The Astra theme is a lightweight WordPress theme from Brainstorm Force. It gives you a fast, clean frame for a website, and you shape it with the WordPress Customizer, a library of starter templates, and the block editor or page builder you prefer. The free version is good enough for blogs, portfolios, and simple business sites. Astra Pro is a paid add-on that supplies extras such as sticky headers, mega menus, and deeper WooCommerce controls.
At Divi Hat we build websites with Divi, so we see theme choices from the side of people who earn a living from WordPress. Astra comes up constantly because it is the standard answer people give beginners. Whether that advice fits you depends on what you are building, how much you want to customize, and which builder you plan to use.
This guide covers why so many people choose Astra, how to download and install it, and how to build a first site with it. It then compares the free and Pro versions, shows what Pro costs with a worked example, and lists the real weaknesses. It closes with a fair comparison between Astra and Divi, so you can decide before you commit hours to either.
Why the Astra theme is so widely used
People choose Astra because it stays out of your way. It is small and quick, and it works with almost every builder, so you can start from a template and still change direction later.
A lean theme with a large install base
Astra launched in 2017, and the WordPress.org theme directory now lists more than 1 million active installations. Of its roughly 6,500 reviews, about 96% are five-star, which gives it a 4.9 out of 5 average. Very few free themes with that much usage hold ratings like that.
Speed is the main reason. Brainstorm Force says the theme loads under 50 KB of resources, uses plain JavaScript instead of jQuery, and can load in about 0.5 seconds with default WordPress data. Treat those as best-case vendor numbers. An independent test on shared hosting with no plugins measured about 492 ms on Pingdom and a 33.9 KB page, against 473.5 KB for another popular free theme with identical content. Your hosting and plugins decide real-world speed more than the theme does, but Astra gives you a good start.
Astra is popular because it is small and fast, and it asks you to commit to nothing else.
A theme, not a page builder
Astra controls the frame of your site: header, footer, colors, fonts, widths, and sidebars. It does not build your page content. You do that with the block editor or a builder such as Spectra, Elementor, or Beaver Builder. That is why people recommend it so often, since it works with whichever tool you already know.
The split has a practical benefit. If you switch builders in two years, your header, footer, and global styles stay where they are. You only rebuild the page content.
What you get on day one
Out of the box, Astra includes the following:
- Settings inside the WordPress Customizer, so you do not hunt through separate panels
- A drag-and-drop header and footer builder in the free version
- Built-in schema markup and a mobile-first layout
- A library of starter templates you can import in about a minute
- Compatibility with WooCommerce and other store plugins
Astra advertises more than 145 premium starter templates in its paid toolkit, plus a smaller free set. These templates are why many beginners finish a first draft site in an afternoon.
How to download and install the Astra theme
The easiest way to install the Astra theme is from inside your WordPress dashboard. Go to Appearance, then Themes, then Add New Theme, search for Astra, and click Install and then Activate. The theme costs nothing and needs no separate account.
Install it from your dashboard
Follow these steps on any WordPress site where you have admin access:
- Log in to your WordPress admin area.
- Open Appearance > Themes and click Add New Theme.
- Search for "Astra" and pick the one by Brainstorm Force.
- Click Install, then Activate.
- Open the Astra options page under the Appearance menu to see the setup links and recommended plugins.
There is no separate login for the free theme. You sign in to your own WordPress site as usual.
Download the zip and upload it yourself
Sometimes you need the file, for example on a staging server or a locked-down host. Download the zip from the official theme page on WordPress.org, then go to Appearance > Themes > Add New Theme > Upload Theme, choose the file, and activate it.
Get Astra only from WordPress.org or the Astra website. Astra is not a marketplace product, so a "free Pro" copy from a third-party site is a pirated or tampered file. Those files are a common route for malware, and they never receive legitimate updates.
Download Astra from WordPress.org or the Astra site, and nowhere else.
Add Starter Templates and Astra Pro
Most people end up with up to three pieces of software. Here is what each one is and where it comes from:
| Piece | Cost | Where you get it |
|---|---|---|
| Astra theme | Free | WordPress theme directory |
| Starter Templates plugin | Free (premium templates need a paid plan) | WordPress plugin directory |
| Astra Pro | Paid | Your account on the Astra website |
Astra Pro is a plugin that adds modules to the free theme, so the free theme must stay active. After you buy it, you sign in to your Astra account to download the plugin and copy your license key. Upload the plugin, activate it, and enter the key so updates arrive automatically.
