WordPress blocks, introduced as part of the Gutenberg release, were created to make it easier for anyone to customize major site elements without coding knowledge. You can build beautiful content by clicking and dragging images, paragraphs, videos, columns, and more.
As more blocks have been developed for everything from collecting payments to social sharing, they’ve become the go-to option for developers and non-developers alike to design WordPress pages and posts.
Now, WordPress has a full site editor in beta, which applies that streamlined building experience to the entire site, including headers, footers, templates, and widget areas. It’s a truly revolutionary way to build a website.
And themes are jumping on board, adding full site editing support for a seamless design process, increased performance, and ultimate flexibility. Let’s look at a few great options that help you make the most of full site editing.
Comparing the best block-based WordPress themes
1. Blockbase
Built by Automattic specifically for full-site editing, Blockbase is a simple theme that allows users to create beautiful designs through global style settings. You can create templates and template parts with blocks, then use them as patterns for any area of your site. Think of it as a blank canvas to create anything that you’d like.
Features:
- Has a simple, minimalistic design
- Integrates with the Mayland child theme to turn your site into a portfolio
- Offers an excellent starting point to experiment with full site editing
2. GeneratePress
GeneratePress is a freemium theme that includes the first block-based theme builder, which harnesses the power of full site editing. You can visually build and customize every single aspect of your site without having to know any code whatsoever. There’s also a massive library of starter sites for nearly every industry — simply customize the content to have a fully-built website faster than ever.
Features:
- Includes dozens of starter site demos
- Built for speed
- Offers features like sticky navigation, infinite scroll, and masonry blog displays
- Integrates seamlessly with WooCommerce
3. Twenty Twenty-Two
Twenty Twenty-Two is the new default WordPress theme, released with WordPress version 5.9. It was designed for full site editing and is infinitely flexible. It comes with a library of page templates, headers, footers, and other patterns that you can take advantage of to quickly build site layouts. The theme also allows for ultimate customization — switch color schemes, fonts, image styles, and more for your entire site at once.
Features:
- Lets you create and edit templates for pages and posts, headers and footers, and more
- Allows you to make design changes that automatically apply across your site
- Includes dozens of ready-to-use block patterns
- Is focused on speed and performance
4. Naledi
The simple design of the Naledi theme speaks to its ease of use. It was inspired by nature and travel, and is ideal for personal websites and blogs that are looking to explore full site editing. It incorporates block styles and patterns to make designing and changing your website easy.
Features:
- Includes sets of block patterns and styles
- Offers templates and designs that can be easily customized using global styles
- Has a light, whimsical personality with fun block styles like framed images
5. Hansen
The Hansen theme is another option with personality, and is more than just a blank slate for full site editing. It includes a variety of styled block patterns for pages, as well as other elements like headers. You can quickly switch them out and customize them to fit your needs and brand.
Features:
- Adds personality and style out of the box
- Offers a wide variety of page templates and block patterns
- Integrates seamlessly with eCommerce tools
A custom site without the heavy lifting
Full site editing is the future of WordPress. It allows absolutely anyone — developers and non-developers alike — to create beautiful websites just by dragging, dropping, and clicking. It also simplifies the design process with reusable templates, block patterns, and global styles.
So if you’re ready to jump on board, give one of these block-based themes a go! Explore and experiment to your heart’s content to create the perfect design for your blog, website, or store.
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