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Are WordPress themes a one time purchase?
Since there are thousands of WordPress themes, it’s pretty hard to say if all of them are a one time purchase. Though it’s safe to say that the majority of WordPress themes are one time purchases.
However, even though most paid or premium themes can be bought with a one time purchase, there are also some additional conditions that you need to consider when buying a WordPress theme.
For example, when you buy a premium WordPress theme of course get all the extra features, widgets, etc. These will help you customize your WordPress theme a lot more than the free version.
Many paid/premium WordPress themes will limit you to the amount of websites you can use that theme on. Perhaps limit you to one website per purchase, five, ten or even up to 500. Some may offer an unlimited number of websites.
In addition, most paid themes do have a yearly renewal or a lifetime purchase. These annual renewals or lifetime purchases include all theme updates, possible additional features to the theme, as well as access to their support as well as support forms.
For example, this theme that I use called GeneratePress can be purchased for $59 or a lifetime purchase for $249. The yearly renewal is also $59.
For $59 I not only get the premium version, but I also get all the updates, any new features that are added to the theme as well as access to the support forum. If you opt for the $249 fee, then you get all of those for a lifetime without having to pay any renewals.
So what happens if you buy a premium theme, but you opt out of the renewals, does the theme crash? In most cases no. With GeneratePress I get to keep all the premium features that came with the original premium theme purchase.
Though I lose access to the support forum as well as any updates to the theme including access to new features that GeneratePress comes out with from time to time, including additional child themes.
So when you are trying to decide on whether or not you need to purchase a WordPress theme you should keep all of the above in mind.
You should of course, also read reviews about that theme, but reviews can be tricky because most themes have affiliate programs including GeneratePress.
How do you choose a premium WordPress theme?
The best way to choose a premium theme is to try out their free version. Most premium WordPress themes do have a free version.
If you like the free version and you find it easy to work with, but you would love to have some additional features to get it just right, then I would look into what the premium theme has to offer.
In addition, if you are considering buying the premium version of the theme that you like, check the reviews for that theme.
Just don’t go around blind looking through WordPress theme marketplaces, see a great-looking theme and just buy one.
That’s what I did when I got my first premium theme and it was a big mistake. I had listened to the reviews, saw the theme’s videos with all the flash and I went and bought it. Big mistake!
Luckily, they had a money back guarantee, so I was able to get a refund. In fact, that was the only thing that was good about that theme.
I’d spend days trying to, for example, customize a header. So I went back to my WordPress dashboard in the themes section and started browsing around and that’s when I came across GeneratePress. It looked simple and clean, so I downloaded it.
The interface and customization sections along with the widgets, even in the free version, we’re quite easy to figure out. I was able to do some customizations on my own without having to refer to their support forum.
This intrigued me and I wanted to learn more about GeneratePress. That’s when I started reading some of their reviews, watching some videos on it, etc.
Then I took the next step and I visited GeneratePress and I saw their pricing, the child themes along with all the additional features and widgets that they offered. For the price, it was a steal.
In addition, the themes developer, Tom Usborne, is quite active in the support forums. Whereas with many of the most popular themes you don’t even know who the developer was because they are usually made in a theme shop by some Agency.
But GeneratePress also has many very enthusiastic users and the moderators in their forum are quite knowledgeable and helpful as well.
You’ll also find Tom is quite active and it’s forums too. That right there sold me and I bought it. I’ve been a happy GeneratePress user ever since, for the last 4 years in fact.
My theme actually is about to be up for renewal in the next couple of months and I’m going to gladly pay for yet another year’s renewal.
Should you buy a WordPress theme?
In my opinion, if you’re serious about your WordPress website, want to learn more about how to use and customize it, then there is no better way to do so than to buy a WordPress theme.
The education you will get by participating in a WordPress theme’s forum alone will teach you so much about WordPress and how to customize WordPress themes that the charge for a premium theme is more than worth the price, just for the education benefits alone.
Is it worth paying for a premium WordPress theme?
It’s definitely worth paying for a premium WordPress theme considering all you get with it.
You get a ton of different widgets that you can use to customize your theme, all without having to know any coding on your part.
Access to your theme’s forums and support as well as updates. If you’re lucky, the theme also has a nice range of child themes you can use as well. All usually included in the prices. At least they are with GeneratePress.
Can we use the once-purchased ‘WordPress theme’ for multiple websites?
This depends on the theme. For example, with GeneratePress I can use my purchased theme on up to 500 WordPress websites with the one license.
