Why would you want to use a WordPress.com theme on a WordPress.org site?
There are a few reasons:
- Your site is on WordPress.com now. You want to move it over to self-hosted WordPress i.e. WordPress.org. (Or you think you might want to move later.) You want to know if you can keep the same theme.
- You’ve seen a really cool theme on someone else’s site which runs on WordPress.com. You want to know if you can use it on your own self-hosted site.
- You’ve looked through the WordPress.org theme directory and got overwhelmed. The smaller selection of themes on WordPress.com seems easier to investigate.
So can you use a WordPress.com theme on a WordPress.org site?
Short answer: Maybe.
Long answer: Keep reading!
Confused about the difference between WordPress.com and WordPress.org? Read this:
How do themes work on WordPress.com?
Themes consist of a number of files which specify the look of a WordPress site.
When you install a theme on a WordPress.com website, the theme files stay on the WordPress.com web server. You don’t get access to them.
As a result, you can’t download the theme if one day you decide to move on. Think of it as like rental furniture. You can use it while you keep paying the rent, but you can’t take it with you.
What you can do – most of the time – is to acquire a copy of the theme which you can install on your own WordPress site.
There’s a good chance that the WordPress.com theme you like is available for download elsewhere.
What themes are available on WordPress.com?
There are 379 themes to choose from on WordPress.com’s theme directory.
This includes:
- 165 free themes (now including Twenty Seventeen, which was previously unavailable)
- 214 Premium themes (paid for themes)
The premium themes are individually priced.
Unfortunately, there’s no simple pricing filter. I found themes ranging from £14 to £113.
If you’re in the USA you will see prices in dollars.
What themes are available on WordPress.org?
There are thousands of themes on the WordPress.org theme directory. I can’t give you an exact number. I don’t think anyone knows!
When I looked, there were:
- 2.449 Featured themes
- 2,414 Popular themes
- 4,606 Latest themes.
Don’t take these as gospel – these numbers are subject to change on a daily basis.
Where else can you get WordPress themes?
There are dozens of theme shops selling their own themes.
Some of them are listed in the Commercial Themes section on WordPress.org.
You’ll also find a long list of them later in this post.
How do I know if the WordPress.com theme I want is available for WordPress.org?
Free WordPress.com themes
Find the theme you want on WordPress.com. You may find it easiest to look in the A-Z of WordPress.com themes.
Click on the button with the theme name – visible when you hover over the theme image.
In the Stats & Info section, if the theme is available on WordPress.org there will be a download link.
Premium WordPress.com themes
This is a little trickier!
Essentially you follow the same process, but this time you won’t get a download link.
You can see who the theme author is and then you need to visit their site to see if the theme is available to buy.
Fortunately, I’ve done the hard work so you don’t have to! 😀
List of WordPress.com premium theme authors and vendors
I’ve listed all the theme authors with:
- Name
- Listing of the WordPress.com premium themes they sell
- Website
- Which themes are available to buy for WordPress.org and their prices.
Things to note:
To search for a premium WordPress.com theme in this post, use CTRL-F (CMD-F on a Mac) and type the name of the theme to find a match.
Not every WordPress.com theme author sells their themes for use with WordPress.org.
Every theme vendor has different pricing structures and the price for a WordPress.com theme may not be the same as a WordPress.org theme. Most sell themes in US dollars.
Sometimes the look of the WordPress.org theme can differ from the WordPress.com one.
Pricing is correct as of April 2017. Check with the theme vendor for up to date prices.
Anariel Design
8 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Bloggy
- Didi
- Healthy Living
- Maisha
- Pena
- Sweet Life
- Tuned Balloon
- Veggie
Pricing: $59 – $199 ex VAT for varying access & support
Array Themes
9 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Ampersand
- Booklet
- Camera
- Designer
- Lenscap
- Periodical
- Publisher
- Watermark
Pricing: $89 for 1-year access to all themes.
