WordPress theme builders allow you to easily customize and design WordPress themes without needing to know any code. With drag-and-drop editors and hundreds of templates, theme builders make it simple for anyone to create beautiful, professional-looking websites.
In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll cover everything you need to know about the top WordPress theme builders in 2024, and help you decide which one best fits your needs.
What is a WordPress Theme Builder?
A WordPress theme builder is a tool or platform that allows you to visually build and customize WordPress themes. Theme builders provide drag-and-drop interfaces and pre-designed templates so you can create custom headers, footers, page layouts, and more for your WordPress site.
Theme builders go far beyond basic theme customization. Rather than just letting you tweak some colors and fonts, theme builders give you granular control to craft unique designs for all aspects of your site.
Who Should Use a Theme Builder?
Here are some of the main types of users who can benefit from a WordPress theme builder:
- Bloggers & website owners: Easily create beautiful, on-brand themes for your site without coding
- Designers: Build custom WordPress themes for clients without needing developer help
- Agencies: Quickly set up consistent, customized themes for each client site
- Developers: Speed up the theme development process with pre-built modules
- Ecommerce site owners: Design custom shop and product page layouts
Essentially if you want more customization and flexibility than the average WordPress theme allows, a theme builder is for you.
Top WordPress Theme Builders Compared
Here is an overview of some of the most popular WordPress theme builders available in 2024:
1. Elementor
Elementor is one of the most popular page builders for WordPress, with over 5 million active installations. The free version of Elementor allows you to create custom page layouts, while Elementor Pro lets you design headers, footers, archives, and more.
Key Features:
- Intuitive drag-and-drop editor
- 300+ templates for pages, posts, archives etc.
- Responsive editing and mobile-friendly themes
- Works with most major WordPress themes
- Option for full-website editing with Hello Theme
Pricing: Starts at $49/year for Elementor Pro
2. Beaver Builder
Beaver Builder is a flexible theme and page builder allowing extensive customization options. With Beaver Builder and the Beaver Themer extension, you can customize headers, footers, single posts, archives, and more for your WordPress site.
Key Features:
- Drag-and-drop page builder module
- 700+ premade templates
- Works with most themes
- Beaver Themer available to build custom headers, footers etc.
- Good selection of widgets and addons
Pricing: Starts at $99/year for Beaver Builder Standard + $147/year for Beaver Themer
3. Brizy
Brizy is a newer page builder on the scene that’s gaining popularity for its user-friendly editor. Brizy Pro gives you basic theme building functionality like custom headers, footers, and archives.
Key Features:
- Intuitive visual editor
- 150+ premade templates
- Global styling options
- Header and footer builder
- Cloud hosting included
Pricing: Starts at $49/year for Brizy Pro
4. Divi
Divi by ElegantThemes is a theme and page builder hybrid. With Divi Theme Builder you can create custom layouts for all your theme templates. It also comes with the Divi Builder for drag-and-drop page building.
Key Features:
- Frontend visual builder
- 800+ templates for pages, sections etc.
- Theme builder for headers, footers, archives
- Good for ecommerce sites
- Other premium plugins and tools included
Pricing: $89/year for all ElegantThemes products, including Divi
5. Thrive Architect
Thrive Architect is an all-in-one WordPress page builder and content creation platform. Thrive Theme Builder allows you to customize your entire WordPress theme without coding.
Key Features:
- Intuitive drag-and-drop editor
- Template library with 100+ sections
- Header, footer, sidebar builder
- Blog/post templates
- Lead generation and conversion tools
Pricing: Starts at $19/month for Thrive Architect
6. Oxygen
Oxygen is a more developer-oriented theme and site builder. It sports an easy-to-use visual interface allowing you to build full WordPress themes from scratch.
Key Features:
- Visual theme builder tools
- Drag-and-drop layout and design options
- Custom post types, archives etc.
- Complete frontend site editing
- Integrations with Gutenberg and WooCommerce
- Coding capabilities for developers
Pricing: Starts at $99 for Oxygen Personal license
7. PageFly
PageFly is a new generation WordPress page builder that allows you to build custom header, footer layouts together will full page layout.
Key Features:
- Drag and Drop page builder
- Header footer builder
- 30+ starter templates
- Global blocks
- Work with any theme
- Free cloud CDN
- No coding required
Pricing Starts from $35 per year
Key Benefits of Using a Theme Builder
Some of the main benefits you’ll gain by using a WordPress theme builder include:
Complete design control – Theme builders allow much more customization than standard themes, for every aspect of your site. You can tweak all templates, styles, colors fonts to match your brand.
No coding required – With drag-and-drop editors and premade blocks, you don’t need any coding skills to build a beautiful theme.
Speed up development – Skip developer costs and hours by using premade templates and modules to quickly build your theme.
Improve site performance – Optimized theme builders like Elementor and Thrive Architect incorporate best practices to help improve site speed.
Ecommerce design – Tailor product pages, shops, carts, etc. for ecommerce sites with themes builders like Divi and Oxygen.
Engage visitors – Create custom post templates, category pages, landing pages and more to provide an engaging experience.
Getting Started with WordPress Theme Builders
Here is a quick overview of how to start using a WordPress theme builder:
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Choose your builder – Select a theme builder from our list above that best matches your budget, skill level, site goals and more. You may want to start with a free or low-cost option like Beaver Builder or Elementor to get your feet wet.
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Install and activate – Install the theme builder just like any WordPress plugin. For some like Divi or Thrive Architect, you may need to activate the theme as well. Follow the setup guide provided.
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Explore the interface – Theme builders have a frontend editor that will feel similar to using WordPress, allowing you to point and click to add, customize and arrange design elements.
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Start building templates – Dive into customizing your header, footer, blog page, archives, single posts and author pages. Most builders provide premade templates you can tweak to your needs.
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Publish and test – Save your designs and preview or publish them live to test across devices. Make any needed adjustments then launch your newly designed site!
Conclusion & Final Considerations
WordPress theme builders provide incredible design control compared to off-the-shelf themes. They allow bloggers, agencies, ecommerce store owners and developers to easily customize WordPress sites to their exact needs and preferences.
When selecting the best theme builder for you, take into account your skill level, budget, website goals, and any existing themes or plugins you want integration with. We recommend testing out more than one to compare the interfaces and features.
The theme builders featured in this guide – Elementor, Beaver Builder, Brizy, Divi, Thrive Architect, Oxygen and PageFly – are among the top options available in 2024. With drag-and-drop ease of use and hundreds of templates to start from, they make it simple for anyone to craft beautiful WordPress themes quickly.
Start experimenting with these flexible tools to take your website design to the next level. Your visitors will appreciate the cohesive experience across all your custom-designed templates.
