Choosing a WordPress theme for your website can be daunting. Which features do you need? What should the layout of your website look like? Which colors should you choose? What’s the best font to use? There are so many options when it comes to WordPress themes, it can feel overwhelming trying to pick the best one for your website. This guide to choosing the best WordPress theme will help you narrow down your choice.
Free vs. Paid
There are free and paid (or premium) WordPress themes. Free WordPress themes are great if you have absolutely no funds to invest in a premium theme, but they can be troublesome. Free themes may lose support and upgrades from the designer, making them a security risk. Since there won’t be any upgrades with free themes, you could be using an old theme with low-quality coding and no support. If there’s a problem with your theme, or if you have questions, there is no one to contact.
Premium WordPress themes come with support, upgrades, and are dynamic. You can pay a one-time fee for one theme, or you can pay a subscription fee. A subscription can be beneficial if you’re not sure about committing to one particular theme yet. A subscription will allow you to try different themes so you can find the one that suits your website best. Another benefit of investing a small fee for a premium theme is that the design and layout will help you stand out among the millions of other websites out there.
Font
The font is one of the many features to consider. Choosing the correct font is important because some can be difficult to read, making visitors abandon a website. Most premium themes do use easy to read, popular fonts, such as Verdana, Tahoma, Trebuchet, or Georgia. These are a good size (line-height), spaced apart just right, and are easy to read.
Color
Color is another important part of a WordPress theme. You can usually tweak the color of your theme if it comes with that option. It is best to find a theme with this option so you can better customize your website.
Note: If customization isn’t your thing, you can hire a web developer or WordPress expert to do it for you.
Use color to express your brand and keep your website interesting. If you want to use a theme with neutral colors, make sure it has a splash of color. If you have a logo, make sure it matches the colors in your theme.
Contrast is important to consider. A website should never have a completely white background with black text on it. The contrast makes it difficult to read and is tough on the eyes. Go for colors that are off-white for the background and a light neutral color for the text.
Security
Choose a WordPress theme from a trusted store to get the best security. We trust and use WordPress themes from Envato Themeforest REHub. You can choose from more than 400,000 themes at Envato. With a subscription, you can have access to WordPress themes, WordPress plugins, design assets, templates/themes, stock photos, courses, and eBooks.
NOTE: Cyber Monday Deal – Save 34% on an Envato subscription and 50% on WordPress themes and templates!
Features
Make choosing a WordPress theme for your website easy by creating a list of features you want for your website, so you can narrow down your search when you’re ready to shop. Use this checklist to help you find the best WordPress theme for your website.
Layout
Which layout do you want? Options include one, two, three, or columns, and either a right sidebar, left sidebar or none.
Some Features to Consider:
- Header with Image
- Custom Logo
- Custom Colors
- Custom Background
- Custom Menu
- e-Commerce
You can also search for templates that are made specifically for your industry. They are usually sorted by business category:
Read the Reviews
Customer reviews are so important to online shopping. Once you have your choices narrowed down to a few WordPress templates, start skimming through some customer reviews. Read them and check out the star ratings as well. Grab one with a lot of good reviews and high ratings.
One awesome way to get the template that’s best for your website is to create one on paper. How do you want it to look? How many pages will you need? What will those pages be for? Draw it out on paper before you start shopping. The more you plan, the easier your shopping experience will be.
Which WordPress theme or template is your favorite?
