tools for JavaScript error checking, Sass stylesheets, third party package support and a well-coded HTML 5 template. There’s a lot going on here but Sage is a great way to learn design or build a site.

Pros of Sage

  • Sage uses Bootstrap 4 as the default CSS framework
  • The theme is a great starting point for professional projects
  • Works with all popular page builders
  • You can replace the default Bootstrap option with Foundations, Tailwind or remove the frontend framework during installation
  • Sage supports the popular Blade templating engine to minimize repetition

Cons of Sage

  • Sage comes with a learning curve for beginners

Beans is a very accessible WordPress starter theme. It was designed to serve both designers who wanted a starter and beginners who wanted something to help them get started. Beans delivers on both.

It’s a comprehensive starter theme that supports responsive content, the Ulkit front-end library and most existing WordPress plugins. It also loads quickly, has been built to be SEO friendly, works with CSS3, HTML 5 jQuery and LESS. Beans is updated regularly and continuously refined by an avid community of supporters.

Pros of Beans

  • Works great as both a starter theme or a standard website theme
  • Beans has a performance-optimized theme structure
  • Great documentation helps you out when you get stuck
  • The theme offers several great prebuilt templates to kickstart your projects
  • Beans is fully responsive and takes care of serving the proper image size for the target devices

Cons of Beans

  • Beans requires good knowledge of WordPress development 
  • The theme is overkill for small projects

9. UnderStrap

UnderStrap is a WordPress starter theme that combines Underscores and Bootstrap 4 to deliver a smart, usable theme for any kind of project. This is a premium option with no free version but in return you get to use Understrap’s dynamic PHP and JavaScript alongside Bootstrap’s static files to be able to build almost anything you like.

UnderStrap integrates Font Awesome and combines all CSS files into minified single files. It supports WooCommerce , Contact Form 7, Jetpack and other WordPress plugins too!

Pros of UnderStrap

  • The theme is based on Underscores and brings all the features to the development process
  • The default CSS framework is Bootstrap 5 
  • The theme can be used both as a parent theme or used as a base for child themes 
  • UnderStrap works with all popular plugins including WooCommerce
  • The theme is translation-ready and you can find it in all major languages

Cons of UnderStrap

  • Using the theme in your theme development projects requires expert WordPress development knowledge

Quark is another WordPress starter theme worth checking out. This version is based on Underscores and the default TwentyTwelve WordPress theme. That means it is fully compatible, flexible and includes very tidy HTML 5 and CSS3.

Quark is responsive, based on a 12 column grid and supports Font Awesome, custom headers, post templates, multiple pages, sidebars, custom media queries, the Options Framework, WooCommerce and other plugins. It is also WPML-ready.

Pros of Quark

  • The theme is based on Underscores, a very versatile starter theme in its right
  • The theme is intentionally kept lean for faster development and smooth performance
  • Because of the lean structure, you can start with theme development without needing a child theme
  • The theme is fully responsive and renders theme elements in all browsers without major differences
  • Quark is translation-ready and compatible with the popular WPML

Cons of Quark

  • TwentyTwelve, one of the two underlying themes is outdated and no longer recommended for theme development
  • Might not be a good fit for projects where developers need tools and plugins packaged within the theme

Bones is a mobile-first WordPress starter theme that keeps things nice and simple. It’s a barebones design that provides the basic foundation from which to build your own website using Sass, CSS3 and HTML5.

Bones is a WordPress theme and not a framework. It doesn’t need a child theme and comes with everything you need to begin building right away. It is fully responsive, supports custom post types and most WordPress plugins.

Pros of Bones

  • Custom post types and a custom dashboard are preloaded
  • Bones is pretty lean with a particularly simple header
  • The theme is responsive and looks good on mobile devices
  • Bones is built to be fully customizable with a minimal codebase
  • The theme automatically handles older browser versions by serving an appropriate version of your code

Cons of Bones

  • Not a good fit for developers looking for a WordPress development framework

WP Rig is a WordPress starter theme designed to streamline the website design process while keeping the flexibility and power we need. It uses the drag and drop convenience of the WordPress Template Hierarchy with a well-build starter template to provide a theme and builder in one.

