One of the most dynamic WordPress themes. Tbwhs.com puts this WordPress framework to the test! Find out if it’s worth the investment.
There are an absolute ton of WordPress frameworks out there. About 7 years ago I got the opportunity to use Elegant Themes on a clients website that was using the WordPress platform. Of all the themes I have worked with Elegant Themes seems to be one of the most trustworthy themes out there. But, in the recent years, I have really grown to love themes that let you customize everything you could possibly want to customize (like Headway). Since Elegant Themes decided to integrate Divi into their themes I have really become a huge fan of them over the years.
In this full Elegant Themes WordPress review I am going to discuss the different themes, plugins, ePanel options, customer support, and then the price tag. Then, it’s up to you to decide if Elegant Themes will work for you.
About Elegant Themes
Nick Roach is the owner of Elegant Themes. He started his first website when he was in middle school. Elegant Themes was run out of his college apartment, but over the years has gained some traction in the WordPress community. They have established eight years ago, have 30+ team members, 315,000 loyal customers, and have developed six different plugins that work with any WordPress theme (even ones not using Elegant Themes).
Different Themes
Elegant Themes has over 87 different WordPress themes you can choose from. That should be able to work for any project your working on. There are 10 App themes, 32 blog themes, 30 business themes, six eCommerce themes, 23 magazine themes, 15 multimedia themes, 24 personal themes, 14 portfolio themes, 21 responsive themes, and 4 “tumblog” themes.
Prior to purchasing any theme you can see a working demo of it. When viewing the demo you can change out the color schemes, fonts, backgrounds, overlays, etc.
Plugins
For all of their plugins, you don’t need to use any Elegant Themes themes. You can use any framework you want.
Divi Builder. This plugin is a plugin that allows you to customize any page/or post. You don’t need any coding knowledge, and you can drag and drop everything. It comes with 46 content modules there is certainly a lot you can do with Divi Builder.
Bloom (email opt-ins). This plugin allows you to integrate an email opt-in on your website. You can choose from a number of layouts, way to display your opt-ins, and even split A/B test your conversion rates.
Monarch Social Media Sharing. This allows you to add social sharing to your website. You can even integrate your networks, display your following count, integrate it as a widget or a shortcode.
Handheld Mobile Plugin. With this plugin, you can transform any plugin into a responsive mobile site. It has some settings that make it a painless process to make sure your site is responsive.
Maintenance Mode Plugin. If you’re making changes to your website and want to take your site offline you can easily do it with this maintenance mode plugin.
Shortcodes. You can easily add some shortcodes to your site. The following can use as shortcodes:
- Buttons
- Boxes
- Toggled Content
- Tabbed Content
- Slideshow
- Image Slider
- Password Protection
- Columns
- Social Media
- Tooltips
- Author Info
- Custom List
- Pricing Tables
- Testimonials
- Dropcaps
- Quotes
ePanel Options
All Elegant Themes themes are equipped with ePanel. This makes it very easy to make changes to your website. This is a control panel made exclusive for Elegant Themes frameworks. You can change your color schemes, post/pages format and images, categories, archive pages to display, navigation, layout settings, ads management, customize your colors, SEO, etc. There is a lot of documentation to help you with anything you might need too.
Support
One of the huge benefits to paying for a premium theme is the support. Don’t get me wrong free themes are great, but most of the time your pretty much on your own if you need any additional help. All the help is handled via forums. Meaning you just fill out a couple of fields about your website and one of their developers looks into the problem for you.
I have spoken with Elegant Themes sometimes, and it usually takes about 12 hours for them to reply back. For more intricate problems Elegant themes will require that you install a token on your website so they have access to your site and can help troubleshoot the problem.
Prices
The pricing structure is one of the biggest pros to web developers that are working on a tight budget. I know when I started out ten years ago every penny I had to spend was tough to come up with. A lot of WordPress frameworks will charge you a yearly fee. This helps pay the developers, marketing cost, etc. But, with Elegant themes, the price tag is priced fairly. Here is a screenshot which shows their prices:
The “Personal” plan does not come with access to all the Elegant Themes plugins or layered Photoshop files. However, the “Developer” and “Lifetime Access” plans do include all the plugins and Photoshop layered files.
You are not limited to the number of websites you can install Elegant Themes on, like a lot of other WordPress developers. Even if you want to pay the $69/year plan, you can use that on an unlimited amount of websites. You don’t have to pay for updates or support either.
You can try them for a year and then upgrade a “Lifetime Access” plan. It will be prorated so you only pay the difference. I did this years ago and it was a worthwhile investment. Make sure you upgrade on Black Friday sales to take advantage of an extra discount.
Showcase
Here are some of my favorite themes by Elegant Themes:
Don’t just take tbwhs.com’s word for it
Themegrade has rated Elegant themes as their number one WordPress framework. They get 8.1 stars out of 10. Over 220 of their customer have left feedback about Elegant Themes. Overall, people seem to be pretty satisfied with them.