How to use Astra to build a website, step by step
To build a site with Astra, start from a template, set your global styles, assemble the header and footer, and then add content with your editor. Most of this happens in the Customizer.
Start from a template or a blank site
Open the Starter Templates screen, choose your editor (the block editor, Elementor, or Beaver Builder), and browse by niche such as blog, restaurant, or store. You can preview a template before importing, which works as a free demo of how the design will look.
Import a full site if you want a head start, or import a single page if you only need a layout. Pick a template that is close to your finished structure, because deleting a bad demo takes longer than choosing a better one. Some leftover items, such as a logo or a sharing plugin, may need manual removal.
Set global styles and layout first
Before you touch any page, set the rules that apply everywhere. In the Customizer, handle these in order:
- Global colors: choose a primary color, text color, and link color.
- Typography: set one body font and one heading font.
- Container width: decide how wide your content column is.
- Buttons: set radius, padding, and color once.
- Blog layout: choose what shows on each post card, such as author and date.
Each page also has its own layout settings. There you can disable the title, remove the sidebar, or stretch the content full width, which is essential when a page builder controls the design.
Set global colors, fonts, and widths before you build a single page.
Build your header and footer
Astra’s header builder divides the header into three rows: above header, primary header, and below header. The footer works the same way. You drag elements such as a logo, menu, search box, social icons, and a call-to-action button into place.
Use the responsive controls to preview desktop, tablet, and mobile separately. A menu that looks fine on a laptop often needs a different layout on a phone.
Add content and run your final checks
Build pages with the block editor or your builder. Then test the result on a real phone and run the page through Google’s PageSpeed Insights. Fix the largest images first, because they usually cost more speed than any theme setting. Finally, check the page title, headings, and meta descriptions in your SEO plugin, since Astra provides clean markup but cannot write your content.
Is the free Astra theme good enough?
Yes, for most blogs, portfolios, and small business sites the free Astra theme is enough. It covers layout, colors, fonts, the header and footer builder, and starter templates. You need Pro when you want a sticky or transparent header, a mega menu, display rules for custom sections, or advanced store layouts.
What the free version covers
The free theme handles what most simple sites need. You get global colors and typography, flexible blog layouts, breadcrumbs, sidebar control, and full-width pages. The header and footer builder has been free since Astra 3.0 in early 2021, and you can add buttons, search, HTML, and social icons without paying.
It also works with WooCommerce, so you can run a small store without Pro. The catch is control. You get the standard store pages, but fine-tuning product grids and checkout takes Pro. A brochure site or blog rarely needs anything beyond the free tier.
What Pro adds
Astra Pro layers about 15 modules on top. Brainstorm Force moves features between plans from time to time, so confirm the current split on its pricing page. These are the additions that matter most:
| Pro feature | What it does for you |
|---|---|
| Sticky and transparent headers | Keeps the menu visible or overlays it on a hero image |
| Mega menu | Builds multi-column menus for large category lists |
| Custom layouts and hooks | Adds custom headers, footers, 404 pages, and code in about 50 locations, with display rules |
| Advanced blog options | Adds infinite scroll, multi-column posts, and author boxes |
| Spacing and typography controls | Gives finer control over margins, padding, and fonts |
| WooCommerce module | Adds product grids, galleries, and a distraction-free checkout |
| White label | Rebrands the theme for client work |
| Integrations | Extends styling for LearnDash, LifterLMS, and Easy Digital Downloads |
How to decide
Use this short checklist. Stay on the free theme if you are building a blog, portfolio, or five-page business site and you are happy to use simple menus. Buy Pro if any of these is true:
- You need a header that stays fixed while visitors scroll
- You run a store with many categories and want a mega menu
- You build sites for clients and want your own branding in the admin
- You want to show a custom section only on certain pages or dates
Start free, and pay only when a specific missing feature costs you more time than the license.
How much Astra Pro costs
Astra Pro is sold as a yearly license, with a lifetime option, and one license covers unlimited sites. Brainstorm Force changes its plans and runs sales, so check the live pricing page before you budget. The figures below are the last published breakdown from an independent review, a reasonable ballpark.
Plans and prices
| Plan | Per year | Lifetime |
|---|---|---|
| Astra Pro | $69 | $319 |
| Essential Toolkit | $119 | $599 |
| Business Toolkit | $159 | $699 |
Astra Pro gives you the theme upgrades. The toolkits bundle Astra Pro with premium starter templates and other Brainstorm Force plugins, such as add-ons for Elementor and Beaver Builder. Each plan covers unlimited websites and includes a year of support. If you do not need the extra templates or add-ons, the entry plan is the sensible choice.