It works by using Babel, PostCSS, Gulp, ESLint and BrowserSync to let you develop any type of website you want with minimal effort and maximum productivity. The package is easy to use and the website has a lot of documentation to help you learn and make the most of what’s possible with WP Rig.

Pros of WP Rig

  • Lazy loading of images is included in the standard package 
  • VS Code is the preferred development editor (but you can use any editor you wish) 
  • WP Rig supports the official AMP plugin 
  • The theme takes care of code linting without needing external tools
  • Your code gets automatically minified for optimal performance

Cons of WP Rig

  • WP Rig is not an ideal fit for small and hobby projects
  • Beginners might find the feature set too extensive for their needs

13. _tk Starter Theme

The _tk Starter Theme is another mobile-first WordPress starter theme that delivers the tools you need to build your own site with no fuss and no mess. Based on Underscores and Bootstrap, the theme comes just with the WordPress files and stylesheets you need to build a fully functional website.

The theme is designed to be lightweight, work with Twitter Bootstrap 3.0, load quickly and yet be flexible enough to deliver the interactivity and engagement you want from a website. All files are free and offered under a GPL licence so you can do whatever you like with them.

Pros of _tk Starter Theme

  • You get a blank theme that you can customize to fit your project
  • You get the latest Bootstrap as the default CSS framework
  • The theme is based on the powerful Underscores theme for optimal performance
  • Lots of official documentation
  • Compatible with all popular plugins, including WooCommerce and Jetpack

Cons of _tk Starter Theme

  • The completely blank theme might not be a good fit for beginners
  • Ultra minimal theme structure means you have to do all the work for building your target child theme

14. JointsWP

JointsWP is a clean WordPress starter theme that combines with Foundation 6 to deliver a very flexible basis to build a website. The combination is powerful, responsive, mobile friendly and ready to go. It works with Sass for efficient designing and requires no child theme to build.

It also works with Gulp so you can quickly compile your CSS, minify your JS and create efficient workflows. You don’t have to use Sass either, if you prefer to build your CSS by hand, you can do that too.

If you’re new to WordPress, JointsWP has a very useful documentation page to help you get started.

Pros of JointsWP

  • The Foundation framework is great for mobile-first website development
  • JointsWP is a great theme for building multilingual websites
  • The theme is lean enough and you don’t need a child theme to start development
  • You have the option of using either Saas or CSS for styling
  • Your development won’t be slowed down by unnecessary functions

Cons of JointsWP

  • If you’re not familiar with the Foundation framework, you might have a learning curve ahead of you

15. HTML5 Blank

HTML5 Blank doesn’t get off to a good start thanks to a website with nothing but a video on it. Once you’re past that, you quickly realize the true potential of this WordPress starter theme.

As the name suggests, HTML5 Blank is an empty template made from HTML5. It supports CSS3 and has the bare bones required to build a working WordPress theme. The website is pretty useless in terms of documentation but the theme is so clean that even a beginner should soon find their bearings.

Pros of HTML5 Blank

  • HTML5 Blank has a super minimal design that offers a blank canvas for your projects
  • You get cleanly built templates that help you launch your website faster with little effort
  • HTML5 Blank comes with a very minimal codebase that doesn’t slow you down
  • The theme doesn’t have any shortcodes or extra functionality to bloat your code

Cons of HTML5 Blank

  • The HTML5 and CSS3 combination requires decent web design knowledge
  • Some designers might not feel comfortable with the ultra-minimal design

16. Ultimatum

Ultimatum is a premium WordPress starter theme with a little more to offer. It’s a bare starter theme but comes with a drag and drop page builder , support for premium extensions and a clean core that can be developed however you like.

If you want to build your own theme without having to load Gulp and other tools, Ultimatum can help. It loads into WordPress and uses the dashboard to help you access the drag and drop builder. If you have every used Astra, the process is much the same. Drag, drop, add content and save. Easy!

