If you are serious about blogging, choose a premium theme. However, some free themes can give tough competition to those premium themes.
I think we all started our blogging journey with a free theme. Later, we realized that the free theme does more harm than it does anything better.
But, if you want to stick to a free theme for any reason, this is the article for you where we will discuss the 6 Best Free WordPress Themes.
Benefits of Free WordPress Themes
Except for “free themes are available for free,” I don’t see any benefits in using a free theme. However, few free themes offer SEO features, Schema Markups, and clean coding, and our article will be all about those free themes.
Drawbacks Of Free WordPress Themes
Most free themes do not ship with good SEO features or with proper schema markups. Both are very essential for getting ranked.
Clean coding is also a daydream in a free theme. All these things contribute to the slow loading of your blog. Slow loading means a high bounce rate and low ranking.
Support is also non-existent in a free theme. Updates are not frequent, and if you end up in trouble with the theme, you have no one to ask for help apart from getting help from forums. Though those forums are highly active, you won’t get personalized help.
Table of Contents
5 Best Free WordPress Themes
Here are the 6 best free WordPress themes we will discuss.
1. GeneratePress
GeneratePress deserves the number one spot for many reasons. The theme is extremely lightweight (Weighs under 30 KB ) and loads in under a second with a default setup. No bloatware, no unwanted plugins.
Over half a million users downloaded the free version, and mostly they gave a 5-star rating. That shows the popularity of this theme.
The free version is supported through the WordPress support portal. GeneratePress is also compatible with page builders like Elementor & Thrive Architect.
GeneratePress has a free version and a pro version. The free version has basic features and is good for hobby bloggers. The pro version is loaded with advanced features. It is recommended that you use the pro version.
GeneratePress Free Version Features
- Extremely lightweight ( Just under 30 KB)
- Exceptionally Fast ( Loads under a second in default setup)
- Mobile-Friendly ( Responsive)
- Typography and font editing
GeneratePress Pro Version Features
- Site Library ( You can copy any of those and edit as per your need)
- Colors ( You can change the color as per your need)
- Elements, hooks, and sections ( All are essential to building an attractive blog)
- Megamenu
- Customized header and footers
- Different post styles
- Different backgrounds in posts and page
- Personalized support
2. Astra WordPress Theme
Astra blends speed with features. If you need a free theme that is fast, lightweight, and feature-rich, go ahead with the Astra theme.
Astra Pro is schema-integrated and SEO optimized. The free version is just under 50 KB in size and loads in less than a second in the default setup.
Astra also supports WooCoomerce integration, which is great if you want to launch an eCommerce store. Major page builders can be integrated with the Astra theme.
Astra Free Theme Features
- Schema Enabled
- SEO optimized
- Extremely fast
- Lightweight and clean coding
- Responsive design
Astra Pro Theme Features
- Header and footer customization
- Different site layout
- Better typography and color option
- Better blog layout
- Support custom layouts and hooks
- Lifter LMS and learn dash integration
- WooCommerce checkout option
- Better one-to-one support
3. Ocean WP Theme
OceanWP is one of the best free WordPress themes that many bloggers love. Although it is not as fast as Astra and Generatepress, bloggers still love this theme due to its many customization options and WooCommerce integration.
It offers minimal SEO features bundled with clean coding for building faster websites. The responsive theme supports integration with different page builders like Elementor and Thrive Architect.
OceanWP Free Theme Features
- Fast and SEO friendly
- WooCommerce ready
- Support page builder’s integration
- Responsive
- RTL support
OcenWP Premium Features
- Customized header, footer, and sidebar
- Multiple demo websites to copy
- Hook support, which is essential for AdSense codes
- Inbuilt popup features
- Elementor widgets integrated
- Integrated Portfolio features
- White level theme
4. Hello Theme
Hello theme is developed by Elementor, one of WordPress’s best page builders. With over a million downloads, it is also among the most popular free WordPress themes.
Hello theme comes with minimum vanilla JavaScript coding and less CSS. This is useful if you want a barebone website that loads very fast.
The theme is SEO-optimized and Schema ready. Hello theme is also very lightweight and when using Elementor page builder, it is the best setup you can have for your blog.
One of the most important facts about the Hello theme is that it is completely free, and there is no pro version. So you can enjoy all the features for free.
Hello Theme Features
- Fast and lightweight
- Perfect for landing pages
- No extra Java scripts or CSS styling
- Best theme to use with Elementor
- Free for Forever
5. Kadence Theme
Kadence is a very feature-rich theme. The free versions also have many features sufficient to create a nice blog.
With over 200K+ installations and almost all 5-star ratings, Kadence is a very popular theme.
Kadence has a free version with some basic features and a pro version with many advanced features.
When Kadence is used with Kadence block, you can easily eliminate the need for any page builder.
Kadence Free Version Features
- Header and footer builder
- Woocommerce integration
- Advanced typography
- Custom layout
- Sticky sidebar
- Support for LMS plugins
Kadence Free Version Features
- Hooked Elements (Sections & Templates)
- Header Addons
- Conditional Headers
- WooCommerce Addons
- Custom 404 Page
- Conditional Elements
- Inline Content Elements
Conclusion: Best Free WordPress Themes
As I said at the beginning of this article, free themes are not the ones you should choose if you are serious about blogging.
No matter what features a free theme offers, it will still lack the offering of a paid theme. If you are a beginner, try a free theme to learn about WordPress or how themes work.
But once your blog grows, shifting to a premium theme is better.
For me, features like speed are equally important. If speed is the only consideration, then no theme can beat GeneratePress.
But the Astra free theme offers more features than GeneratePress and great speed. So, my pick would be Astra.
Did I miss any good themes here? Do let me know if you feel that better free themes are available, and I will happily include them on the list.
FAQ | Free WordPress Theme
How To Download Free WordPress Themes?
You can download Free WordPress Themes directly by going to the WordPress Dashboard-> Theme-> Add New-> Search for the theme
Which Is The Best Free WordPress Theme?
Astra and GeneratePress are the two best free WordPress themes.
