There are thousands of Gutenberg-compatible WordPress themes available in the market these days. However, some cost a few hundred dollars, while others are free. Isn’t it good when you meet your needs for free? Sure, it is. But it isn’t easy to find the best free Gutenberg themes that fit the style of your WordPress site and works with all the plugins you use.
So, if you are looking for free Gutenberg themes compatible with WordPress’ new Gutenberg editor (Block editor), then you are at the right place. In this article, we will discuss our top five best free Gutenberg themes to help you find the right one.
But, first, let’s talk about what is the Gutenberg editor.
What is the Gutenberg editor?
The Gutenberg Editor, also known as the WordPress Block editor, is a new page builder that comes with WordPress 5.0 and later. Every new WordPress website comes with Gutenberg as the default editor, which provides content blocks and third-party page builders-like features.
Gutenberg replaces the former WordPress Classic Editor, which uses TinyMCE (WYSIWYG) as the default post and page content editor. You can add content in discrete “blocks” rather than in one enormous content area with Gutenberg.
If you want to learn more about the history and evolution of Gutenberg, we have a dedicated post on that, so do check it out.
With that out of the way, let’s discuss why your choice of theme is extremely important and what makes a better theme.
Why your choice of theme is extremely important?
If you are thinking about creating a website, then you need to select a suitable theme. But first thing first, what is a WordPress theme?
Themes in WordPress are files that define the structure and aesthetics of your website. Choosing the right WordPress theme is crucial as it allows you to make your site stand out and fit your brand. There’s a good chance that you’ve seen a few beautiful WordPress sites, which is mainly for their choice of theme.
Ergonomics in the form of themes is a strong tool in the hand of developers to attract more traffic to your site. That’s why you also need a theme that matches and reflects the core values of your business. It will not only make a strong impact on users’ minds, but it will also earn you more money in sales if you are running an E-commerce store.
But, there are some elements that you should keep in your mind before selecting a theme. Let’s discuss them.
Elements That Make a Better Theme
Here are some aspects of a good WordPress theme you should always keep an eye on.
A general or multipurpose design
The theme that you are using should have a general or multipurpose design. It should include all the fundamental features that your site will need.
Lightweight
The theme should be lightweight. So it can upload quickly and give a smooth experience to the users.
Responsive and mobile-friendly
A good number of people are searching websites on their mobiles and tablets. Thus, your theme must be able to adjust to the different screen sizes. At the same time, it should maintain its core functionality to deliver a consistent and enjoyable experience for all users, regardless of their device.
Also, a responsive WordPress theme does not necessarily mean it implements responsive design effectively. You have to make sure that your theme looks good on all different-sized screens. You can easily do this by modifying the window size in your browser and observing how the theme adapts to the new size.
Easy to customize and make changes
Even if the default layout of your selected WordPress theme is magnificent, it is unlikely that it meets all your requirements. So, it must be sufficiently customizable to accommodate your brand identity and specifications.
So, when selecting a theme, ensure you can change theme elements, page components, and layout.
updates frequently
WordPress themes, like plugins and other software components, need regular maintenance to function as efficiently as possible. The very first consideration when searching for a new WordPress theme is whether it has been updated and made compatible with the most recent WordPress stable release. In other words, you should determine whether the theme developer you’re interested in regularly updates it or not.
Compatibility with the plugins
When choosing a theme, you should check its compatibility with the plugins since plugins allow you to do things like generate leads, run giveaways, and many more. Conflicts between plugins and themes are pretty common. So, make sure your theme is compatible with the plugins you use.
Active and helpful support team
Before selecting a theme, you should check whether customer support is available, whether it is free, and how long you will receive it after installing it.
SEO friendliness
Make every effort to examine whether your chosen theme supports the Search Engine Optimization (SEO) features. SEO these days is more important than anything else. You may have a great website, but what good is it if it can’t be found? So, while choosing your theme, make sure it follows the best SEO practices.
By now, we have learned about the core features you need to look for in a theme. Let’s now dig into the themes library and find the best free Gutenberg themes for your website.
Best Free Gutenberg Themes
Following are some great options to help you choose a perfect free theme for your website:
- Astra
- Blocksy
- Kadence
- Neve
- Wowmall
Let’s have a look at each of them one by one.
1. Astra
Astra is one of the best free Gutenberg themes if you want a stylish WordPress theme with Gutenberg support. It is a multipurpose Gutenberg theme that comes with all the essential features that websites need. This theme is fast, lightweight, customizable, and works seamlessly on all devices.
Nothing is worse than downloading a theme and finding that you must write code or add CSS elements for styling. But, with Astra, you will not need to write any code. The theme takes care of all the code itself, which is the whole point of using WordPress.
Moving on, the WordPress Customizer is where you can change things like colors, fonts, text headers, the logo, and a lot more that has to do with formatting. A lot of themes don’t use the customizer that comes with WordPress. This is usually because the theme was made before the WordPress customizer. The Astra theme is still pretty new and uses the customizer that comes with WordPress.
You can download Astra from the themes library in WordPress.
Here are some key features of the Astra theme.
Key Features
- Pre-built websites, called starter templates.
- Lightweight and fast.
- Fully-responsive theme.
- Compatible with page builders.
- Built-in header layouts.
- Woocommerce support.
- SEO friendly.