Pros of Ultimatum

  • The drag and drop builder speeds up the design process
  • The clean codebase ensures that your child themes are just as fast as Ultimatum
  • You can use your preferred plugins with the theme to facilitate website design
  • CSS is the default styling option for the theme
  • The theme supports custom post types and a range of custom widgets

Cons of Ultimatum

  • Some experienced developers might find the drag-and-drop builder a bit messy

17. DIYThemes

DIYThemes offers a pair of starter themes called Focus and Thesis. They are premium themes that contain the basic layouts from which you can build your own website.

This is another theme that uses a page builder. It also uses Skins, which are theme overlays and Boxes, that are a straightforward way of building sidebars. The combination means you can begin creating your website without the higher learning curve of some of these other options. Pricing is steep though.

Pros of DIYThemes

  • You can extend the core theme with the free and paid addons 
  • The themes come with great typography to simplify design choices
  • The structure of the theme emphasizes SEO and performance
  • You get a visual template editor for WYSIWYG template editing
  • The theme is fully responsive and sizes the content to the target devices

Cons of DIYThemes

  • The price of the theme makes it a poor choice for small projects
  • The add-ons based architecture means that you need to add components that might slow down your theme

Nebula crosses the line between a starter template and a framework. It provides everything you need to begin developing with some nice extras including custom functions, filters, custom metaboxes for the WordPress admin dashboard, support for Google Analytics , Sass and a whole lot more.

Nebula does mean there are specific things to learn but also helps you learn code and development in a user-friendly way. It’s a secure framework with support for external plugins and libraries as well as the Twitter API and other interactions.

Pros of Nebula

  • Nebula is more of a framework that comes with libraries and features for faster website design and development
  • You can enable and disable specific features from the Nebula options
  • You get a fully responsive theme that is ideal for building all sorts of websites
  • You get the out-of-the-box support for Google Analytics
  • Nebula supports all popular plugins that you might need for your child themes

Cons of Nebula

  • Too extensive for beginners who have to go on a steep learning curve for the theme

19. TemplateToaster

TemplateToaster goes in a different direction than some of these other WordPress starter themes. It’s an application that includes a theme generator that supports WordPress, Joomla, Magento and other CMS. It installs onto your computer and provides the tools you need to build a website with everything included.

This is a premium product with a free version that lets you experiment but won’t let you export your theme from the application. It looks like a cross between Microsoft Office and Paint.net but includes everything you need to create fully compliant WordPress themes.

Pros of TemplateToaster

  • Flexible template generator allows for extensive feature-rich themes
  • TemplateToaster uses Bootstrap as the default CSS framework
  • It generates templates that you can then tweak to fit your projects
  • The application works with all popular CMS including WordPress and Magento
  • The process of generating templates is pretty fast, thanks to the simple UI

Cons of TemplateToaster

  • Not a WordPress exclusive product and thus, bloatware could creep in

Requires download and installation in a Windows environment 

20. BlankSlate

BlankSlate is exactly what the name implies. It’s a very basic WordPress starter theme with nothing but the bare bones. It was designed for more experienced developers but could provide the basis to learn as long as you have access to decent documentation.

There is very little else to say about BlankSlate really. It uses clean code, no CSS styles, is SEO-friendly and supports jQuery. If you’re looking for the barest of barebones starter themes, then BlankSlate could be what you’re looking for.

Pros of BlankSlate

  • As the name states, the ultra-minimal design essentially offers a blank slate for your projects
  • Very lightweight codebase results in blazing fast speed and performance
  • No third-party scripts burden down BlankSlate
  • You can set up the styling for your projects using the CSS framework of your choice
  • Since the theme offers bare minimum, you can simply replace the default codebase with your own for faster project deployment

Cons of BlankSlate

  • You might want to focus on theme minification 
  • Too barebones for designers who wish to customize templates for their projects

Basic is a free WordPress starter theme from Themify. We often list their premium themes in our ‘best of’ lists and this Basic is no different, just for very different reasons.