AudioTheme
9 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Encore
- Hammer
- Huesos
- Marquee
- Nowell
- Obsidian
- Promenade
- Twotone
- Wayfarer
Pricing: Themes $69 each or $99/year for all.
Automattic
23 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Basic Maths
- Blog Simple
- Bon Vivant
- Eight
- Elemin
- Espresso
- Everyday
- Flora and Fauna
- Forefront
- Funki
- Inspiration Laboratory
- Just Desserts
- Little Story
- Mood
- Nurture
- On A Whim
- Pinboard
- Poly
- Simfo
- The Parisian
- Vagabond
- Veeva
- Wire
Bad luck, they don’t sell their themes commercially. 🙁
C.bavota (Bavotasan)
2 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Arcade
- Gridiculous Pro
Pricing: 1 theme $69/year, All themes $99/year. Basic try before you buy option.
Cedaro
5 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Caldwell
- Debut
- Hyalite
- Shrake
- Soundcheck
Pricing:
- Hyalite – $49 + VAT
- Shrake – $18 + VAT
- Caldwell – $39 + VAT
- Debut and Soundcheck not available.
Codestag
2 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Blink
- Carbon
Pricing: Themes are $55 each.
CyberChimps
1 WordPress.com premium theme1:
- Delight
Pricing: Theme is $27/year.
DesignOrbital
8 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Anemone
- Antenna
- Arcane
- Axon
- Candela
- Dicot
- Perennial
- Wedding
Pricing: Buy all themes $149.
Single theme $75 – $89.
DevPress
1 WordPress.com premium theme:
- Gather
Pricing: $49 for Gather, all themes $69.
Elegant Themes
2 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Nexus
- TheStyle
Both themes are available to buy but Nexus theme looks quite different on WordPress.com as opposed to WordPress.org.
TheStyle is a little different, but not so much.
Pricing: Yearly access to all their themes $89. Lifetime access $249.
eLightUp (now Greta Themes)
1 WordPress.com premium theme:
- TheFour
Pricing: Free version, premium version $59.
Elmastudio
8 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Cocoa
- Kiore Moana
- Moka
- Nikau
- Onigiri
- Suidobashi
- Ubud
- Zuki
Pricing: €48 for theme bundle or €12 for a single theme.
Foxland
2 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Mina Olen
- Sonsa
Pricing: €75 for Sonsa, €55 for Mina Olen.
Graph Paper Press
4 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Awesome
- Full Frame
- Grid Space
- Qua
Pricing: Varying packages. $99/year to $399 one-off for all themes.
InkThemes
1 WordPress.com premium theme:
- InfoWay
Pricing: $97 for a single theme.
MH Themes
1 WordPress.com premium theme:
- MH Magazine
Pricing: Theme is $49.
Nudge Themes
3 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Atlas
- Melody
- Perle
Pricing: All available to buy for $49 each.
Obox Themes
4 WordPress.com premium themes:
- GigaWatt
- Handmade
- Personal
- The Writer
Pricing: Personal, Gigawatt, The Writer – $79 standard, $139 premium.
Handmade Two is an upgraded version of Handmade, available at the same prices as the others.
Organic Themes
10 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Adventure
- Collective
- Connect
- Luxury
- Natural
- Organization
- Photographer
- Profile
- Purpose
- Restaurant
Pricing: Single theme $69/year or all themes $99/year.
PixelGrade
4 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Gema
- Hive
- Jason
- Patch
Pricing: Themes are $125.
Pixel Union
6 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Alto
- Atrium
- Bindery
- Oslo
- Rainier
- Studio
Pricing: $59 each.
Press Coders
1 WordPress.com premium theme:
Designfolio
Pricing: Free version, pro version $79.
Press75
8 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Album
- Attache
- Blocco
- Clear News
- Demand
- Massive Press
- On Demand
- Wanderer
Pricing: Themes $69 each. All themes pack $99.
Not Demand theme (same as On Demand?)
