Do you want to install WordPress Themes? It is essential to choose the best WordPress theme before you start installing because although the setup is not difficult, it can take a long time.
You don’t want to waste time setting up a theme that’s not right for your site! Installing a WordPress theme is very simple.
Before you begin, you need to determine what type of theme you will use. This will help you later, as different themes have different configuration requirements.
There are three types of WordPress themes.
- Free WordPress themes from the WordPress.org theme store.
- Free themes from an external website.
- Premium themes from an external website or marketplace (such as ThemeForest or Elegant Themes).
Remember what type of topic you chose because you will need it during the tutorial.
Whatever theme you choose, if you work on a live site, you may want to use a pre-installation maintenance module to give you some privacy while setting up your site.
How to Install a WordPress Theme from the WordPress.Org Theme Store
Installing a WordPress.org theme is incredibly easy. Make a note of the theme name and go to the WordPress dashboard. Go to Layout → Themes and click Add New.
Now search for the topic name using the search bar at the top right. Find your theme in the search results and tap Install. Wait for WordPress to load the theme on your site, and then tap Enable to set it up live!
How to Manually Install WordPress Themes?
The process of installing free themes from external websites and premium themes is the same.
First, you’ll need the zip file that contains your theme, which you need to have on the theme developer’s site. You don’t need to unzip or extract it; you need to know where it is saved on your computer.
Then go to the WordPress dashboard and go to Appearance → Themes. Click Add New, and then click Upload Theme.
WordPress tricks you here – the initial process of installing the theme is easy, but there are usually many more settings to do. You are now ready to do this so that we will cover this further.
Additional theme settings: plugins, content, and widgets
The “additional configuration” process varies by theme, but most themes require additional configuration to make them look as expected.
The first port of call here should be to check the theme documentation. It will be available on the theme developer’s website, or you’ll find it built into the theme. If it is not clear where to find the documentation, look for the name of the subject + documentation.
Google search result for “Divi documentation,” displaying the documentation as the first result.
While many topics have excellent documentation, and some even have tutorial videos, it is common for the documentation not to be good enough. This guide will fill in the blanks.
Necessary Steps after You Install WordPress Themes
When you install WordPress themes, your additional configuration will involve some or all of the following steps;
1. Install the Necessary Plugins
Plugins are a way to add additional functionality to WordPress
Click to install bulk add-ons when prompted and use the bulk selection tool to perform a bulk installation and then enable them in bulk. In general, it’s not a good practice to activate multiple plugins at once, but since these plugins were specifically chosen to work with your theme, there should be no problem.
Manually installing the plugin is what you will need to do if you have details in your documentation. If you find plugin links in the WordPress.org plugin store, install them by accessing Plugins → Add New in WordPress Dashboard and finding the plugin name, installing, and then turning.
You might be asking yourself: Why don’t topics include this? Why do I need to install plugins separately? Wonderful questions! Installing plugins required by a theme can be a problem, but it is not the worst option. If you change the theme, you will keep the plugin’s functionality and any data added by the theme.
2. Use the Theme Options Page
Your theme can have a theme options page that lets you control various elements of your theme. If you have one, you’ll find it in Appearance → Theme Options or as a separate menu in the WordPress Dashboard with the same name as your theme.
The theme options page is generally used to choose how your site is set up and enter data. Some typical options of the different themes are as follows:
Choose layout options. Customize the colors and choose the color schemes. Add Twitter and Facebook links.
General Homepage Configuration
These should be fairly self-explanatory, each accompanied by a description. Setting the options page is just a case of going through different options and selecting the settings you want. You can also find additional instructions in your theme documentation.
Good to know: Many of the features that were previously in the WordPress themes options have been moved to Customizer, where you’ll get a live preview of your changes. If you expect to see an option in the theme options and it doesn’t exist, it’s probably in Customizer. We’ll cover this in a moment.
3. Install Demo Content
Some themes include the thematic demo’s content, which is the version you see when you look at the developer’s site.
You can add demo content so that your site reproduces the demo’s look, which probably convinced you to choose the theme.
Themes that offer this functionality will usually have it available in the theme options panel. Go there, find a demo content tab, and follow the import instructions. It usually takes a few minutes, so be prepared to wait. Once the content is added, your images can be expanded. Please use the Thumbnail Regeneration plugin to fix this issue.
Note: If you do this, it will mix the content with the demo content and overwrite any theme options already set. You’ll also need to delete the content after completing the setup, so it may be much easier for you to add your own content instead of importing demo content.
A thematic demonstration’s content is something that theme developers think people want, but they rarely do. Don’t worry if you already have content on your site, and if you start from scratch, keep in mind that you’ll need to remove all demo content before you can start your site.
