{"id":3274,"date":"2022-02-18T09:27:17","date_gmt":"2022-02-18T07:27:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/?p=3274"},"modified":"2022-05-19T17:44:03","modified_gmt":"2022-05-19T14:44:03","slug":"how-to-customize-your-wordpress-theme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/how-to-customize-your-wordpress-theme\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Customize Your WordPress Theme"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the great things about WordPress is the endless choice of plugins and themes that can complement your web project. Whether you are looking for <\/span>design improvements<\/b> or <\/span>performance boosters<\/b> – useful solutions are often just a few clicks away.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But that’s just scratching the surface.<\/span><\/p>\n

Due to its open-source code environment, you can further customize the available ready-made tools and ensure a truly unique experience for both you and your users.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Today, we will be talking about <\/span>WordPress themes<\/b> and how we can modify templates to best serve our needs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What is a WordPress Theme?<\/b><\/h2>\n

Simply put, the theme is the visual representation of your project. Your template choice can define all <\/span>designs<\/b>, <\/span>layouts<\/b>, <\/span>colors<\/b>, and even<\/span> site structure<\/b>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To date, there are <\/span>over 15,000 WordPress themes<\/b> in the official repository and reputable marketplaces alone. Many of the layouts are free and fully open to further modifications. You can also find<\/span> multipurpose themes<\/b> but also designs that <\/span>serve a specific niche<\/b> – ecommerce, travel, food, photography, and more.<\/span><\/p>\n

IMPORTANT:<\/b> Before you start, check out our guide on Choosing a WordPress Theme to ensure you find a design with the right features and the most intuitive environment.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ways for Customizing a WordPress Theme<\/b><\/h2>\n

There are more than a few different ways to go about making changes to your design on WordPress. Some of them are well-fit for users with little to no technical experience, while others will take some coding knowledge to truly master.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Let’s take a look at your options:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  • Utilizing additional plugins<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Using the WordPress Customizer<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Taking advantage of the in-built features (for page builder themes)<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Customizing a child theme (for third-party solutions)<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Editing your template code directly<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Regardless of your chosen approach, there are tons of useful modifications you can apply.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Customizing Your WordPress Theme via a Plugin<\/b><\/h2>\n

    We won’t dive into too much detail about the inner workings of the various plugin options you have on the market – there are just too many of them. Instead, we can help you with a shortlist of some of the most acclaimed and well-praised add-ons according to existing users and our own tests.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Modifying a WP theme, you can consider:<\/span><\/p>\n