Pro Theme Design
20 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Beacon
- Bexley
- Broadsheet
- Bromley
- Carmack
- Chronicle
- Exhibit
- Isca
- Kent
- Label
- Lens
- Mimbo Pro
- Mirror
- Monet
- Opti
- Passenger
- Puzzle
- Romero
- Traveler
- Vision
Pricing: £99 each.
Professional Themes
4 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Business Identity
- Corporate
- Creative Portfolio
- Entrepreneur
They don’t sell their themes separately. 🙁
Reaktiv Studios
1 WordPress.com premium theme:
- Mayer
This one is a pity. Mayer was developed by Tom McFarlin and sold to Reaktiv, but they don’t seem to be selling it now.
SiloCreativo
6 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Carmela
- Christopher
- Janice
- Paulie
- Rosalie
- Silvio
Themes are $49 each.
Templatic
1 WordPress.com premium theme:
- Halves
Not available to buy as part of their theme portfolio.
The Theme Foundry
16 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Anthem
- Avid
- Bailey
- Chalk
- Collections
- Duet
- Finder
- Linen
- Oxford
- Photography
- Portfolio
- React
- Shelf
- Snap
- Traction
- Watson
Pricing: All 11 themes they offer are $79 for the bundle.
Themes not included: Avid, Chalk, React, Shelf, Traction.
ThemeFurnace
1 WordPress.com premium theme:
- Blogly
Pricing: $49 – $149 for all their themes.
ThemeGrill
1 WordPress.com premium theme:
- Radiate
Pricing: Free version; Pro version $69.
ThemeTrust
3 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Mellow
- Swell
- Port
Pricing: Available for $49 each.
ThemeZee
3 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Dynamic News
- Maxwell
- Tortuga
Pricing: Free versions and Pro versions €59 – €159.
Themes Harbor
8 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Appetite
- Aquene
- Fortune
- Hermes
- Notebook
- Prosperity
- tdeditor
- Venture
Notebook and tdeditor are not available to buy.
Appetite, Fortune & Prosperity – $150.
Aquene and Venture – $125.
Hermes – $79.
Themes Kingdom
6 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Aperitive
- Eris
- Goodz Magazine
- Huntt
- Ippo
- Solar
Pricing: $89/year or $59 for a single theme.
Themetry
5 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Adaline
- Bari
- Owari
- Spatial
- Vivaro
Pricing: All themes $99/year or $69 for 1 theme/year.
UpThemes
7 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Creative
- DailyMag
- Gallery
- Journalistic
- Photolia
- Worldview
- Yumblog
Pricing: $125 for one theme or $18/month with their hosting.
Viva Themes
2 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Ladder
- Soho
Pricing: $39 each. All themes $99.
WPShower
1 WordPress.com premium theme:
- Outspoken
Pricing: $49 for the theme.
WooThemes (now WooCommerce)
4 WordPress.com premium themes:
- Hustle Express
- Magnate Express
- Scrollider Express
- Standard
Pricing: Hustle and Scrollider are available – price from $79 – $139.
Magnate Express and Standard are not available.
What about retired WordPress.com themes?
Some themes on WordPress.com are “retired” – no longer offered for sale.
This is usually because they don’t meet modern code standards e.g. they’re not mobile friendly.
Here’s a list of WordPress.com retired themes.
If you have a WordPress.com theme you can’t bear to part with, you could Google and see if it’s available for sale anywhere.
Otherwise, I recommend you look for another theme which will be better looking and future proof!
Need more WordPress theme advice?
Further reading:
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Thank you for the in-depth research into WordPress.com themes. One of the reasons I’ve started to look at the premium and free themes on WordPress.com is because I’ve gotten to know the theme authors. When I’ve asked about features or for support, they’ve been quick to respond.
That’s interesting, Deborah. My impression is that only the best theme authors get invited to submit themes to WordPress.com. Though I was surprised to find a few themes that weren’t sold commercially. For those, I don’t know if the author still supports them.
Thank you for this great post. I am running a self-hosted WordPress site and this is very useful.
Thanks, Salim. This question came from someone I know. I couldn’t find a similar post so I’m glad I wrote this one.