Should I keep using Twenty Seventeen?

WordPress, the ubiquitous content management system, has a tradition of releasing a new default theme each year named after the year of its release. These themes are designed to showcase the latest features and capabilities of WordPress and hold a special place, often setting the tone for the year’s design trends and functionality.

“Could any of the latest default WordPress themes outshine my beloved Twenty Seventeen?”

As alluded to in my recent post titled Themes Housekeeping, when I delved into my mini-series exploring the latest WordPress default themes, my goal was to assess whether any of the themes introduced since Gutenberg’s arrival outshine the merits of Twenty Seventeen. Unfortunately, I couldn’t thoroughly evaluate each theme (see above), leaving me unable to directly compare them with Twenty Seventeen. As my schedule remains packed, finding time for these overdue evaluations seems unlikely. Given the inexisting side-by-side comparisons, I need a workaround.

“So, what will this post be about?”
“Trying to find a way to answer the above question(s) ³.”

Why does it matter?

There are two main reasons: the carrot and the stick! Not to mention theme hygiene, i.e., the practice of removing unused themes (see Themes Housekeeping).

Gutenberg – 5 years later

In short, with the arrival of the highly anticipated Full Site Editing experience into WordPress 5.9, it would be a shame not to jump into the latest WordPress has to offer. But there is a catch. To use Full Site Editing you need a compatible theme, the so-called Block themes (i.e., Twenty Twenty-Two or any theme released afterward).

For the stick, you might want to consider reading the following post:

A worrying proposal

How would I have chosen my theme (in 2024)?

An old strategy (just for the sake of curiosity)

As mentioned in How did I choose my theme?, I was fortunate enough to arrive after the release of Twenty Seventeen – an outstanding theme that departs from its predecessors with its business focus. Such a noteworthy departure from its blog-centric predecessors had a huge influence on my decision as detailed in my article explaining what is so special about Twenty Seventeen.

Rather than focusing on either making a theme for blogs or making a theme for corporates sites, Twenty Seventeen decided to both – and pulls it off with flair. Good use of settings in the customizer, nicely laid out page templates and fantastic use of the typeface Franklin Gothic makes Twenty Seventeen a theme that puts most premium themes to shame.WP Glossary

Back then, none of the other default themes were registered as “Business” themes in the WordPress.com theme directory. Not surprisingly, most were labeled as “Blog” themes indeed. Of note, this was not true for Twenty Seventeen despite being flexible enough to be used as a blog theme as well. Now, what about applying this same filter again? In doing so (again within the WordPress.com theme directory), only the following default themes show up (at the time of this writing):

• Twenty Seventeen,
• Twenty Nineteen,
• Twenty Twenty,
• Twenty Twenty-One, and
• Twenty Twenty-Four.

In other words, such a strategy would only discard two out of the six latest themes: Twenty Twenty-Two and Twenty Twenty-Three. Not helping much!

What about the demos?

An additional noteworthy aspect of Twenty Seventeen lies in its professional, stylish, and modern appearance compared to its predecessors. I was particularly impressed by its business-centric layout, especially the attractive section-based homepage. The static front page, which exudes a professional look and feel, served as a compelling argument. My awareness of these features came from both the official demo and the one provided by WordPress.com.

“So, what about making a choice based on the demos?”

Twenty Nineteen

At first glance, it may not seem like there’s a lot going on with the 2019 default theme, but looks can be deceptive. Under the simple exterior lies an incredibly versatile theme that is ready for page-builder customization.B.J. Keeton

Looks
can be
    deceptive   

Exactly! While I haven’t yet addressed the preceding question directly, there’s a crucial aspect to consider. Allow me to elaborate. When I dismissed this theme previously, I made an erroneous judgment based on a particular page — I mistakenly believed it represented a demo of how Twenty Nineteen should appear. However, that assumption was incorrect. The page lacked images, icons, and a site header image, unlike its predecessor, Twenty Seventeen. B.J. Keeton clarifies that Twenty Nineteen prioritizes customization, which explains the absence of a primary header or other included images. Unfortunately, I didn’t delve deeper, missing out on discovering the full extent of Twenty Nineteen’s features.

“Would my decision be different if I had seen the proper demo?”
“I don’t think so…”

First, despite being registered as a “Business” theme (see above), I believe that it leans more toward blog-oriented use cases. As a matter of fact, Twenty Nineteen is also labeled as a “Blog” theme in the WordPress.com theme directory; Twenty Seventeen was not!

