• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Answer Your Tech

Wordpress How-to Guides

  • Writing
  • Settings
  • Jetpack
  • Navigation
  • Hosting
  • Getting Started
  • Themes
You are here: Home / Themes / How to Apply Downloaded Theme in Wordpress

How to Apply Downloaded Theme in WordPress

March 13, 2019 By Matt

How to Apply Downloaded Theme in WordPress

There are a couple of different ways that you can add a new theme to your WordPress site. One is through the Themes tab in the WordPress dashboard, where you can search through a large selection of theme options, and simply click on one to install it. That themes menu also affords you the ability to remove themes. Find out how to delete a theme in WordPress if you have some on that menu that you aren’t using.

Another way to apply a theme in WordPress is to find and/or purchase one from a third party, then download that theme to your computer and upload it to your site. Our guide below is going to focus on this section option and show you how to apply a downloaded theme in WordPress.

How to Install a Downloaded Theme in WordPress

The steps in this article were performed on a self-hosted WordPress site (not one using WordPress.com) in the 5.1 version of WordPress. This guide assumes that you have already downloaded the theme that you want to apply.

Note that this upload process requires you to have the theme in the zip file that it was downloaded in. Additionally, if you are applying the theme to an existing site, then it’s important to note that there are going to be some quirks in this transition.

Different themes have different layouts, use different widgets, have different menu names and locations, etc. You are going to need to do a fair amount of editing after making this theme change, so don’t be shocked when you open your site after installing the new theme and things look very different.

Step 1: Sign into the admin section of your WordPress site. This can be found at (your domain name).com/wp-admin.

Step 2: Hover over the Appearance section in the left column, then choose the Themes option.

open wordpress themes menu

Step 3: Click the Add New button at the top of the window.

click the add new button

Step 4: Click the Upload Theme button.

click the upload theme button

Step 5: Click the Choose File button, browse to the zip file and select it, then click the Open button.

browse to and select the theme zip file

Step 6: Click the Install Now button.

how to apply a downloaded wordpress theme

Step 7: Select the Activate option after the theme has installed, assuming that you are ready to switch to the new theme.

activate the installed theme

If you aren’t ready to make the switch, you can always return to the Themes page when you are ready, then hover over the installed theme and choose the Activate option.

alternate way to activate an installed wordpress theme

Some themes are based on another theme called a framework. If you are using one of these themes, such as Genesis, then you can read this article to see how you can install a child theme.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Related

Primary Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • How to Check the Version of WordPress on Your Site
  • How to Add an Amazon OneTag Script to the Footer in a Genesis Theme
  • How to Add Alt Text to an Image in a WordPress Post
  • How to Customize Your Sidebar with Live Preview in WordPress
  • How to Set a Static Home Page in WordPress

Site Info

  • Domain Name - Hostgator
  • Hosting - Cloudways
  • Theme Framework - Genesis
  • Child Theme - Smart Passive Income Pro

Archives

  • July 2020
  • September 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • July 2018
  • December 2016
  • November 2016

Categories

  • Comments
  • Genesis
  • Getting Started
  • Hosting
  • Jetpack
  • Navigation
  • Plugins
  • Settings
  • Sidebar
  • Themes
  • Writing
  • Affiliate Disclosure
  • Privacy Policy
  • FAQ
  • About
  • Contact
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more about our privacy policy, see here: Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2021 AnswerYourTech.com