Are you interested in learning how to choose a theme for your WordPress site? Then you have arrived to the correct location.
When you’re putting up a website, one of the most crucial things you’ll do is choose a theme for the site. In addition to that, it is undeniably a challenging choice.
Choosing a topic that has an appealing overall look is something that goes without saying. However, this alone will not make for an excellent website. A flawless theme should contain some fundamental components that are absolutely necessary. In addition, the functionalities that you want your website to have are a consideration for some of the elements.
However, you may be wondering how to choose the best WordPress theme for your website. People who are just starting out on WordPress often have queries such as “how to select the ideal WordPress theme?” or “What are the characteristics of an excellent WordPress theme?”
As a result, we have compiled a list of considerations that you need to give some thought to before choosing the ideal WordPress theme for your website.
Why Should You Carefully Choose a Theme for Your Site?
A WordPress theme is an all-encompassing design framework that decides how the appearance, feel, and functionality of your website should be. It lends both aesthetic appeal and practicality to your website. In a word, it’s something that determines how viewers will see your content once it has been rendered.
Choosing a theme for your website is a highly crucial choice since the theme serves as the foundation for both the site’s aesthetic appeal and its capabilities. You are unable to continue with ‘any theme’ that is currently present. However, you should take your time selecting a topic that is tailored specifically to your requirements.
But how do you go about selecting the best theme? In order to make things easier for you, we have compiled a list of the most significant factors to think about while selecting the WordPress theme.
Some of the mentioned elements can be mandatory components that the theme must contain, while others might be planning ideas for you to consider before deciding on one.
To help you pick the WordPress theme that is most suited for your website, the following checklist is provided.
Choosing the Right WordPress Theme – Things to Consider
1. Consider the Website’s Purpose
Before you decide on a WordPress theme, there are a few of factors you need to keep in mind first:
- The kind of website that you want to build is specified here.
- The reasons for creating this website.
Therefore, the first step is to have a clear understanding of the kind of website you want to establish as well as the services that your website will provide to the people that visit it. After that, you may begin searching for a theme that satisfies the needs of your website and shows it in an elegant manner.
For instance, you may start the process by determining the kind of website that you want to create first.
- Informative blog
- eCommerce store
- Business site
- Entertainment
- News and so on.
If you want to create a blog site, you should look for a theme that gives you the option to include dynamic material, manage the site’s structure, and arrange the entries in reverse chronological order (newer post first). Here is a list of the top WordPress blog themes that we’ve chosen, in case you’re interested in checking it out.
In a similar vein, if you want a website dedicated to photography, the theme you choose should feature a stunning showcase where you can exhibit photos.
Consequently, choose a subject that eloquently articulates the function of the website. This assists you in striking a balance between the functionality and visual appeal of your website.
2. Responsive Design
Always look for a theme that has a responsive design to use for your website. Themes that are considered responsive are those that are able to automatically alter the page layout when viewed on a variety of devices and displays.
Therefore, if you choose a theme that is responsive, your website will appear fantastic not just on desktop computers but also on devices with smaller displays such as mobile phones and tablets.
A theme that is responsive responds to the width of the screen on which it is being seen and adjusts its functionality accordingly. In addition to this, it organises the menus, links, header, and other sections of the website in a manner that makes it simpler for visitors to traverse.
Your WordPress site’s appearance is determined by the theme, thus it is essential to select a theme that appears appropriately scaled and formatted across a wide range of screen sizes and types. Because the majority of internet browsing is now done on devices with very tiny screens, the importance of this topic cannot be overstated in today’s world.
A survey found that mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets account for around 55 percent of all online traffic, while desktop computers account for the remaining 45 percent.
Therefore, for your website, we strongly suggest that you go with a WordPress theme that is both completely responsive and suitable to mobile devices. It guarantees that your website will show in its whole on all devices, irrespective of the size of the screen.
For instance, Astra is an extremely popular WordPress theme that has a design that is responsive. If you choose to build your website with this theme, the following is a preview of how it will look on the displays of various devices.
Because of the generosity of the WordPress community, hundreds of WordPress themes that are fully responsive are now available for free download. Check out our curated collection of free WordPress themes that are totally responsive to your needs.
3. Compatible on All Web Browsers
People have varying preferences when it comes to the online browser they use, thus their surfing habits might be very varied. More than 63 percent of internet users throughout the globe make use of Google Chrome, making it one of the most popular web browsers. It is followed by around 5 percent of users of the Firefox browser and more than 18 percent of users of Safari.
People who go to your website might be using any one of these browsers, in addition to others. On the other hand, if your website does not support any browsers, this might be a significant setback for your business as it will give people a negative opinion of your website.
You will need to pick a theme for your website that is compatible with all browsers in order to make your website accessible from a variety of browsers.