This is another very barebones theme with the basics from which you can build anything you like. It is fully responsive, includes social media elements, supports widgets, Lightbox gallery , child themes and was written in CSS3 and HTML5.

Pros of Basic

  • The theme comes with a basic layout styling that doesn’t get in your way
  • Basic already has footers widgets that help save design time
  • Theme skins give a simple makeover to the website design
  • You can use your favorite CSS framework for shorter development time
  • You essentially get all the tools to kickstart your project

Cons of Basic

  • The HTML5/CSS3 structure is not for everybody
  • Too many out-of-the-box options could annoy experienced developers looking for a clean blank starter theme

Which Is the Best WordPress Starter Theme?

We recommend any of the WordPress starter themes in this list if you’re looking for a foundation to build or to learn. Each offers something a little different and goes about it in a slightly different way.

That said, there are two starter themes that stand out. The free starter template from Astra and Ultimatum.

Astra has a selection of free starter templates covering the very bare bones up to fully functional website themes. There are also a wide selection of pro-quality premium templates if you want to skip the development and go right to the good stuff.

Ultimatum is a premium WordPress starter theme that also offers a range of themes to choose from. It loads into WordPress and uses familiar options to help build your website. It’s the middle ground between a fully-fledged working theme and a foundation such as BlankSlate.

Final Thoughts

If you’re learning WordPress development, still working on your CSS or HTML skills or want to skip the framework development and get straight to the design, any of these WordPress starter themes can help.

You can also use simple or minimal themes; those can also work as a starter theme.

  • 45+ Simple WordPress Themes
  • 35 Best Minimalist WordPress Themes

Do you use any of these WordPress starter themes? Have any others to suggest? Tell us about it below!

wp thesis theme

Sujay Pawar is the co-founder and CEO of Brainstorm Force. He brings a one-of-a-kind fusion of tech brilliance, business savvy and marketing mojo to the table. Sujay has consistently spearheaded the development of innovative products like Astra, CartFlows, ZipWP and many others that have become market leaders in their respective niches.

Disclosure: This blog may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through one of these links, we may receive a small commission. Read disclosure . Rest assured that we only recommend products that we have personally used and believe will add value to our readers. Thanks for your support!

Get exclusive access to new tips, articles, guides, updates, and more.

Dianna Profile Pic

Nice list We can easily create great looking WordPress theme with HTML and CSS knowledge.

Lucas Walker Profile Pic

This list has some amazing names for new WordPress developers. Using starter theme gives huge boost in productivity and saves tons of time. Thank you for the list.

Noah Tristan Profile Pic

Amazing list, Aren’t genesis framework good for new theme developers?

Russel Profile Pic

As a WordPress developer, I can tell that this list has some amazing names. You wouldn’t go wrong if you choose any theme from this list.

Alfonzo Profile Pic

Astra is a great theme for new web designers, it has lot’s of free theme builder templates to play with. Defiantly recommend it to new users.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

We believe creating beautiful websites should not be expensive. That's why Astra is free for everyone. Get started for free and extend with affordable packages.

Download is Just A Click Away!

YEAR IN REVIEW

Enter your email address and be the first to learn about updates and new features.

Theme Directory

Cultural Festival

Mizan Themesのアバター

  • Last updated 2024年7月8日
  • Active installations 10 未満
  • WordPress version 5.6
  • PHP version 7.2
  • Theme homepage

Cultural Festival is a versatile and visually captivating WordPress theme designed to showcase a wide array of festivals, including music festivals, film festivals, art festivals, food festivals, wine festivals, and more. This theme is perfect for creating stunning websites for various types of festivals, from community and local festivals to international and traditional festivals. Featuring a clean and modern layout, the Cultural Festival WordPress Theme offers an intuitive design that highlights festival events, activities, schedules, and lineups. Its responsive design ensures a seamless experience across all devices, making it easy for festival-goers to access information on the go. The theme includes customizable sections for festival tickets, passes, admission details, and festival attractions like food trucks, crafts, and performances. With this theme, festival organizers can effortlessly manage and promote their events. The Cultural Festival WordPress Theme also supports robust marketing and promotional tools, including social media integration, festival sponsorships, partnerships, and volunteer coordination.