4. Add a Static Homepage
WordPress has started as a blogging platform, and the default settings for your homepage reflect this: it displays the latest posts.
For themes that use a home page template, add a new page titled “Home page,” then select “Home page” (or similar) from the Page Templates drop-down menu, then publish the page. If you want to add a specific page as your homepage, create your content, and publish it.
Now go to Settings → Read and under the Home screen screens, select the chosen home page. Save, and it will replace your homepage.
5. Use the Customizer to Configure the Basics
WordPress themes Customizer is a handy tool: it allows you to set up your site with a live preview of the changes you make.
You can see what your theme supports and what you can change in Customizer by Appearance → Customization. This will load the customizer.
You’ll see a two-panel view with a switchable menu on the left and a live preview of your site on the right. Using the customizer is now just a case of clicking on what you want to customize using the menu and making the desired changes. From WordPress 4.7, you can click on the pencil icon in the live preview, and you will be taken to edit the corresponding section.
For example, if you want to change your site’s title, you need to click Identity and then change the text. The live preview will show you what your changes will look like when you post.
A second common example is changing the background color of your site. You can do this by clicking Colors or Background Color and using the color picker to choose a color that matches your brand. Some themes will also allow you to upload a wallpaper; If you do this, make sure your image is wide enough for all screen sizes.
It’s worth taking the time to familiarize yourself with it so that you can set up the site exactly the way you want.
6. Install and Configure Widgets
Widgets are blocks of content that you can add to predefined areas of your theme, known as widget areas (if this is the first time you’ve encountered widgets, read this to learn more).
Widgets are the best way to add additional content, such as recent posts, popular posts, and email sign-up forms, to areas of your site. They also have a handy drag-and-drop interface.
Note: Before setting up your widgets manually, make sure your theme has a single import widget (if so, it will mention it in your documentation).
To use widgets, go to Appearance → Widgets. You will then see the widgets available on the left and the sliding widget areas on the right. Usefully, both widgets and widget areas have descriptions that tell you what they do and where they are displayed on your site.
Setting up widgets is just a case of dragging and dropping the ones you want into the widget areas you want to go to. Look for descriptions that certain widgets are tailored specifically for certain areas of widgets (this will probably be the case if your theme uses widgets on your homepage).
Once a widget is placed in a widget area, you can configure its options. Expand the widget to view and configure them as you wish. Save when you’re done, and the changes will be made immediately on your site.
7. Add Menus
WordPress has a menu editor at hand, where you can configure the navigation menus displayed on your site. You will find it under Appearance and Menus.
As with widgets, the items you can add to your menu are on the left and the menu structure on the right.
You can indent menu items to display them as submenus.
When you’re done, check where you want the menu to appear in the Settings menu. You will usually see the main navigation called Main Menu or Main Navigation. Now save the menu and create new menus for any other menu location. Note: You don’t have to fill in all the menu locations, just the useful ones for your site.
If you follow the steps above, and you should set up any WordPress theme correctly.
As mentioned earlier, it’s often hard to imagine what a WordPress theme will look like until it’s actually on your site, so there’s nothing wrong with changing the theme right now.
However, you won’t have to change a theme completely; you need to make a few changes. Then the changes will be reflected on your site immediately (if you are using a cache plugin, please remember to clear the cache before you can see the changes on your site.)
Themes rarely look exactly the way you want them, and they won’t come with all the customization features you want. To change your site’s look, feel, and functionality beyond what your theme supports through the Options, Customizer, and Widgets page, you’ll need to use some code.
This isn’t as daunting as it sounds, but if you don’t feel like changing any code, then for the two methods we’re going to cover, you should be able to get help from the theme developer. If you have difficulties, consult them for help. Alternatively, you can either hire a developer or use plugins (both free and paid).
How to Install WordPress Themes Through FTP?
FTP is the abbreviation for File Transfer Protocol. FTP allows you to transfer files from your computer to your website hosting account.
You can use FTP to install WordPress themes.
First, you need to download the themed zip file to your computer. After that, you need to unzip the file.
This will create a new folder with the theme name on your computer.
Now that you have the theme files, you’re ready to upload them to your website.
To do this, you’ll need to sign in to your WordPress site / hosting account using an FTP client. If you need help, see our guide on how to use FTP to upload WordPress files.
Select the unzipped theme folder from your computer and then upload it to your website.
Once you’ve uploaded the theme, you’ll need to go to the admin area and click Appearance >>Themes.
You should see the topic you uploaded to the list. Hover your mouse over the subject and click the toggle button.