Fortunately, the vast majority of WordPress themes are compatible with a variety of browsers. Before making their themes accessible for usage, the theme creators put them through a series of tests utilising a variety of testing tools such as Browsershots, Litmus, and TestingBot, amongst others. These tools validate the code, test performance, user interface, responsiveness, and behaviour of themes across the vast majority of web browsers.
However, it is best practise to do your own tests on the themes before putting them on your website. There is a wide variety of software accessible online for use in doing browser compatibility tests. Examples include the Browser Sandbox, Browsera, and Browserling, amongst others.
You may launch a sample site of a theme and then perform a test of it using a tool in order to carry out testing of the theme across a number of different browsers. By doing so, you will be able to determine whether or not a theme is compatible with all browsers.
4. SEO Friendliness
The process of improving a website in order to get higher placement in search engine results is referred to as search engine optimization (SEO). When consumers see your website at the top of the search results, there is a greater likelihood that they will click through to your site.
You will need an SEO-friendly theme in order to make your WordPress site search engine optimised. This is due to the fact that the theme in WordPress is what decides the general appearance and structure of a website that uses WordPress.
When deciding on a WordPress theme, you may use the following criteria to determine how well it will perform in search engine optimization.
Elementor User Interface Rating?
The vast majority of website visitors anticipate that the pages will load more quickly. In the event that this is not the case, they will most likely depart your site in favour of others that include information that is comparable.
Responsive design
As was just discussed, the majority of website traffic these days comes from mobile devices. Therefore, it is essential to have a theme that is responsive in order to facilitate the effective navigation of pages for users viewing the website on mobile devices.
Proper use of meta tags
Your blogs should be able to accommodate custom meta descriptions and tags if you use this theme. An engaging description has the potential to bring people to your website.
Optimized images
Your blogs should be able to accommodate custom meta descriptions and tags if you use this theme. An engaging description has the potential to bring people to your website.
Browser compatibility
As was noted before, the theme must to be able to function well across all web browsers. This will ensure that you do not lose any visitors due to difficulties with their browser.
In addition to this, you need to ensure that the theme is compatible with a variety of external SEO plugins.
Yoast SEO, SEMRush, MonsterInsights, All in One SEO Pack, Rank Math, and many more similar plugins are examples of well-known SEO tools.
5. Theme Customization Options
When you use WordPress, you’ll have access to themes that are exceptionally well-designed and organised. However, there is a good probability that you will want to modify it in some way so that it appears differently from other websites that use the same theme.
The good thing is that WordPress gives you access to a huge selection of themes that can be modified in any way you choose. To a certain degree, almost every WordPress theme may be customised; nevertheless, the level of control each theme gives you might vary considerably. You may modify fundamental aspects of the theme, such as the fonts, colours, and so on, using the ‘Customize’ option, which is included by default in each theme.
Free themes will often come with a limited number of customization choices for you to choose from. You should consider using a premium WordPress theme if you want to increase the amount of customization options available to you.
It is essential to customise a theme since doing so will differentiate your website from other websites, even those that utilise the same theme as yours.
Consequently, the extent to which the theme may be personalised is an essential quality to look for before settling on one.
6. Theme Developers’ Support Policy
Customers of a theme are offered support in the form of technical help from the developers of that theme. It is essential since you will inevitably want assistance at some point, regardless of how comfortable you may be with technology. Consequently, before deciding on a theme, you should always investigate the support policies of the theme’s creators.
When it comes to offering help for WordPress users, forums are by far the most common method used. A forum is an online community that acts as a group discussion channel, allowing users to pose queries to which the forum’s theme writers will respond.
The majority of support for free WordPress themes is offered via discussion forums. Every WordPress theme that is featured in the WordPress.org theme library is accompanied with a support forum on that website. As an example, the following image is a snapshot of the support forum page for the Astra theme on the WordPress.org website.
However, some theme providers also offer help to their free users via other channels like as email, live chat, and other similar services.
In most cases, premium themes come with superior customer service. They provide devoted assistance via a ticketing system that may be accessed by email, live chat, the phone, and discussion forums. However, purchasing a premium theme does not ensure that you will get superior customer service; in fact, there are some premium themes that do not even provide a support system.
In some instances, the creators of the theme decide to stop maintaining it entirely, which results in the cessation of support services. Therefore, before to selecting a theme, it is recommended to do some research first.
In addition, the amount of assistance that you want is going to be determined by the requirements of your website as well as the degree of customization you are looking for.
Let’s imagine it’s for a small website like a blog; in this case, a minimal or nonexistent amount of support is perfectly acceptable. On the other hand, having reliable customer assistance is preferable when operating a bigger website such as an online shop.
