How to install a wordpress theme (via Theme Directory, Upload, or FTP)

Quality WordPress themes are designed to make people’s lives easier, but for some, the trickiest part is getting them installed and operational. We need a web host before anything else, and if user are specifically interested in WordPress hosting, then select one from top hosts with WordPress-friendly packages. Use official install documentation to install WordPress manually.

Once set up completed with host and WordPress installation. Go to the official WordPress theme site, or navigate to “Appearance” and then “Themes” in the WordPress backend, and begin search. Filtration gives thousands of designs by popularity, date, layout structure, and commercial or featured.

A once theme selection was done then choose one of three options for installation: the WordPress directory, ZIP file, or FTP.

1: Download & Install from Official Directory

This is, by far, the easiest way to install a WordPress theme. Once we select our design template, note that we can preview the look and layout on site.

To install a theme directly from the Theme Directory in the backend, click the Install button on the theme tile. After a successful installation, activate the theme for site!

2: Manually Upload a Theme .ZIP File

Download manually and install zipped archives that contain all the files needed to implement a theme (.ZIP files). If theme is on a third-party site, this installation option may be required; however, themes on the WordPress site can also be downloaded manually. Before installing make sure the file is truly a .ZIP file once it’s downloaded: You can right-click on the file and unzip first, instead of double-clicking.

Now, to install the theme .ZIP file, go to the Appearance sidebar menu and click “Themes” in the backend. The newly loaded page should feature an Add New button. Click on Next, and then click on Upload Theme button. Click on Choose File button, which allows choose .ZIP file before clicking on Install Now button. Once the installation is complete, “Activate,” them and the theme will be live on site.

3: Install a Theme via FTP

FTP access is an alternative means of manually uploading theme. Whether we need to use plain FTP or, the more secure, SFTP depends on web hosting service. The uploading process itself is the same, though.

Note: The SFTP upload method might be needed if we only have access to our web server via SFTP without direct access to the web server file system itself.

1. Download the theme .ZIP file from a theme site.
2. Extract the .ZIP file locally.
3. Use FTP client to access web server via FTP.

• Select the extracted file directory in the left pane.
• Select the target directory, “wp-content/themes,” on web server in the right pane.
• Upload files to web server by right-clicking them and selecting “Upload” on the left.

Now WordPress installation will pick up this new theme. When we go to the Appearance tab, able to see and activate it.