This Elegant Themes review shows you what their ever so popular Divi theme can do.
Also, this article by Joe Fylan over at athemes.com discusses the power of Divi.
Final Thoughts
I do recommend Elegant Themes to any web designer, business owner, or entrepreneur that is looking to use their WordPress framework for developing a website. It’s hands down one of the best premium WordPress themes. They are very popular in the WordPress community, have nearly 90 themes to choose from, six plugins, helpful support, and a “one-time” payment option is great!
I had used Elegant Themes when they first started, and for 7+ years they have been an asset to my online business.
Nice review Garen. I have been using the Divi theme for years now and recommend it to all of my clients as well. Once I demonstrate to them how much easier this theme makes it to customize each page using Page Builder, they usually don’t hesitate to buy it.
Btw, I didn’t even know about the Elegant Themes plugins that are available. Is the Divi Builder plugin pretty much the same as Page Builder in Divi?
Hey Chris,
Yeah, the Divi Builder plugin is pretty much the same as the Divi Page Builder. If you like how a free theme looks but want to be able to customize it like Divi, it’s great to just install this plugin on it. I’ve used it on free WordPress themes in the past, and it makes customizations flawless.
That sounds great Garen. I’m gonna look into this plugin in a little more detail and will probably make it one of my #1 recommendations as well.
I really enjoyed reading this article. I am kind of new to the web designing world, but you explained everything nicely and thoroughly! Just one quick question though. How secure are the themes with Elegant Themes?
Hey Jesse,
The themes at Elegant Themes are very secure. In 7+ years I have only had to deal with site hacks two times. They are very secure. Other premium themes I have used seemed to get hacked more frequently.
Wow….great review! I’m still learning about WordPress & web design. This sounds good. But I wonder if it is a bit much or over my head as a newbie at using WordPress. Is it easy to grasp & use? Or is it best for those that are more experienced & have a knowledge of WordPress?
Hey William,
Elegant themes aren’t really hard to use if you’re familiar with WordPress. But, one of the most important things to take note of with Elegant Themes is it’s a premium theme. You will get support with it, and this is something serious online entrepreneurs need. They do have a lot of helpful how-tos which will really help you.
I did write an article on business WordPress themes which you might find interesting:
https://tbwhs.com/blog/best-wordpress-themes-business/
If Elegant Themes don’t work for you, maybe one of the other ones will.
Hope this helps.
Great review Garen. I have just started using the Divi theme and it so much easier to customize the page with Divi Builder plugin compare to others free themes which are not as responsive as Divi. I’m currently still exploring what Divi can do on my site. Quite happy using Divi theme so far!
Cheers!
Good to hear. Divi is an awesome theme. Also, what I like about Elegant Themes is you can use the Divi Builder plugin on any theme you want. Therefore, you now have full control over any free or paid themes.
I’ve been using Divi from ElegantThemes since their first version that was released and my experience has been, let’s say, more than awesome.
I’ve also made some sites using another themes from ElegantThemes… If anybody out there wants to build a business by doing websites, I guess there is no better option that ElegantThemes.
Nothing to say about their support service which is excelent.
I have a LifeTime membership and it’s been one of my best investments since I’m in this business.
Btw, very nice review, congrats!
thanks for the feedback.
I have been using Divi since it came out and have used it on every project since. One of the benefits of using it so often is that I have learned the back-end of the theme well enough to do just about anything with it. In between projects I will look for a theme that looks nothing like Divi and try to recreate it using Divi.
Last year I started building Premium Divi Child Themes and initiated the launch of the very first Divi Third Party Product Marketplace. And this year I just launched my second marketplace with a number of Awesome Divi Products by many talented designers and developers. You can check it out here at MontereyPremier dot com
Last week I got to meet and hang out with some of the Elegant Themes team including the founder Nick Roach. These are the guys behind the products I built my entire business around. I was refreshed, encouraged and inspired by these very talented, generous and genuine fellas. Thanks Elegant Themes for all you do for the WordPress community and for what you have done to help me have the job of my dreams. And thanks Garen for this great article.
Hey Geno,
Thanks a lot for your feedback on Elegant Themes and your experience with the Divi theme. You really can mimic anything you want to create with Divi as you have stated.
It’s good to see that you have partnered with Elegant Themes for your business. The support is really great, and I have checked out your child themes you created. They look amazing!
Elegant Themes is the best provider of WordPress themes online in my opinion. I have used their themes for 4 years now and I can only say they have met all my expectations. I love their Simple Press theme (worked with it a lot) but the icing on the cake is Divi, which by now is one of the most popular WP themes in online history. The team of ET and Nick Roach is creating beautiful stuff for a great price and their support is legendary. You mention your answers come in 12 hours above in your post, I have had answers within 2 minutes (I kid you not). Lately I also use the FB group for Divi Theme Users a lot, which has over 11.500 members as we speak. If you want to go for reliability, you go Elegant Themes. Period.