7. Consider your Budget
When selecting a theme for WordPress, you need to give careful consideration to a number of crucial factors, including your budget. In point of fact, it is the most important consideration to take into account when deciding between a free and a paid theme for your website.
The WordPress.org repository offers a wide variety of free themes, so naturally you’ll have plenty of options to choose from there. The fact of the matter is, however, that you will only have access to a restricted number of features and support options.
However, if you want a theme that has a better design and sophisticated functionality, you should spend a little money on a premium theme. This is the best way to get what you want. In addition, the premium themes offer better quality code, a design that is more engaging, a wealth of customization choices, and a higher level of customer service.
Premium themes often have a price that is affordable; however, this cost might fluctuate depending on the style and features that the theme offers. Premium themes may often be purchased for between $40 and $90, with some of the most costly going for well over a thousand dollars.
The most important thing, though, is to choose a topic that fits inside your financial constraints while yet providing all of the essential elements.
ThemeForest and Template Sell are two of the most well-known online marketplaces where premium themes may be purchased. Even the most popular free themes, such as Astra and Zakra, each have a premium version that has additional features and functionality that are more complex.
8. Use Multi-language/Translatable Theme
Choose a theme that supports many languages and can be translated into those languages if you want visitors to your website to be able to read it in the language that is most comfortable to them.
When you use a theme that supports many languages, you will be able to contribute content in those languages. Additionally, it converts the material into the reader’s preferred language, regardless of what language it was originally written in.
Having a website that is available in many languages enables you to communicate with people from all around the world. Since language is no longer a barrier, you are now able to promote your goods to a community that is farther away if you have a website for either your company or an online store.
Your marketing efforts might be more successful on a global scale if you have websites that support several languages. You will have a better chance of reaching prospective consumers and making more purchases this way.
9. Check the Theme’s Support for Your Favorite Plugins
Plugins are pieces of software that may be added to your WordPress site in order to enhance its performance and expand the capabilities of the platform. Every plugin provides a one-of-a-kind feature, which might range in scope from a little tweak to a major overhaul of your website.
The fundamental elements that are supplied by the themes are insufficient for almost every kind of website. Therefore, you need to add plugins to your site in order to enhance the functionality of it to the level that you need. In addition, a WordPress site that functions properly without the need of plugins is an extremely unusual occurrence.
Consequently, it is essential to choose a theme that provides support for the plugins that are necessary. Even while the vast majority of WordPress themes support well-known plugins such as Yoast SEO, Akismet, and Jetpack, among others, it is possible that they do not support some plugins.
Therefore, it is best to make a list of the plugins that you could need and then test the theme’s compatibility with the plugins.
10. Working with Page Builders
Page builders are now enjoying a meteoric rise in popularity among WordPress users. The plugins in question are the ones that make developing and editing websites as easy as dragging and dropping elements around a workspace. You may put them to use in the design of the homepage, contact pages, and landing pages of any other kind on your website.
Numerous premium themes come equipped with their own built-in page builders. Consequently, purchasing a premium theme will save you both the time it takes to install a new premium page builder plugin and the money it would cost to do so.
Free versions of several page builder plugins are also available for download. As an illustration, Elementor and Beaver Builder are two examples of free page builders that are favoured by industry experts.
Make sure that your theme is compatible with popular page builders like as Elementor, Themify Builder, and Divi Builder. Other options include these.
11. Check Ratings and Reviews
Ratings and reviews represent the input from people who have used the service in the past. It is possible to use it as a method for analysing the criteria that pertain to the subject.
It is usually a good idea to examine the ratings and reviews of a theme before picking it to use on your site. Before beginning to utilise the theme, you will have a decent idea of how well it will function if you follow these steps first. Additionally, it inhibits the installation of a theme that has a bug in it.
Thankfully, reviewing the ratings and reviews of themes in WordPress is a quite straightforward process. You may read ratings and reviews of all of the free WordPress themes that have been provided by prior customers on the WordPress.org website. You may obtain a fast overview of the theme’s performance by seeing them in the sidebar of every theme page, where they are readily accessible.
You may also discover ratings and reviews of premium themes in sites such as ThemeForest.com. For every theme, ThemeForest, for instance, displays both an overall rating and the number of individuals who have rated that particular theme.
In addition to that, a number of blogs located on the internet provide a comprehensive analysis of the topics. Simply do a search on Google for the review of any topic that piques your interest, and you will discover a number of different review articles. You might also look for further insights in the discussion threads that follow each of those articles.
Conclusion
That sums it up well. We are hoping that you now have a better understanding of how to choose a theme for your website that is powered by WordPress. If you already have a theme selected for your website, then kindly explain the procedure that you went through to make that choice.
You are welcome to let us know in the comment area below if you are having any trouble understanding anything connected to WordPress themes.
