17 Best Community WordPress Themes In 2023
We’ve compiled a list of the best community WordPress themes to give you an easy start when building your platform.
Whatever the idea behind your community, it needs to welcome and help people in a way we can’t as individuals.
It is not always about the beautiful design.
Often, the best community websites are about emotions. The good news is that these premium WP themes come with many design choices, features and functions that spark emotions and increase user experience.
Instead of building a website from scratch, pick a theme that matches your community idea.
You get ready-made layouts and elements that include everything you need to manage a modern community website like a pro.
From user profiles and news feeds to emoji reactions, groups, events, private messages, etc., you get it all and then some.
Mix and match the available, add your creative twist and launch your community website effortlessly.
Best Community WordPress Themes
1. BuddyBoss
BuddyBoss is our favorite WordPress theme for creating any community or social networking website. Not just that, but it also works great for online learning platforms.
Everything is in the unlimited with BuddyBoss, be it members, groups, events, admins and courses. Plus, UNLIMITED possibilities to create the specific page(s) you want.
You configure online courses to the finest details and set up a community site with activity feeds, notifications, direct messages, mentions, and more.
BuddyBoss is also optimized for the ultimate performance (it’s one of the fastest WP themes), so all your members will enjoy the platform you create to the fullest. And because security matters tremendously, all the users and data are safe and sound.
More info / Download2. Divi
Divi is one of the largest WordPress themes on the planet, with full functionality to build a community website.
What’s unique about this tool is that you can either work with one of their predefined demos or build a completely new one from scratch.
Nope, you won’t need to deal with code to get the job done, making Divi exceptionally beginner-friendly. The workflow is so effortless you’ll create your web platform in little to no time. (But you can also reach out to their friendly support team anytime you want – they’re so helpful.)
Besides the endless elements and layouts, Divi supports heaps of exclusively optimized integrations to expand your community project with the needed features.
More info / Download Demo3. Astra
Astra is a WP theme behemoth, powering millions of websites worldwide. However, regarding online communities, we recommend using Astra for anything eLearning-related, like online courses, learning management systems and membership sites.
Astra has a set of ready-to-use demos for each of the three to speed up the building process. By the way, many templates are entirely free of charge, guaranteeing a pro-level outcome.
Astra gives you complete creative control over the design to customize the pre-built material to your liking (or even create completely new layouts). Of course, you can also translate it and use it as an RTL WordPress theme.
Enjoy.
More info / Download Demo4. Kleo
Kleo is a giant community WordPress theme powered by BuddyPress to ensure endless options and possibilities.
You can start creating your project with many one-click demos and modify and adjust them further however you wish.
Customizing the look through the live customizer is easy and quick – with live results, so you don’t have to save your configurations every time and check them on the front end. On the other hand, you can also activate the drag and drop page builder plugin and completely revamp it.
Besides the full capabilities of building a community, you can also use Kleo to start a blog, showcase your portfolio and even create an online store.
More info / Download Demo5. Woffice
Are you planning to create a community for an organization? Then Woffice is the WordPress theme you should opt for.
Trusted by thousands of businesses worldwide, it features all the tools for project and task managing, CRM, creating a job dashboard, etc.
You can get the ball rolling with the ready-to-use demos that are entirely editable. However, the clean designs easily adapt to various organizations; you may only need to brand them (which takes minutes!).
We also want to mention that Woffice is already translated into more than fifteen languages, saving you extra time when building a community page for a local business.
Take intranet and extranet to the next level with Woffice.
More info / Download Demo6. Aardvark
Get your community project going confidently with the Aardvark theme. You can also use it for membership sites, online courses, intranet/extranet (restrict access), and so on.
You can realize your idea without breaking a drop of sweat with Aardvark’s versatility. While you can work with the demos (that you install with a single click), the built-in WPBakery is ready to create anything you want.
Moreover, Aardvark is also a WP theme optimized for BuddyPress, bbPress, Paid Membership Pro and Sensei plugins, to name a few.
Registrations, logins, profile pages and excellent social sharing capabilities are available for your convenience.
Focus on the finishing touches, not challenging work (when developing a website from scratch) with Aardvark.
More info / Download Demo7. Olympus
Do you need to see more social networking WordPress theme alternatives? That’s great because we found an epic one, Olympus.
After testing it extensively, Olympus never failed us, even when we approached the platform creation process from a complete beginner’s perspective. Everything seems so easy and smooth.
What’s unique about Olympus is the option to choose between WPBakery or Elementor (not the pro version) page builders.
After installing the theme, import the demo you like with a single click and go from there. It really is as simple as it sounds.
From handy navigation and Ajax live search to front end login/registration forms and forum support, Olympus rocks it all and more.
More info / Download Demo8. Socialize
Socialize is an exclusive community WordPress theme with BuddyPress (and bbPress) support for developing a community website like a pro. But there won’t really be any “developing” involved because coding isn’t necessary – you only need clicking skills.
You can manage user groups, private messages, activity streams and member profiles, which all are necessary for a successful community or social networking platform.
Modify headers and footers, translate the theme, create Ajax filtering and activate sticky elements – it’s all possible with the user-friendly Socialize.