Great review Garen! This seems classic, streamlined, practical and visually attractive as well. They sure do have a lot of options to choose from, don’t they? I’ve been looking for a new theme to use and I think I’ve found it, thanks!
Yes, Elegant Themes does have a lot of options. Whenever you sign up with them, you get access to 85+ of their themes. You should highly consider them if you want an awesome WordPress theme.
I was thinking about buying a new theme but first I wanted to know what’s the difference between paid themes and free ones?
When my site grows I will buy a premium theme.
Thank you so much in advance!
Don’t get me wrong free themes are great. There are some really great ones. I actually wrote this article on free WordPress themes:
https://blog.tbwhs.com/top-free-wordpress-themes/
But, to answer your question premium themes come with some pros.
1. Your paying for a theme, therefore the developers are less apt to up and quit making updates on the theme. I have seen developer abandon WordPress plugins and themes over the years.
2. If you’re not experienced with coding support usually handles any HTML, CSS, etc. Pretty much just cut and paste the code. Some premium WordPress theme support teams have done this for me.
But, I did find this information on why would want a premium theme vs. a free one:
https://www.elegantthemes.com/blog/editorial/free-vs-premium-wordpress-themes
(Oddly enough it was written by Elegant Themes)
Hi, Garen!
Thank you very much for this useful and informative post. I have been on the fence with Elegant Themes for quite some time now. However, I did sign up with them on “Black Friday.” Got an awesome deal. Have been playing around with their themes on various sites. It’s like WordPress theme overload because they have so many great themes!
But, the support is amazing with Elegant Themes. I am not all that code savvy. Their team just tells me what to drop in, and I get exactly what I want. Very happy with Elegant Themes so far!
Ali
Yeah, their support is amazing. Elegant Themes has helped me many times, too. Usually reply very quickly. The good thing about them is their one-time payment. For $250 it has paid for its self over and over again! One of my favorite theme developers to work with.
I did sign up for the “Developer” plan. It was $89/year. I have been very happy with the themes provided by Elegant Themes. However, I do want to upgrade to the “Lifetime Access.” Does this mean I will have to pay $249? Is is prorated? How, does this work?
Good question. Yes, it’s prorated. Meaning, your $89 will be deducted from the $249. So if you’re three months in it will be more like $175 for your one-time payment. Do one site for a client for $1,000, and Elegant Themes has paid for its self 4 times already.
Great review Garen!
I have been looking for a good email opt-in plugin that will help me, and that is easy to use. I think what really surprised me about Elegant Theme is the fee. It is relatively cheap compared to others, I will definitely check them out and see if I could utilize their theme and service.
There are a lot of good email marketing services you can use. I do recommend “Bloom” by Elegant Themes. You can split test your email marketing campaigns. It’s a very easy plugin to use.
I just love Elegant Themes and their Divi theme.
I use it on one of my websites, and the result was great.
Their Divi builder is simple and you actually don’t need any technical knowledge to produce really good looking sites.
I have thought several times about going “lifetime” but haven’t done so.
Maybe now would be a good time to do it.
Yes, they have a Christmas deal right now 🙂
Hi Garen,
This is pretty awesome. As someone who has started a business online, I am always interested to hear about development. I recently heard about using Divi for building websites so when I read that Elegant Themes can incorporate this it got me interested.
I like how they offer other features like email opt-in. Although the initial investment may be a bit more than some would like to pay, I think we could save money in the long run, especially since they give access to all the themes and plug-ins with a one-off payment.
Some of these email responders can be expensive and if they’re not integrated it can be a lot of work. I use MailChimp – do you know if I could integrate that with Elegant Themes if I signed up to the lifetime plan?
Yes, Elegant Themes has a plugin called Bloom which fully integrates with MailChimp.
I had heard about Elegant themes but never explored until I read your post. Thanks for a very insightful and informative article. It really helps people like me who can’t afford a web designer but now know some themes can offer much at an affordable price. The premium support is attractive too. I create many websites, and will definitely consider their WordPress theme for my next project. Thanks again! 🙂
Great and informative review! It does seem like a lot of money when first presented. $250 for the whole package?! But, you make really good points as to the worth of the package. All the themes, plugins, and support that is available is worth it. I wouldn’t want to just go into a large purchase like this blind, so thank you for showing all aspects of Elegant Themes.
I started with the cheaper plan for and later upgraded to the one-time payment. Would recommend doing it around Christmas. You can usually get a pretty sweet discount around Christmas.
Great information. I particularly liked the part about how good the support is. I don’t have the years of experience under my belt. I’m kind of new with WordPress and you put a little bit more to it in my mind. I like the Divi theme and want to learn more about it. I think it will help me make my sights eye candy. Thanks.
That and it really easy to use. Support can do anything technical that you don’t know how to do.
Great review Sir! This seems classic, streamlined, practical and visually attractive as well. They sure do have a lot of options to choose from, don’t they? I’ve been looking for a new theme to use and I think I’ve found it, thanks
Yep ton of options with Elegant Themes.