Twenty Nineteen could work well for personal blogs, and you could think of it more like a white canvas than a fully functional WordPress theme. A so minimal approach could be a bit limiting when it comes to building websites for business and e-commerce.Carlo Daniele

Second, Twenty Nineteen lacks a sidebar for both Posts and Pages. Consequently, the widgets that would typically appear in a sidebar are instead placed in the Footer. Notably, the Footer is the sole widgetized area within this theme. It may be a design choice that emphasizes simplicity and encourages customization. However, this means that my widgets — such as recent posts, categories, and tags — would be in the Footer section; awkward!

Thirdly, I have reservations about the social menu position; I find its placement less preferable than in the Twenty Seventeen theme. Additionally, I’m not fond of:

• the menu being positioned below the site name,
• the site title’s current location (top left), and
• the tagline being adjacent to the title (as opposed to below)

Of course, I would miss my cherished pullquote!

When you include a featured image in a post, the homepage automatically incorporates it. This results in a cleaner and more streamlined appearance, with the featured image prominently displayed. The focus on a single image creates an elegant and visually engaging layout; precisely what Twenty Seventeen should have offered:

Maybe the biggest issue I have with Twenty Seventeen is how it displays the Featured images in single posts and pages, i.e. under the top menu and above the post. Clearly, the result looks unappealing. Since the Featured image is in the header (header.php), it may as well be integrated into the header area – a feature (Featured Image Header) not offered in Twenty Seventeen, though.

Twenty Twenty

Firstly, in line with my previous observation, Twenty Twenty effectively highlights the featured image by incorporating it as the header image within the Cover Template. Secondly, my concerns about menu placement — both the main menu and the social menu — have been resolved. Additionally, I appreciate the search icon positioned in the top right corner and the convenient “To the Top” arrow at the bottom of the page. Lastly, much like Twenty Seventeen, Twenty Twenty serves as an excellent base for creating child themes.

However, I found the homepage design lacking. While the use of full-width blocks to separate sections is functional, it lacks the creative impact of the parallax effect seen in Twenty Seventeen. The latter delivers an eye-catching design, whereas the former feels confusing. Additionally, several details bother me:

• the arrow on the cover template (though it’s also present in the Twenty Seventeen theme),
• the menu being positioned below the content (at the end; in addition to being in the top right),
• the site title placement,
• the tagline being adjacent to the title (still), and
• the absence of a sidebar.

Twenty Twenty-One

Twenty Twenty-One embraced minimalism and was primarily aimed at bloggers and small businesses. Its simplicity was ideal for content-focused websites and a clean, straightforward layout. However, the default subdued color palette wasn’t really suitable for any type of website.Nick Schäferhoff

Although some of my initial dislikes were addressed — for example, the tagline now appears below the site title — new issues have arisen. Specifically, I am displeased with the current display of the logo, even when it replaces the title. And, like its predecessors, Twenty Twenty-One provides only one widget area at the bottom of each page — no sidebar indeed!

Twenty Twenty-Two

This is by far, the most ambitious upgrade of WordPress that I have ever seen and it is not for the feignt [sic] of heart.Glen Lipka

But let’s focus on appearance for now. Just beautiful! And as far as my minor issues were concerned… Twenty Twenty-Two is doing well. Logo position: checked! Menus positions: checked! Sidebar: nope, but with the templates and template parts, you can easily create and show sidebars on a single page or all the pages you require, as explained in this WPXPO article.

“But does it matter?”

As the first-ever default block theme, Twenty Twenty-Two invites you to explore full site editing and create a site that reflects your individual vision.WordPress

Twenty Twenty-Three

Unfortunately, the default preview on wp.org won’t quite cut it. We all know that trying to grasp a design and capabilities without proper demo content is like trying to catch a fish with your bare hands.Alex Cage

Yep, not as beautiful as the previous theme demo indeed, but again, does it matter? Of note, Twenty Twenty-Three is essentially a simplified version of the Twenty Twenty-Two theme. You may know, if you ever read my first post, how I feel about (over)simplification.

Twenty Twenty-Four

Or more specifically, to a theme that caters to a broader range of use cases: from entrepreneurs to bloggers.