Downloads per day

有効インストール: 10 未満

See all reviews

意見や質問がありますか ?

サポートフォーラムを表示

このテーマに大きな問題がありますか ?

Translate this theme

Browse the code

Development log

Subversion repository

Trac tickets

Free guide: 👀 The internet has changed— has your site changed with it?

Thesis Plans and Pricing

This is the Thesis pricing page that was active from March 29, 2008, through January 25, 2019.

Thesis can no longer be purchased directly, but you’ll be happy to know Thesis technology is included in the Focus WordPress Theme .

  • Check out Focus pricing
  • Browse cool Focus sites in the Focus Website Showcase
  • What is Thesis?
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright ©2008–2024 DIY themes. All rights reserved.

Made in Austin, Texas, homeh.

  • Mobile Site
  • Staff Directory
  • Advertise with Ars

Filter by topic

  • Biz & IT
  • Gaming & Culture

Front page layout

GOT PATCHES? —

Hackers try to exploit wordpress plugin vulnerability that’s as severe as it gets, wp automatic plugin patched, but release notes don't mention the critical fix..

Dan Goodin - Apr 26, 2024 7:07 pm UTC

Hackers try to exploit WordPress plugin vulnerability that’s as severe as it gets

Hackers are assailing websites using a prominent WordPress plugin with millions of attempts to exploit a high-severity vulnerability that allows complete takeover, researchers said.

The vulnerability resides in WordPress Automatic , a plugin with more than 38,000 paying customers. Websites running the WordPress content management system use it to incorporate content from other sites. Researchers from security firm Patchstack disclosed last month that WP Automatic versions 3.92.0 and below had a vulnerability with a severity rating of 9.9 out of a possible 10. The plugin developer, ValvePress, silently published a patch, which is available in versions 3.92.1 and beyond.

Researchers have classified the flaw, tracked as CVE-2024-27956, as a SQL injection, a class of vulnerability that stems from a failure by a web application to query backend databases properly. SQL syntax uses apostrophes to indicate the beginning and end of a data string. By entering strings with specially positioned apostrophes into vulnerable website fields, attackers can execute code that performs various sensitive actions, including returning confidential data, giving administrative system privileges, or subverting how the web app works.

“This vulnerability is highly dangerous and expected to become mass exploited,” Patchstack researchers wrote on March 13.

Fellow web security firm WPScan said Thursday that it has logged more than 5.5 million attempts to exploit the vulnerability since the March 13 disclosure by Patchstack. The attempts, WPScan said, started slowly and peaked on March 31. The firm didn’t say how many of those attempts succeeded.

WPScan said that CVE-2024-27596 allows unauthenticated website visitors to create admin‑level user accounts, upload malicious files, and take full control of affected sites. The vulnerability, which resides in how the plugin handles user authentication, allows attackers to bypass the normal authentication process and inject SQL code that grants them elevated system privileges. From there, they can upload and execute malicious payloads that rename sensitive files to prevent the site owner or fellow hackers from controlling the hijacked site.

Successful attacks typically follow this process:

SQL Injection (SQLi): Attackers leverage the SQLi vulnerability in the WP‑Automatic plugin to execute unauthorized database queries. Admin User Creation: With the ability to execute arbitrary SQL queries, attackers can create new admin‑level user accounts within WordPress. Malware Upload: Once an admin‑level account is created, attackers can upload malicious files, typically web shells or backdoors, to the compromised website’s server. File Renaming: Attacker may rename the vulnerable WP‑Automatic file, to ensure only he can exploit it.

WPScan researchers explained:

Once a WordPress site is compromised, attackers ensure the longevity of their access by creating backdoors and obfuscating the code. To evade detection and maintain access, attackers may also rename the vulnerable WP‑Automatic file, making it difficult for website owners or security tools to identify or block the issue. It’s worth mentioning that it may also be a way attackers find to avoid other bad actors to successfully exploit their already compromised sites. Also, since the attacker can use their acquired high privileges to install plugins and themes to the site, we noticed that, in most of the compromised sites, the bad actors installed plugins that allowed them to upload files or edit code.

