2013 was a really good year for WordPress users. To begin with, we witnessed three major releases of WordPress this year. Furthermore, and most importantly, 2013 also marked the tenth birthday for WordPress as a software (launched in 2003, and still going strong).
It goes without saying that a good number of WordPress themes were released during this year—both free and premium. Since Twenty Thirteen had set the trend in favor of blogging-centric themes, many new WP themes from 2013 focused on personal blogs and tumblogs. Of course, other niche such as magazine and portfolio websites were not overlooked either.
In this roundup, I’ll be enumerating some of the best free WordPress themes released during 2013.
Best Free WordPress Themes From 2013
1. Focused
Focused is a clean and responsive WordPress theme best meant for personal blogs or single-author websites. It supports multiple post formats and is localization-ready.
2. SympalPress
Released in March 2013, SympalPress is a responsive theme meant for personal blogs. It also has a Pro version which comes with additional support for typography and social media options as well as a homepage slider (available for $49).
3. Snaps
Snaps is a portfolio WordPress theme best suited for showcasing portrait images or galleries. It sports a grid-based layout and is fully responsive.
4. Icy
Icy is a clean and responsive blogging theme with support for post formats and retina-ready icons. It also has a Pro version which comes with additional color schemes, PSD files, responsive sliders and premium support (available for $24).
5. Art Works
As the name suggests, Art Works is a responsive portfolio WordPress theme ideally meant for creative artists and folks who wish to create an online portfolio.
6. Attitude
Attitude is a responsive WordPress theme meant for websites with a corporate or business layout. There is also a Pro version available for $45.
7. Clippy
Clippy is a Pinterest-style WordPress theme meant for personal blogs. It is fully responsive and localization ready.
8. Clutterless
Clutterless is a minimal content-centric theme for bloggers. It features a single-column layout sans any distractions so that the focus remains on the blog’s content. A responsive Pro version with premium support is available for $9.
9. Empty Spaces
Empty Spaces is a single-column responsive WordPress theme meant for personal blogs and tumblogs.
10. Lefty
Lefty is a left-aligned WordPress theme built with the personal bloggers in mind. It is fully responsive, localization ready and supports Google Fonts integration.
11. Expound Magazine
Expound Magazine is a responsive magazine theme based on Underscores.
12. Satu
Satu is a single-column WordPress theme meant for personal blogs and tumblogs. It is responsive and localization ready.
13. Apollo
Apollo is a multipurpose WordPress theme meant for magazine sites or blogs and portfolio sites that make good use of the Featured Image functionality in WordPress. It is minimal, responsive and localization ready.
14. WP FlatThirteen
WP FlatThirteen is a child theme of Twenty Thirteen. It is powered by Bootstrap, is fully responsive, and as the name suggests, offers a flat and minimal design.
15. Houston
Houston is a child theme for p2. It is translation ready and comes with support for the “p2 likes” plugin.
16. Sueva
Sueva is a minimal and responsive WordPress theme meant for tumblogs. It also comes with a Pro version (available for €35) that features a masonry layout, custom page and portfolio templates, custom shortcodes and premium support.
17. Socially Awkward
Socially Awkward is a responsive theme that integrates with your social networking profiles. It offers custom page templates and is translation ready.
18. Vantage
Vantage is a multipurpose WordPress theme with a responsive layout and homepage slider. It also offers integration with the WooCommerce plugin.
19. Serene
Serene is a WordPress theme ideal for personal blogs and tumblogs. It is clean and minimal and supports multiple post formats.
20. DW Minion
DW Minion is a three-column minimal and responsive WordPress theme with support for multiple post formats.
21. Point
Point is a fluid responsive WordPress theme meant for magazine and news websites. It features custom widgets and is translation ready.
22. Lingonberry
Lingonberry is a clean and simple theme that caters to tumblogs and personal blogs. It is fully responsive and translation ready.
23. Hueman
Hueman is a responsive magazine WordPress theme (inspired by Listverse) that supports multiple post formats as well as basic shortcodes.
24. Writr
Writr is a minimal and content-centric tumblogging WordPress theme. It supports multiple post formats, is responsive and comes with several color schemes.
25. Twenty Fourteen
The new flagship theme for WordPress, Twenty Fourteen sports a sleek magazine layout supplemented by an optional homepage slider. Of course, it is responsive and translation ready.
What do you think of these WordPress themes? Also, out of all the themes released during 2013, which one was your favorite? Share your views with us using the comments below.
Sufyan bin Uzayr is a freelance writer and Linux enthusiast. He writes for several print magazines as well as technology blogs, and has also authored a book named Sufism: A Brief History. His primary areas of interest include open source, mobile development and web CMS. He is also the Editor of an e-journal named Brave New World. You can visit his website, follow him on Twitter or friend him on Facebook and Google+.
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