28 best free WordPress themes to design your site

These are the best WordPress themes you can use to make your blog beautiful today. All of these WordPress themes are completely free to use. This list includes all the most downloaded themes and those with most currently active installations. Let’s get started.

7,000+ free WordPress themes in the official directory

WordPress lists more than 7,000 free themes in their Theme Directory. There are also many commercial and premium themes that you need to pay to use.

There are also alternative marketplaces for both free and premium WordPress themes. Then there are also all the page builders and the templates they offer. All in all, you have thousands of options to choose from to design a blog.

There’s a WordPress theme for anything. Ecommerce themes, landing page themes, portfolio themes, photography themes and so much more.

28 of the best WordPress themes

These are the 28 best WordPress themes. I ranked them according to the number of currently active installations across the network of WordPress.org blogs.

These free WordPress themes are all used by thousands of blogs, they are regularly updated and allow you to create a great looking site without any design know-how.

Let’s get started with the list of best WordPress themes with the highest number of active installs.

Twenty Nineteen

This is my favorite of all the official themes created by the WordPress team. I’ve used this theme on this blog itself for several months and still use it on some of my other projects.

It’s clean, simple, no sidebar and beautiful theme that lets your content stand out. It’s currently used by more than one million blogs.

Twenty Seventeen

This is a theme created by the official WordPress theme. It was the official and the default WordPress theme in 2017.

Don’t let this scare you away. WordPress has upgraded this theme to keep it all up to date and ready to be used even today. It’s used by more than one million blogs currently.

Twenty Sixteen

There’s a trend here. The official themes created by the WordPress team are popular. They do produce quality themes and they do keep them up to date.

Twenty Sixteen basically looks like a traditional blog design but with modernized elements. This one is currently used by more than 500,000 blogs.

OceanWP

OceanWP is the most used WordPress theme not created by the WordPress team. It’s a versatile and multi-purpose theme.

Can be a great e-commerce theme as it has WooCommerce integration. Used by more than 400,000 blogs.

Astra

Astra is focused on being speedy and lightweight. The actual size of the theme is less than 50KB, which is pretty much nothing in this day and age.

Can be a personal portfolio or even a WooCommerce e-commerce storefront. Used by more than 300,000 blogs currently.

Twenty Fifteen

This was the official WordPress theme in 2015, but it’s still kept up to date as it always has fans. It’s simple, clean, very readable and pretty much a straight forward traditional blog theme.

More than 300,000 blogs use it to this day.

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GeneratePress

This is a great, independent WordPress theme that I have used many times and even paid for the premium version.

Even the free version linked here has everything you need to create a great looking but also a fast loading blog.

Has a tiny footprint at less than 30KB, which allows you to create a speedy blog. It’s currently used by more than 200,000+ sites. I use it on my blog too.

Sydney

Sydney is a customizable theme focused on businesses. It allows you to present your brand in a very visual and engaging way. More than 200,000 sites have it installed currently.

Storefront

This is the most popular of the many themes created and maintained by Automattic, the company behind WordPress.com. Here are all the other themes by Automattic if you’re interested.

The name of this theme gives you a clue. This is an e-commerce theme and it is well integrated with WooCommerce. It’s currently installed on more than 200,000 sites.

Twenty Fourteen

Initially released in 2014 but still kept up to date due to the many blogs still using it. This is a magazine-style theme. Currently activated on more than 200,000 blogs.

Twenty Twelve

Originally created in 2012 but still going strong. It’s still regularly updated by the WordPress team.

It’s known by a front-page template that allows you to present yourself or your brand in not-so-traditional ways. More than 200,000 sites still use it.

Twenty Eleven

Official WordPress theme from 2011. Still kept up to date.

Has a showcase template for your home page and also features particular styles for the different post formats. Installed on more than 200,000 sites.

Hestia

This is a business-focused design theme. Perfect for e-commerce, restaurants, shops or anyone with a need for a simple website.

It has a one-page design which helps you present your company in a pleasant and visual way.

If you’re looking for something straightforward, easy to set up but still beautiful and modern, this theme may be right for your business.

It’s not really for someone who wants to have a traditional blog theme. More than 100,000 brands use it.

Shapely

Another one-page theme focused on business use. This is not really a theme for those who want to run a blog that they post content to often.

It’s really for brands and businesses who want to create a great website to present their products or services and allow potential customers to learn more about them or get in touch. Currently used by more than 100,000 brands.

ColorMag

This is a magazine-style theme. Perfect for newspapers, publishers, or other sites focused on providing the latest news. Installed on more than 100,000 sites right now.

Zerif Lite

Another one-page theme focused on commercial or business needs. Fits well for sites with lots of large and great imagery too so could be a photography or a portfolio theme.

Currently used by more than 100,000 sites but hasn’t had an update this year. There is actually no plans to continue working on this theme so I cannot recommend it.

Twenty Ten

Originally released in 2010 by the WordPress team. They still keep it up to date and it’s currently used by more than 100,000 sites.

Twenty Thirteen

Released in 2013 but still gets regularly updated by the WordPress team. Used by more than 100,000 sites.

OnePress

A business theme with a one-page design. It’s not really a theme suited for those who want a traditional blog experience.

It’s great if you want a website for your small business or a portfolio. Installed on more than 80,000 sites.

Customizr

This is a flexible and extendible theme. It’s well integrated with a page builder which allows you to customize your home page and better present your business, product or services. Used by more than 80,000 different sites.

Vantage

This theme is focused on e-commerce and online stores. It’s built for integration with a page builder and with WooCommerce. More than 80,000 sites use this theme currently.

Spacious

This is a multipurpose theme which you can use to present whatever you want. From an e-commerce business to a portfolio site. It’s used by more than 70,000 sites.

Total

Another very customizable theme that allows you to present your business, your online store or online portfolio the way you want.

Integrated with page builders and WooCommerce. Used by more than 60,000 sites.

Hueman

Built by the same independent developer as the Customizr theme I listed earlier.

It’s quite an achievement for an independent developer to have two of the most downloaded and used free WordPress themes.

This one is focused more on the traditional blog or news magazine experience. Activated on more than 60,000 blogs.