The attacks began shortly after March 13, 15 days after ValvePress released version 3.92.1 without mentioning the critical patch in the release notes. ValvePress representatives didn’t immediately respond to a message seeking an explanation.

While researchers at Patchstack and WPScan are classifying CVE-2024-27956 as SQL injection, an experienced developer said his reading of the vulnerability is that it’s either improper authorization ( CWE-285 ) or a subcategory of improper access control ( CWE-284 ).

“ According to Patchstack.com , the program is supposed to receive and execute an SQL query, but only from an authorized user,” the developer, who didn't want to use his name, wrote in an online interview. “The vulnerability is in how it checks the user's credentials before executing the query, allowing an attacker to bypass the authorization. SQL injection is when the attacker embeds SQL code in what was supposed to be only data, and that's not the case here.”

Whatever the classification, the vulnerability is about as severe as it gets. Users should patch the plugin immediately. They should also carefully analyze their servers for signs of exploitation using the indicators of compromise data provided in the WPScan post linked above.

reader comments

Channel ars technica.

IMAGES

  1. Thesis SEO Friendly & Customizable WordPress Theme

    wp thesis theme

  2. The Best 26 Responsive WordPress Themes Of All Times

    wp thesis theme

  3. Thesis wordpress theme review

    wp thesis theme

  4. Thesis

    wp thesis theme

  5. 12 Best SEO WordPress Themes Build for SEO and Speed

    wp thesis theme

  6. Installing Thesis Theme for WordPress Beginners

    wp thesis theme

VIDEO

  1. Quadruped with walking and rolling locomotion [BiLBIQ 02

  2. ELEC5900 3 Minutes Thesis Presentation_ Minseong Kim

  3. 2024-06-07 Teori Grafika (IF124)

  4. Stephen Hawking Discovers The Black Hole Theory | The Theory Of Everything 2014 | Screen Bites

  5. Polytechnic University of the Philippines I CAFA I Top 5 Best Thesis A.Y 2016-2017

  6. Final

COMMENTS

  1. Thesis: A Modular Template and Design System for WordPress

    Thesis began its life as the first million-dollar WordPress Theme, but over time, it transformed into a modular template and design system for WordPress. Themes that run on Thesis are called Skins, and FOCUS, our flagship product, is a Thesis Skin. Thesis is no longer sold as a standalone product; the only way to get

  2. About Thesis, the world's first million-dollar WordPress Theme

    Thesis. , the world's first million-dollar WordPress Theme. F rom March 29, 2008, through October 1, 2012, Thesis ruled the world—it was used by celebrities, influencers, and everyone else in between. In addition to becoming the first million-dollar WordPress Theme, Thesis introduced transformative concepts to the WordPress ecosystem ...

  3. Understanding And Customizing Thesis Theme For WordPress

    Here are the steps to follow: Log in to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to "Appearance" > "Themes". Click the "Add New" button at the top of the page. Click the "Upload Theme" button at the top of the page. Choose the Thesis Theme ZIP file from your computer and click "Install Now". Wait for the process to complete.

  4. Thesis WordPress Theme System

    Since 2008, I've been building Thesis, which began life as a simple WordPress Theme but has since transformed into a replacement for the antiquated WordPress Theme system.. Few understand why Thesis needs to exist, but the bottom line is Thesis provides organizational leverage and efficiencies that WordPress cannot. This enables people like me to create smart, useful, and manageable design ...

  5. WordPress Themes by Chris Pearson

    The Art of WordPress Theme Design. S ince 2006, I've been on a mission to improve and perfect the WordPress theming process. This journey continues today with my two flagship projects— Thesis, which is a WordPress Theme engine, and Focus, which is a Thesis Skin. What's a Thesis Skin, you ask? Well…. With traditional WordPress Themes ...