The loading speed (Pingdom Tools: 1.2s) is also great and the screen readjustment is smooth to guarantee superb UX.
More info / Download Demo9. Cera
Cera is a more niche-oriented intranet and extranet WordPress theme for BuddyPress.
It has a very professional and sophisticated look that adapts to any industry and organization. Hey, you can improve its default look in a few clicks!
Kick things off with any of the six starter demos, which save you plenty of time. (We like the dark one the most! But Cera also has a dark and light mode switcher.)
What’s really cool about Cera is the Youzify integration, unlocking all these extra possibilities your online community needs.
Furthermore, you can also create a fantastic Wiki or knowledgebase section for your users that’ll contribute to better customer service.
More info / Download Demo10. Beehive
Starting a social networking platform has never been as quick and simple as it is today. And while we already listed a bunch of high-quality themes to make it happen, Beehive is another epic solution with many unique features exclusive to your needs.
It has all the must-haves, like news feeds (photo and video support), likes, PMs, live chats, “become friends,” and more. You can even create a job search section, classifieds and a forum.
Another practical function is blocking, suspending and reporting to help you eliminate spammy users.
What immediately sparked our interest is the mobile-ish design that goes so well with what we’re used to seeing today.
More info / Download Demo11. SocialChef
SocialChef is a niche community WordPress theme to create a recipe-sharing online platform. The tool contains everything you need to start in a snap, thanks to the pre-made front and internal page layouts. And you can also choose from twelve available color schemes if you don’t feel like creating your own.
SocialChef also has front-end recipe uploads, a recipe ratings system, an advanced search and various custom widgets to add new features in a matter of clicks.
You can also localize your community page by translating it into any language you want. (It supports all popular WordPress multilingual plugins.)
Remember, all the available elements are adjustable to your specific needs, so there’s no need to use them as-is.
More info / Download Demo12. Buddy
Buddy can easily become your best companion when creating an online community website. One of the key characteristics that made us instant Buddy fans is simplicity.
It’s best if you use Buddy with BuddyPress or bbPress, but it actually works fantastically well without, too. However, we don’t recommend it in this case because it’s a pretty expensive theme if you only need basic functionalities.
Buddy is lightweight to load fast and is a WP theme optimized for search engine optimization so you can enjoy more Google love. It’s also child-theme-ready if you want to take customizations to the extremes without worrying about messing up the core.
More info / Download Demo13. Besocial
Even though Besocial may not be as popular as some other community WordPress themes on this list, it’s still pretty advanced and ready for all your needs and requirements.
The theme is perfected for BuddyPress and bbPress to benefit from the smooth platform creation, even if you’re not a pro.
From user profiles and friend connections to adding notifications, activity streams and adding likes and dislikes, Besocial thought of it all.
You can also enjoy the infinite possibilities with the accessible drag-n-drop builder, live editor and functional widgets.
Plus, integrate eCommerce functionality and a blog with front-end post submissions. Besocial is worth checking out!
More info / Download Demo14. Lynk
Lynk links people, groups and communities into one giant (or small) platform that’ll grow your project over and beyond.
Whether you’d like to create a website for social networking or a specific online community, it’s all doable with Lynk. You can even use it for an online directory, pushing events and selling stuff.
Build custom forms and listing types, modify email notifications, include dynamic pricing and create listing filters to simplify searching; Lynk is ready to fulfill all your ideas.
And to top it all up, the built-in advertisement management makes web monetization a little breeze (create ads on any page, including user’s!).
More info / Download Demo15. Cirkle
Cirkle gives your community a vibrant atmosphere even if you use it straight out of the box. But we suggest you put in the next gear by tailoring it to your needs because it’s so straightforward to do.
Customizability knows no limits when using Cirkle, especially after working with its child theme and creating your very own version.
Cirkle has plenty of interactive features that’ll keep your users occupied. But there are also many more goodies for assigning users, profile badges, news feeds, Ajax search with live suggestions and a customizable menu, to name a few.
Choose the layouts, elements and features you need and combine them into one solid community platform by adding your creative touch.
More info / Download Demo16. MetaFans
Have you ever wondered how to make a Facebook lookalike? Nope, you don’t need to pay a hefty fee to hire designers and developers to do it.
Instead, pick MetaFans. It has every possible amenity you may need to bring your idea to fruition. But what’s even better, you can do as many or as few edits to it via the newbie-friendly Elementor builder.
MetaFans is equipped with BuddyPress for community functionality and many other custom-made components of a successful networking platform.
But one of our favorite MetaFans features is gamification via GamiPress (badges, credits, quests, you know, the fun stuff).
More info / Download Demo17. Vikinger
Incorporating BuddyPress and GamiPress into a WordPress theme means only one thing: A top-notch foundation for establishing a niche or a general online social community.
That’s Vikinger!
Before we continue, you need to know that Vikinger comes with regular updates, which include many improvements and enhancements to keep up with the latest trends.
Vikinger has bespoke elements and pages for a unique user experience, which you can remake at free will.
But the built-in post reactions are one of our favorites!
Luckily, you can experience Vikinger first-hand by visiting its live demo preview. Be careful; once you go Vikinger, there’s no turning back (which is actually a good thing).
More info / Download Demo
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