WordPress is currently the most famous website builder of all time on the internet. The reason behind it being so popular is its customizing capacity and ease of handling. Users need to make an account and they can create any type of website they want. But the customizability and too many options sometimes become the main problem for new users as they get confused. The most common question they develop in their mind regards WordPress free vs premium themes.
It’s very genuine to ask why to go for a premium if there are free versions available doing all the work fine. Why put money when you can get everything for free?
WordPress Free V/S Premium Themes: What Should You Choose?
The real question is not about what to choose. The real question is when to choose free and when to choose the premium themes available. As different projects and their scale decides the nature of themes you should go for.
In this blog, we will discuss all the advantages and disadvantages of free vs premium themes. Stick to this blog and read it fully.
Ⅰ. Free WordPress Themes: Pros and Cons
ⅠⅠ. Premium WordPress Themes: Pros and Cons
Ⅰ. Free WordPress Themes:
There are hundreds of free themes available in WordPress. They are easy to adapt and easy to use. But why should you choose them? They are free and this can be a big reason but is this enough?
These free WordPress themes are created by developers. These developers can be professional or unprofessional. Many hobby developers create them for their practice also.
WordPress however checks its quality with its process. If it passes through it, then only WordPress allows it to be on board.
Pros of Using a Free WordPress Theme:
These are the following pros of using a free theme in WordPress.
1. Yes, They are Free:
One of the big reasons people use free WordPress themes is that they are free. This works especially for new site owners. They are inexperienced and immature in regard to website design, plugins, and themes. As a result, they always try to add or remove something. Often they want their whole theme changed.
With a premium WordPress theme, you don’t have the privilege of continuous experimentation. Many sellers don’t offer return policies. Hence you will be obliged to buy one. Further, premium themes don’t come at a cheap rate. They cost you an average of $50.
2. WordPress Approved Themes:
WordPress doesn’t allow any low-quality free themes at their portals. This will direct affect their business. Hence they have set up a checking process that each theme needs to go through. This process checks all new themes for their compatibility, plugin support, designs, coding, and extras.
3. Speed:
Free themes come with fewer plugins and fewer features. Features and Plugins make your website heavy and hence your website becomes slow. You need to optimize your website as per technical SEO. With free themes, you don’t face a lot of technical SEO issues. As a result, you have a website of great speed.
4. Easy to Use:
Companies know that free website themes are majorly used by beginners. So they design their theme for them only. WordPress develops to make sure that free themes must be made for testing motives only. Hence it’s super easy to use and simple.
5. Supports Plugins:
Free website themes support and are compatible with almost all the plugins available in WordPress. You can start using any of them without hesitation. Although some exceptions are also there.
Cons of Using a Free WordPress Theme:
Following are the cons of using a free WordPress theme.
1. Limited Features:
Nothing good comes free of cost. This is true also in the case of WordPress free themes. Free WordPress themes don’t offer you as many features as premium does. The limited features stop you from achieving the best of your productivity. Many larger and more professional websites require these features for scaling up their business. Hence it’s not a good idea to set up your business on free themes.
2. They Are Not Unique:
Since the website’s free themes are easily available, anyone can choose them without paying a single penny for them. Free themes also don’t offer you larger-scale customization. Hence you will find similar designed and themed websites all across the internet. Their difference will not be significant enough to make it unique.
3. Don’t Support Updates:
WordPress website free themes do not support recent updates. Free themes are rarely updated by their developers. As there are no updates available, it is very incompatible with frequent updates.
4. No Support:
Premium WordPress themes always have their developer’s support. They regularly update it. Also for any query and help, developers always are present to help you. Websites with free themes don’t enjoy this privilege. They are totally on their own. If anything goes wrong, either you have to fix it by a developer (a third-party forum, Facebook groups, etc.) or need to change the theme completely.
5. Poor Codes:
The developers of free themes are generally hobby developers or newbies. These people develop themes for their enjoyment or for the testing process. Hence there are high chances that you might land up on a theme having good graphics but poor coding. As result, your site may lack performance. It will also fail you in technical SEO and security features.
6. Legal Legitimacy:
Not all free themes are equal in terms of quality. WordPress issues different licenses for different websites. Hence you can check the quality as well as legal legitimacy of the website. Make sure to have a look at this description.
IⅠ. Premium WordPress Themes:
Premium WordPress themes come at a cost. There are several reasons for it. Premium themes include various features including updates, supports, and more customization. With premium themes, you get premium offers too. You get more security features, better support, unique websites, and more compatible plugins.
Pros of Using a Premium WordPress Theme:
Following are the pros of using a Premium WordPress Theme.
