Why You Should Use a Lightweight Theme for Your WordPress Website?

The first time I set up my WordPress website, I had no idea which WordPress theme to use. Plus, I always thought that all WordPress themes are the same, just with different features. 

That was until I found out that WordPress themes can significantly affect my website’s loading time and performance.

I decided to go with a lightweight theme (which is Astra) and found out how fast my site loads! I will explain all the themes that I’ve been using on my WordPress site in another post. 

But for now, I decided to stick with my current theme. 

Plus, did I mention that I have been changing this site’s theme three times now? And because I’m prioritizing the performance over anything else, I have decided to stick with Astra.

In this blog post, I’m going to tell you the reason why you should use a lightweight WordPress theme for your website too.

First,

Your Site Will Load Faster

Using a lightweight theme means the theme won’t contain any code or additional elements that slow down a WordPress site. Themes that are usually lightweight are also simple and easy to use. 

This also translates to shorter loading times on your site. Because really, who doesn’t like waiting for so long for a website to load?

Unless, of course, your Internet has issues. But if your site is the one that loads slowly while other sites load blazing fast, then it’s time to check if your site loads too much due to the theme you are using.

Reduce Strain On Your Web Host

When there are too many elements, content, or widgets being embedded as part of your theme, it can severely affect your site’s performance. Your web host may have to work harder to make the changes you have requested happen, which might cause more strain on your hosting service.

Of course, it depends on what web host you use (which I will explain in another post in another day), but in general, the more lightweight the theme, the lesser resources your web host has to use to make changes on your site.

Better User Experience

By having a lightweight theme, your site will also load faster. This also means that your audience would have a better experience surfing through your website because they don’t have to wait for long for your site to load. This can significantly increase your site’s chances of getting more visitors.

I have experienced a lot of websites that load endlessly and ended up with an error message instead. In the end, I gave up and left that website. It sucks. And I’m sure you don’t want that to happen to your website.

Providing a better user experience through shorter loading times on your site using a lightweight theme means your audience would most likely find your website helpful and would be more likely to revisit your site, which is definitely good for you as a business owner.

Increase Search Engine Friendliness

This means that search engines would take a shorter time to crawl through your website, which means that your website gets indexed faster.

No fancy features whatsoever that will clutter your website.

Plus, faster loading on your website is always good for SEO. People are more likely to get noticed on your website on search engines.

Easier to Maintain and Update

Lightweight themes are usually easy to maintain. You can add and remove elements on the fly without having to touch your theme’s CSS.

If you prefer more user-friendly features within the theme like a drag-and-drop builder and interface, then a lightweight theme might not be your best option.

This is due to the fact the options to add elements or custom built-in widgets and pages may be pretty limited or not available at all.

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There you have it. As you can see, there are several reasons why you may want to choose a lightweight theme over a full-fledged one.

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