If I want to use it on more than 500 websites, then I would need to purchase another license, but considering the cost, that’s a no-brainer.
However, some other themes will only allow you to use it on one or even two websites. Others up to 5 or 10.
So it depends on the theme and the theme’s developer as well as your Terms of Service.
Do you have to pay for WordPress themes annually?
As I’ve mentioned above most themes will have an annual renewal payment which covers your access to their support as well as updates.
Although, technically, you don’t have to pay for a WordPress theme in most cases after the one time purchase.
However, some themes will include more features and benefits like with GeneratePress. With GeneratePress I also have access to new features, widgets and child themes that they come out with from time to time, etc.
I actually would feel like I’d be missing out on so much more if I didn’t pay for the annual renewals.
How much does a WordPress theme cost?
Prices range of course for WordPress themes. The cost of my current theme with GeneratePress is $59 for the one time purchase with a $59 yearly renewal fee.
However, I can also pay a one time lifetime fee of $249 without any yearly renewals, yet still have all the benefits and privileges that the yearly renewals include.
How can I tell if a WordPress theme is free?
The easiest way to tell if a WordPress theme is free is to simply browse through all the WordPress themes on WordPress.org.
In order for a developer to list their WordPress theme or plugin on WordPress.org, it must be free.
However, there’s a difference between a free WordPress theme and a premium or paid version of that same theme.
Most themes on WordPress.org also have premium/paid versions of that same theme as well.
But, the developer must offer a free version of their theme or plugin in order to have it listed on WordPress.org.
What is the difference between free and premium WordPress themes?
Free WordPress themes normally are quite basic and limit you to what you can do as far as customizations are concerned.
Whereas premium WordPress themes not only expand the amount of features it has which will allow you to do many more customizations to that same WordPress theme.
But, premium WordPress themes also include updates as well as access to support and customer service.
Premium themes like GeneratePress also allow you access to additional releases, newer widgets, updates, access to their support forum and additional child themes that they come out with as well.
Do WordPress themes expire?
Although once you purchase a paid WordPress theme, it is yours, many WordPress themes do have a yearly renewal to cover updates and access to their support as well.
Why are WordPress themes so expensive?
In my opinion, the majority of WordPress themes aren’t expensive at all. Many great WordPress themes can be bought for under $100.
Considering what you can do with a paid premium WordPress theme, that’s a bargain.
If you were to hire a WordPress developer for example, to build a custom WordPress theme, that could run you into the thousands of dollars and may not even include any updates or support after the theme is built.
How much does it cost to hire a WordPress developer?
As there are many different WordPress developers, there are many different rates for their services. You can expect to pay anywhere from a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars, depending on what you want that WordPress developer to do.
For example, if you would like them to make a few customizations to your current WordPress theme, it shouldn’t run you more than a few hundred dollars.
If you would like to have a WordPress developer customize a plugin or even create a specific plugin for your WordPress website, it could cost a few hundred to a few thousand dollars.
For a total custom theme built from scratch and unique for which you have full copyrights to that theme, then you could expect to pay several thousand dollars for that as well.
What is the best WordPress theme?
I must admit, I am quite biased. In my opinion the best WordPress theme is GeneratePress. However, there are several other very good themes out there as well.
How many free WordPress themes are there?
There are thousands free WordPress themes out there. All you need to do is simply go to WordPress.org/themes and you can see for yourself.
Will changing WordPress themes affect content?
Changing a WordPress theme may not affect the actual content contained in that WordPress theme, but it can’t affect how that content is displayed.
Why is it not recommended to use free WordPress themes?
Normally, it is not recommended to use free WordPress themes because they don’t usually include support or updates.
If you are using an old WordPress theme for example, that has not been updated with every WordPress core update, you can compromise your WordPress site’s security and make it vulnerable to hackers and other nefarious characters who can bring it down.
Are WordPress themes a one time purchase? FAQs conclusion.
As you can see, most paid/premium WordPress themes are a one time purchase.
However, usually that one time purchase does not include regular updates, access to customer service and support forums as well as child themes for that WordPress theme etc.
In my opinion, if you are serious about your website then purchasing a paid/premium WordPress theme is more than worth the cost of that theme.
In fact, I think I’ve learned more about WordPress, theme customization etc. by having a paid theme and access to that theme’s form than I ever could have from any online course or YouTube video.
So if you’re on the fence about purchasing a WordPress theme, don’t be. It will be one of the best investments you can ever make for your WordPress website.