1. Standard Compliant:
Premium WordPress themes serve you greatly with updates. Developers regularly update the codes of the theme. They also get updates from WordPress for PHP, CSS, and HTML. Regular updates make your website securer. You get speedy websites, new and modern technologies, more plugins, and designs.
2. Responsive Sites:
Being responsive is the first quality to get stabilization in the current cut-throat market. More than 70% of the searches are done on mobiles. If you have a business website, you must have a responsive website compatible with all devices. Premium websites are fully responsive in nature. Hence it supports your business on a larger scale.
3. Compatible with All Browsers:
It is true that chrome has a great number of users but there are other internet browsers too. It is important for your website to be compatible with all internet browsers for gaining a mass audience from the internet. Hence you need to have quality websites.
Premium websites are fully compatible with all browsers. They have inbuilt coding that supports all browsers. Hence it supports your website to get visible in all searches through all browsers.
4. Highly Customizable:
WordPress Premium themes come with great customization options. Since they come with a price, you get many colors, designs, elements, and tools that are not available with the free version themes. Fewer people use it which makes the chances higher for your website to be unique in the market. You can create a design like no other and enjoy being the big bull in the market.
5. Works Great With Other Plugins:
Premium themes are premium for a reason. One of them is their compatibility with almost all the plugins. When you go with premium themes, you don’t worry about which plugin to use. They support all. You can use any plugin for SEO, speed, traffic, and anything. They will all work.
Cons of Using a Premium WordPress Theme:
1. They are Costly:
Premium WordPress themes come with a price. Most of them are not affordable for many newcomers. The new site owners usually don’t have the budget to buy a premium theme as they want experiments and regular editing. The average price for premium themes is $57. It is indeed costly for any newbie. Also, you may not get a return policy from theme owners. This makes you stuck in the middle of a situation.
2. Crossing Over Plugin Domain:
Premium themes offer you many plugins. But the problem arises when they crossover their domains. Sometimes they start giving you irrelevant features that your site doesn’t need. As soon as you switch the theme, they disappear. Such as custom post types and shortcodes on the websites.
3. Slow Loading Speed:
Premium Website Developers want to sell their themes on WordPress. To look more impressive, they add too many features to the theme. This results in the lagging of your website as a whole. It’s true that they give many features and plugins to work better. But they also are making the website slow. For example- the first-time view average was 11.42 seconds for a site on the Techmeme Leader Board.
4. Poor Codes:
Although premium themes come with a price, they still don’t give a guarantee of great coding inside. Sometimes you may get a theme with a great look but poor coding. This will later affect your website in security features, plugin compatibility, and designs. WordPress’s poor review system for premium website themes is a big reason for this.
5. Too Many Features:
Too many features in premium WordPress themes make the website slow. Developers put many features that you may never use. To understand the proper use of all of them, you need to learn more about the features. This is simply not possible if you are casual about your website and don’t want to use it as a business. Too many features complicate the services you want to use.
When to Use Free WordPress Theme VS Premium WordPress Theme?
The real question is not what to choose. The question is when to choose a free and when to choose a premium WordPress website theme. While choosing a theme, you must understand that it must not only give you good designs but also better speed and greater performance. Make sure that it fulfills your final goal.
Use a Free WordPress theme When:
– You want to start your own personal blog.
– The team doesn’t care if your site doesn’t look unique.
– You are searching for some basic functions only.
Choose a Premium WordPress Theme When:
– You are going to use your website for business purposes.
– You are planning your website to expand as e-commerce-like complex functionality.
– The team wants a business website to be unique in looks.
– The business website needs to have the capability to support many features.
– You are not a developer and don’t know how to fix the website’s technical issues.
The decision will be easier if you know what your website is all about. A brief description of the needs, vision, mission, and goals of the website will help you in choosing the right theme category for you.
Significance of Premium and Free WordPress Theme:
Both kinds of themes have their own advantages and disadvantages. What to choose solely depends on your needs and goals. For more complicated functions like an e-commerce website, you must go for a premium. But if you want only a personal blog website, it is fine to get a free theme.
Moreover, you can convert your free theme into a premium theme at any time you want. It’s completely okay with your constantly changing needs. If you are a newbie in this field, it is best to use free themes first. You can then experiment with all plugins and features. After checking one by one, you would be more familiar with your rightful needs. After a few months, you can go to a premium theme that would fulfill all your needs.
WordPress free vs premium themes: Conclusion
Not all WordPress themes are excellent. You need to be very choosy when you are planning to buy one. That is why we suggest you try free themes for the first few months. After doing in-depth research on a good WordPress theme and understanding your needs, you must go for a premium one. Above we have discussed each factor that affects your choice of a premium or free theme. We have discussed the pros and cons of both categories and also their significance.
