Paid for or free themes?

scouser1968

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So many themes and providers to choose from :-) For a first time blogger what would you guys recommend. I like the idea of a shiny sleek looking theme and they arnt massivly expensive (well some of them) but before I take the leap, what do you guys use? I dont really like the idea of a free theme, and think the paid for option should be better. but what should I be looking for in a theme? My intention is to do some blogging and look at monetising it so what should I consider here, maybe advert placement and size? ease of use would be good also. I have seen some by a compant called elegant themes, has anyone used these? Im pretty much open to suggestions really so please jump in :-) Thanks
 
You can find many premium themes for free on this forum, just look around :)
 
Thanks Gintoki, as i posted this I found the elegant themes and am downloading... so lesson is 'Search before posting' :-)
 
You can find fantastic free themes, as well as absolutely horrid paid ones - so it's impossible to generalise. One thing I suggest you to bear in mind though is to always check whether the theme you are about to start using links back to any external websites - this is how many free theme providers monetise their themes (they get link juice from every site that uses the theme) but for you it is extremely bad news as even though you may not mind the tiny link in the footer (or elsewhere), your site may take a massive hit in organic rankings should the target site for the link get blacklisted.
 
So many themes and providers to choose from :-) For a first time blogger what would you guys recommend. I like the idea of a shiny sleek looking theme and they arnt massivly expensive (well some of them) but before I take the leap, what do you guys use? I dont really like the idea of a free theme, and think the paid for option should be better. but what should I be looking for in a theme? My intention is to do some blogging and look at monetising it so what should I consider here, maybe advert placement and size? ease of use would be good also. I have seen some by a compant called elegant themes, has anyone used these? Im pretty much open to suggestions really so please jump in :-) Thanks
As a newbie, I'd always go for free ones. You have to have a lot of experience so that you can evaluate, if a paid (premium) theme is good enough for it's price. As a first time blogger, like me, you definitely must avoid throwing money at a random theme that might turn out to be trash at alter stage.
 
Thanks lads, so I will take a look at the free options, any recommendations :-)
 
If you are using Wordpress, I recommend you Socrates Theme or Thesis Framework. Large selection of templates you can find on TemplateMonster.
 
What to look for in a paid (or free theme) is support and updates. Wordpress forums provide free support for free themes but you need to get support for commercial themes from the theme authors. Thesis has many users, has best seo features, has good support and is one of the oldest themes that's regularly updated.
 
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