A worked example
Say you are a freelancer who builds six client sites in a year. One Astra Pro license at $69 per year covers all six, so the theme costs $11.50 per site. Compare that with a theme sold per site, where six sites means six licenses.
Now look at the lifetime option. Paying $69 every year for five years totals $345, while the lifetime Astra Pro license at $319 costs $26 less over the same period, assuming renewals stay at full price. The lifetime plan pays off only if you keep using Astra for at least five years. If you are unsure, pay yearly.
A small business owner with a single site pays nothing for the free theme, and that is usually the best answer.
One Pro license covers unlimited sites, so Astra’s cost per site falls fast as you build more.
What to check before you pay
Confirm three things on the pricing page. First, check whether the plan you want still includes the modules you need, since features move between tiers. Second, read the renewal terms, because yearly plans renew automatically. Third, check the refund policy. Astra advertises a money-back guarantee, and you should know the window before you buy so you can test Pro on a real site and ask for your money back if it does not fit.
Where the Astra theme falls short
Astra is a strong default, but it has real weaknesses. The free version leaves you short for more advanced designs, setup can feel cluttered at first, and stacking extra plugins can erase its speed advantage.
Limits you hit quickly
Some people call the free theme limited, and in one sense they are right. Many of the controls that make Astra feel flexible sit behind the paid plan. You can build a good-looking site without Pro, but sticky headers, mega menus, and display rules all need the paid add-on, and the upgrade can arrive at an awkward moment, such as halfway through a client build.
Plan for that. If your project already needs two or three Pro features, price Pro into the quote from day one.
Setup friction
New users often get lost at first. Astra recommends several free companion plugins from Brainstorm Force, and its options page mixes plugin suggestions with modules, so it is not obvious what you should activate. Starter templates also depend on your editor. Check that your preferred builder is supported before you pick a demo, and expect some manual cleanup when you remove a demo you do not want.
Plugin stacking
Astra itself is light, but a site is only as light as its heaviest plugin. One reviewer reported duplicate structured data when running Astra Pro alongside Brainstorm Force’s Schema Pro plugin. If you see odd search-result markup, check for two plugins outputting the same schema. Keep the plugin list short, and test speed after each addition.
Astra stays fast only if you keep the plugins around it under control.
Astra theme vs Divi: which should you build with?
Choose Astra if you want a light theme and the freedom to pick your own editor. Choose Divi if you want one tool that handles the theme and the visual builder together. The two solve slightly different problems.
The core difference
| Astra | Divi | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A lightweight theme | A theme with a built-in visual builder |
| Page building | Block editor or a third-party builder | Divi’s own builder |
| Cost | Free version plus paid Pro | A paid product |
| Strength | Speed and flexibility | One complete design system |
| Trade-off | You assemble the stack | Content depends on the Divi builder |
You can run Astra under Divi’s builder, but you would be paying for two layers when one tool already handles both. If your plan is to design with Divi, use the Divi theme.
When each one wins
Pick Astra when speed is your top priority, you write mostly in the block editor, or you prefer Elementor or Beaver Builder. Pick Divi when you want to design visually, reuse layouts across projects, and keep a consistent workflow on client sites. Divi content is tied to its builder, so leaving it later means rebuilding pages. We are biased toward Divi, but Astra is the better call for a fast blog or a store built around another builder.
If you choose Divi, save the design time
The slow part of any Divi project is the blank canvas. Our team has about 10 years of experience building sites with Divi, and that is why Divi Hat offers ready-made Divi layouts, hero sections, wireframes, and child themes. You customize them in the visual builder. Our products can be used on as many websites as you like, including client sites, and they come with royalty-free images and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Astra wins on lean speed and builder choice, and Divi wins when you want one visual tool for everything.
Should you choose the Astra theme?
Choose Astra if you want a fast, flexible foundation and you are comfortable pairing it with the block editor or a builder. Start with the free version, import a starter template, set your global styles, and add Pro only when a specific feature is missing. For one site that is usually $0, and for many client sites a single Pro license stays inexpensive.
If you would rather design in one visual tool, Divi is the stronger fit, and the slow part is the starting layout. The Divi Hat membership with unlimited website use and priority support gives you Divi 5 layouts, hero sections, wireframes, and child themes, so you can ship a polished site faster.