The Gutenberg editor was the hype of early 2019, and endless armies of developers have expressed their opinions about it. Clearly, the new visual editor is the most transformative change in many years.
Willing or not, both theme developers and average users should adapt to the new paradigm. A few months after Gutenberg stole the show, the WordPress community is now calmer. Developers have tweaked themes and plugins to work smoother with the visual editor.
I want to clearly emphasize that you don’t necessarily have to use a Gutenberg-ready theme. The vast majority of WordPress themes released before Gutenberg are compatible with it. However, some themes come with their own blocks, additional block settings, and enhanced visual editing experiences. Check out this list if you want a Gutenberg – optimized theme.
Twenty Nineteen
Twenty Nineteen is the default theme released by WordPress.org to illustrate the enhanced visual editing experience of Gutenberg. Its 1+ million active installs and 3.5-star rating transmit mixed feelings—many people have used it, but they aren’t fully satisfied with it. People probably rated the new editor, not the theme.
Twenty Nineteen works for a large variety of projects. You can use it confidently for business sites, portfolios, and blogs. Give it a try if you are on a tight budget—in fact, Twenty Nineteen is among the first Gutenberg-optimized themes, if not the first one!
Gutenmag
Gutenmag is a highly suggestive name, and the theme’s particularity resides in 12 custom-made Gutenberg blogs. Additionally, all Gutenberg blocks run smoothly with this theme.
Gutenmag is a working solution for blogs, magazine news, and review sites. You can embed videos from YouTube, audio from Spotify, and newsfeeds from social networks. The custom-made blocks allow you to create polls, interviews, tutorials, quizzes, and comparisons.
Overall, this theme offers everything you need to design a modern blog or even a piece of magazine news.
Neve
Are you interested in a free, fast, modern, and Gutenberg-optimized theme? In this case, Neve fully deserves your attention. It’s suitable for a large range of projects, including blogs, portfolios, fashion sites, and business sites.
A huge advantage of Neve is its fast loading speed—the developers did their best to create a lightning-fast theme. Much more, Neve is AMP-compatible and mobile-optimized. Consider this theme if you want to target mobile visitors.
Users who want more customization options should pay for a yearly or lifetime subscription.
GutenTag
GutenTag is one of the newest Gutenberg-optimized themes, and you can use it confidently for any type of blogging project. The particular features of this theme are
· Kadence Blocks: an advanced page-building toolkit streamlining the site creator’s work
· Ghost Kit Addon: a collection of blocks refining the Gutenberg editor.
The theme is GDPR-compliant and SEO-optimized, and it comes with plenty of options to stylize the site’s design. Layer Slider and Revolution Slider are two premium plugins included in the theme that help you feature your best posts.
Bavarian
If you run a restaurant, coffee shop, or a winery, you have to check Bavaria! It’s a modern theme that gives you unlimited power to build a stellar website. The theme has no more than 14 specific Gutenberg blocks, including Fancy Button, Price Line, Divider Plus, Kinetic Wrapper, and Testimonial Carousel, just a few to name. Check out the demos to make a clear idea of the beauty and functionality of the Bavarian theme.
Openlane
Openlane is a theme best suited for business purposes. Its nine types of homepages, two blog versions, and two portfolio designs are enough even for the most demanding users.
In addition to these options, the theme benefits from a series of individual Gutenberg blocks. These blocks help you make a business site more attractive and reliable. For instance, there are blocks for different types of testimonials, call-to-action buttons, price tables, and app downloads.
Divi
If you have never heard about Divi, then you must be living under a rock. It’s one of the most-installed themes, and it’s Gutenberg-optimized. Fortunately, the developers worked hard and made it run smoothly with Gutenberg. Divi doesn’t have any specific Gutenberg blocks, but it comes with 40+ modules that allow you to craft complex sites even if you don’t know how to code.
You can create a layout from scratch, but you’d do better use any of the 800+ layout templates packaged inside Divi.
Aldo
Aldo is one of the coolest Gutenberg-optimized themes on this list. It works best for unconventional projects because you can build a minimalist, good-looking blog for any niche. The futuristic design makes me think that it would be perfect for cybersecurity, cryptocurrency, or sci-fi blogs.
Aldo is fully compatible with Gutenberg; the theme sails with additional options for a few default blocks.
Esperto
Esperto is 100% compatible with not only the new WordPress visual editor but also Elementor and WP Bakery, two heavily used page builders.
Esperto has everything you need for a consulting business—the developers built it for this niche exclusively. It’s WooCommerce compatible, so you can sell digital products directly from the site. And don’t worry about the site design. Countless customization options are packaged inside the theme.
Rife
Rife is an interesting theme that comes in two versions: Free and Pro. In both cases, the theme is fully compatible with the new visual editor.
The theme fits a large variety of projects and users. However, I recommend this theme for less experienced users. The documentation is complete and to the point, and users in trouble can watch video tutorials. Even if you are less experienced, the tutorials and documentation will help you solve any issue.
Wrapping Up
The arrival of WordPress 5 and Gutenberg was shouted from the rooftop, but in just a few months, the WordPress community settled down. Step by step, people have become accustomed to the new block editor. It’s not perfect, but it’s a step forward.
The developers of the above themes enhanced their themes so that they work flawlessly with Gutenberg. Do you have any favourite? Please let us know which theme you like the most. Also, feel free to share with your thoughts about Gutenberg. We are eager to hear your ideas.
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