  6. Thesis

    By mid-2010, one theme was still a GPL holdout: Thesis, from DIYThemes. Created by theme designer Chris Pearson and blogger Brian Clark, Thesis was popular as a feature-heavy framework -- it gave users many more options than most WordPress themes. Users can customize every element of their website via the user interface. On the original…

  7. Thesis WordPress Theme Review

    Thesis WordPress Theme Advantages. Clean code and minimalistic design. Search Engine friendly and optimized. Make easy theme customizations without touching any code. Streamlines with custom child themes. Relatively cheap developer license. Thesis WordPress Theme Disadvantages. Cost. Plain and simple default design.

  8. Thesis WordPress Theme Review

    Thesis is THE Theme we use here and in every single blog I start or Joint Venture on and one of only two themes that I recommend serious bloggers and businesses that blog use. Almost every blog I comment on that belongs to my favorite bloggers uses Thesis. It is the first theme I recommend to small businesses and clients and there is only one ...

  9. Thesis Docs

    Developing with Thesis. Our high-octane API documentation for developers will help you achieve anything you want with Thesis. API. Code Repository. Development and Testing Tools. Thesis Changelog. Thesis Documentation Sitemap. Learn how to build and maintain your site with Thesis, a design and template management system for WordPress.

  10. Thesis WordPress Theme

    Thesis WordPress Theme By DIYthemes, Theme Type: Blogging, Minimal, Multi-Purpose , free trial: available. The Thesis Theme for WordPress is a high-quality template system that you can use to improve your site immediately. Thesis boasts the strongest SEO of any theme on the market today thanks to its expertly-coded

  11. Thesis WordPress Theme

    Thesis is a really versatile theme. It may be custom-made very simply utilizing what builders name "Thesis Hooks." Thesis Hooks can change each a part of your WordPress weblog. On this WordPress tutorial, I'll present you how you can modify your Navigation Menu. You've in all probability observed that the default set up all the […]

  12. Thesis Theme for WordPress

    You'll find it here: wp-content/themes/Thesis (or something similar) Look for the custom-sample folder. First rename this folder to custom. Now open the custom folder. Change the permission on three files to 666: layout.css. custom.css. custom_functions.php. That's it - you're ready to make changes to settings to Thesis from the Dashboard.

  13. 7 Attractive WordPress Business Themes for Thesis

    Thesis is one of the most popular WordPress frameworks. It makes putting together highly sophisticated websites easy. In fact, the framework is being used by some of the most famous bloggers around. The Thesis framework may be great for blogs but can work for business sites though. Here are 7 Thesis themes you can use […]

  14. Thesis

    SEO - WP is generally pretty well optimized to start with but Thesis takes it a step further and gives you every chance of ranking well in Google. Accessibility - this theme will be able to be accessed by those using all kinds of browsers, mobile browsing and those with special needs

  15. 7 Must See WordPress Plugins for Thesis

    SEO Data Transporter: one of the biggest challenges of adopting the Thesis theme is transporting your SEO options from your old theme.This plugin is designed to handle that part. Thesis Toolbar: adds useful admin links for the Thesis Theme to your WordPress toolbar.It is a time saver. Ultimate Thesis Theme Options: a useful plugin if you have trouble customizing the Thesis theme.

  16. Thesis WP Theme Review

    The document provides an in-depth review of the Thesis WP theme. It discusses the challenges of thesis writing and how Thesis WP theme aims to simplify the writing process with customizable templates, an intuitive interface, and built-in tools. The review outlines the key features of Thesis WP theme and argues that it offers a comprehensive solution to the difficulties of thesis creation and ...

  17. 7 Thesis Theme Alternatives with better features & support

    Thesis theme originally launched in 2008 and quickly achieved god-like status in the WordPress community. It was frequently mentioned as the go-to framework for WordPress power-users and high-traffic blogs.

  18. 10 Best "Thesis Theme" Alternatives For WordPress Sites

    Thesis Theme (DIYThemes) used to be the best WordPress theme until the year 2012. The theme launched on March 29, 2008, since then the theme got enormous popularity for its wonderful performance. It seemed even more promising when Thesis 2.0 was released.