2. Blocksy
If you are looking for free Gutenberg themes, then Blocksy is one of the best options. It’s a speedy, innovative, and supercharged free Gutenberg theme that offers its users a unique experience. It was developed with the Gutenberg editor in mind. This theme features many options, contributing to its extendibility and customization. With this theme, you can create sites like shops, education, blog, portfolio, corporate, business agencies, and so on.
Blocksy is an excellent theme for eCommerce sites, bloggers, photographers, and many other types of websites. It’s easy to use for any website, from simple blogs to huge business sites with eCommerce stores and product catalogs. It’s perfect for bloggers who want an online presence but don’t want to deal with all the complicated parts of setting up a website.
Moreover, it has a simple layout and bright colors to keep people hooked to your site. Blocksy also offers SEO optimization, so you won’t have to worry about getting in trouble with Google for not following its rules. This feature lets you focus on what you do best without worrying about how it will affect your ranking on Google or Bing.
You can get this theme from the WordPress themes library for free.
Key Features
- Lightning Fast
- 100% compatible with Gutenberg.
- eCommerce ready.
- Code splitting.
- Fully responsive.
- Live preview.
- Translation ready.
- Clean code.
3. Kadence
Kadence is yet another great feature-rich Gutenberg theme. It is a super-fast and lightweight multipurpose theme that is filled with many modern features to make the set-up of your websites more quick and effortless.
A responsive design, several layout possibilities, and support for WooCommerce are some features that come standard with Kadence. Besides, it offers over 100 website demos created to provide an excellent user experience. Kadence’s best feature is that it can be changed to fit your needs.
Another feature of this theme that makes Kadence stand out is its integration with the most popular 3rd party plugins. You can quickly build different websites like online courses, eCommerce stores, business sites, and many more.
You can get this theme from the WordPress themes library for free. With more than 100,000 active installations, it is one of the most well-liked freemium themes.
The free version of this multipurpose WordPress theme comes with many features you would mostly find in premium themes. Here are some key features of the Kadence.
Key Features
- Global colors.
- Header layout.
- Page layout.
- Typography.
- Branding.
- Footer layout.
4. Neve
Next on our list of best free Gutenberg themes is Neve. Neve is a WordPress theme that was created to be smooth and adaptable. It is not only about design or aesthetics but also about providing the best user experience possible. The Neve WordPress theme has great functionality, far more than you’d expect from a free WordPress theme. The objective of this theme is plainly to upsell people to the pro edition, but that doesn’t mean the free version isn’t valuable in its own right.
If you want a fast, SEO-friendly, and multipurpose free Gutenberg theme, then Neve is one of them. Neve is a new lightweight and easily customizable theme that works well with the Gutenberg editor.
The best thing about this theme is that it integrates with all page builders and is ideal for blogs, startups, small enterprises, and more. It loads in seconds and responds flawlessly to every viewing device, making it a completely AMP-optimized and responsive theme.
It offers a clean and elegant design with custom header options, background options, page builder plugin compatibility, and more.
You can download this theme from the Themeisle site or the WordPress themes library.
Here are some key features of the Neve theme.
Key Features
- Flexible and Easy to Use.
- Quality code and full support.
- Reliable updates.
- Easy set-up and sleek designs.
- Lightweight and fast.
- Regular updates.
5. Wowmall
Wowmall is one of the most versatile and responsive of the free Gutenberg themes. This theme is multipurpose but is specially designed and developed for WooCommerce. For an eCommerce theme, it is far cleaner than other options and leverages practically every block system component. It has approximately 30 different block designs. Six of them are headers, and the three are footers. The rest, such as call-to-action layouts and hero sections, are for general use in content.
Wowmall also supports Full Site Editing (FSE). You can create unique WooCommerce pages utilizing its block editor features. This theme has block patterns, a notice page, a welcome page for administrators, and block patterns.
Even though this theme is still in its initial phase, the features and ergonomics are pretty refined and exceptional. And we can assure you that many other features will be added soon. You can download this theme from the WordPress library to see the endless possibilities.
Here are some key features of the Wowmall theme.
Key Features
- It is specially developed for WooCommerce.
- 30+ block patterns.
- Several custom block styles.
- Beautiful and bold design to attract visitors.
- Call-to-action layouts.
- Easily customizable.
- Support Full Site Editing (FSE).
- Different custom block styles.
Conclusion
Themes are the soul of a website. Yes, the content matters, but so does the presentation. When making your website, you would surely need the help of some beautiful themes. But they are pretty expensive, right? So, we compiled for you a list of the best free Gutenberg themes so you get the best services without spending a penny.
In this article, we discussed the Gutenberg editor. We came up with the finest free Gutenberg themes that you should look at if you want to develop a fully responsive, gorgeous, and professional-looking website without extra effort. All the themes listed in this article work fine with Gutenberg, page builders, and major plugins.
Recommendation
So which theme should you pick? The simple answer to this question is you should select the theme that most closely matches your preferences or the in-demand brand. However, we’d recommend a couple of options for you.
Astra and Blocksy are the two most popular multipurpose themes for WordPress. Both of them offer a wide range of page features and tools in their free version, and the appearance is professional enough, enabling you to create stunning designs for your website.
On the other hand, if you want a theme specially built for Woocommerce, you should pick Wowmall. Wowmall is exclusively built for WooCommerce and caters to all the needs of an online store. This theme supports Full Site Editing (FSE) and is best for you if you want to quickly build your online store.
So what do you think about these free Gutenberg themes? Have you tried any of them? And how was your experience? Let us know in the comment section below.
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