  19. 5 Thesis Child Themes for News Sites

    Quik: a modern magazine and news blog theme for Thesis.It has 6 design schemes and a landing page template. Vizio: an attractive child theme for news and tech magazines.You can handle videos, images, and all kinds of content using this theme. Magazine Thesis 2: this magazine theme is developed for Thesis 2.

  20. How to Install and Activate Thesis

    Click the "Install Themes" tab, and then the "Upload" link. Click "Browse" (button text and formatting may vary depending on the web browser you use), locate the thesis.zip file you downloaded in Step 1, and then click "Install Now". Look for the Theme installed successfully. message, then click the "Activate" link that ...

  21. 21 Best WordPress Starter Themes (With Quality Code)

    3. WP BootStrap Starter. WP BootStrap Starter is another very usable WordPress starter theme. It's based on a combination of Underscores and Bootstrap that utilizes HTML, CSS and JS to deliver a fully responsive, mobile-friendly WordPress theme for any use. It also works with Font Awesome, WooCommerce, Visual Composer, the Elementor page builder and even Contact Form 7.

  22. ConsultingGrove

    Welcome to ConsultingGrove, a sophisticated full-site editing theme perfect for businesses, consulting services, law firms, and educational institutions. Combining modern aesthetics with versatile functionality, ConsultingGrove allows you to customize every aspect of your website effortlessly. Enjoy seamless integration with WooCommerce for your e-commerce needs, WPML for multilingual support ...

  23. ConsultHub

    ConsultHub is a professional, easy-to-use multipurpose WordPress theme with pixel-perfect design and outstanding functionality. It is sophisticated plus it has some exotic features like customization and clean code, advanced typography, sticky menu, logo upload, header image, Bootstrap 4 framework, built with SEO in mind, and theme info area besides being Mobile-ready, translation ready (WPML ...

  24. Sky Enterprise

    Sky Enterprise is modern block-based theme where you can build your own unique looking website by using WordPress Blocks Editor. Sky Enterprise is a multipurpose block based free theme, the theme is built in accordance of Full Site Editing features introduced in WordPress 5.9, which means that all the aspects including colors, typography, and the layout of every single page on your site can be ...

  25. Cultural Festival

    Cultural Festival is a versatile and visually captivating WordPress theme designed to showcase a wide array of festivals, including music festivals, film festivals, art festivals, food festivals, wine festivals, and more. This theme is perfect for creating stunning websites for various types of festivals, from community and local festivals to international and traditional festivals.

  26. Thesis Plans and Pricing

    Thesis Plans and Pricing. This is the Thesis pricing page that was active from March 29, 2008, through January 25, 2019. Thesis can no longer be purchased directly, but you'll be happy to know Thesis technology is included in the Focus WordPress Theme. Check out Focus pricing. Browse cool Focus sites in the Focus Website Showcase.

  27. Hackers try to exploit WordPress plugin vulnerability that's as severe

    Researchers from security firm Patchstack disclosed last month that WP Automatic versions 3.92.0 and below had a vulnerability with a severity rating of 9.9 out of a possible 10. The plugin ...

  28. Vsion

    Vision is a sophisticated and versatile business theme designed to cater to the needs of modern entrepreneurs, startups, and established enterprises. With its sleek design and intuitive features, Vision helps you create a professional online presence that stands out. This theme leverages the latest advancements in web design to offer a seamless, user-friendly experience for both site ...

  29. The Legacy of the Unforgettable 'Beverly Hills Cop' Theme Song

    Harold Faltermeyer was a pioneer of synthesizer music in film scores and helped define the sound of the '80s. Photo: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

  30. Training Institute Academy

    Training Institute Academy is a powerful and versatile WordPress theme designed for educational institutions, tutoring centers, and private tutors. It caters to a wide range of tutoring services including online tutors, math tutors, English tutors, science tutors, language tutors, and specialized tutors. This theme is ideal for any educational professional looking to establish a strong online ...