Its approach is less about pushing a single overarching design. The focus is more about providing an invisible framework that empowers users to bring their creative visions to life.Nick Schäferhoff

And yet, apart from the stylized ugly Asterix (as a bullet point above the heading), Twenty Twenty-Four has it all! Almost. Logo, menu position, and even the sidebar! However, I still miss the large header image (or video) of Twenty Seventeen. In keeping with this feature, I was not a fan of how the menu was displayed below the latter (in Twenty Seventeen). However, in Twenty Twenty-Four the menu, as well as the site title and logo, is above. Ugh! But again, does it matter?

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“So, what about making a choice based on the demos?”
“Two words: blank canvas & full site editing!”

Maybe some less subjective info/statistics?

Ratings

What about exploring the ratings available on https://wordpress.org/themes/? Although not formal reviews nor direct comparisons, these ratings can provide insights into how the community perceives different themes.

Theme	Rating	Number of votes
Twenty Seventeen	4.5	120
Twenty Nineteen	3.5	63
Twenty Twenty	4.5	66
Twenty Twenty-One	4.0	43
Twenty Twenty-Two	3.0	70
Twenty Twenty-Three	3.5	60
Twenty Twenty-Four	4.0	26

First, it’s crucial to recognize that these reviews often consist of user complaints rather than genuine ratings. For example, you might encounter phrases like ‘This theme is terrible’ or ‘I had a bad experience.’ Secondly, it’s essential to consider the rating in light of the number of votes. What does a 5-star rating with only one vote signify compared to a 4-star rating backed by the opinions of hundreds of users?

Interestingly, if I had based my choice (in 2024) solely on the above ratings (pondered by the number of votes), I would have kept using Twenty Seventeen!

Active installations

Building upon the earlier discussion, relying solely on ratings may not be foolproof for theme evaluation. A potentially more reliable approach is to gauge a theme’s popularity by examining its actual usage. However, it’s essential to note that these usage statistics exclude sites where the default theme serves as the parent theme.

Theme	Active installations	Downloads on 17/07/2024 4
Twenty Seventeen	500,000+	9,327
Twenty Nineteen	100,000+	9,622
Twenty Twenty	300,000+	10,106
Twenty Twenty-One	400,000+	10,747
Twenty Twenty-Two	300,000+	11,323
Twenty Twenty-Three	700,000+	11,645
Twenty Twenty-Four	1+ million	12,542

While it’s expected that the latest theme, Twenty Twenty-Four, holds the top spot as the most actively used default theme, the surprising part is that Twenty Seventeen ranks third. This is remarkable considering its release date would suggest a lower position. Jonathan Desrosiers addresses this anomaly in his proposal to retire the old default themes:

I think that it’s safe to call Twenty Seventeen an outlier.Jonathan Desrosiers

In a recent Dataprovider.com article titled ‘The Top 10 Most-Used WordPress Themes,’ the popularity of WordPress themes underwent examination. Believe it or not, Twenty Seventeen secured the sixth position overall (refer to Fig. 1), outperforming expectations. Notably, despite the dominance of popular page builders like Hello Elementor and Divi, Twenty Seventeen not only made it into the top 10 most-used WordPress themes but also claimed the top spot among default themes—making it the most widely used default theme of all.

Twenty Seventeen’s popularity as a default theme indicates its reliability, aesthetics, and functionality.

What about the most important criteria?

Default themes have evolved alongside WordPress, showcasing new features and mirroring contemporary design trends. However, Twenty Nineteen and Twenty Twenty-Two are significant milestones in WordPress default themes.

Twenty Nineteen marked the integration of the Gutenberg editor, revolutionizing content creation. Its simplicity and focus on customization set a new standard. Previous themes, while functional, did not offer the same level of synergy with the block editor — these include Twenty Seventeen.

Twenty Twenty-Two embraces Full Site Editing and Global Styles, making it the most flexible default theme ever (upon its release). Unlike previous themes, where Gutenberg was primarily a content builder, Twenty Twenty-Two and all the block themes afterward take it a step further. They serve as a site builder, enabling users to design their entire websites using blocks.

Designed to showcase the latest features and capabilities of WordPress

While I have a fondness for Twenty Seventeen, it fails to capture WordPress’ evolution. In essence, continuing to use it would mean missing out on the eagerly anticipated Full Site Editing experience. Considering my recurring question of ‘does it matter?’, I’ve found that each theme, including my beloved Twenty Seventeen, has its drawbacks. However, with the new block themes acting as a ‘blank canvas’ and the capabilities of Full Site Editing, those limitations no longer hold me back — I can now create the exact theme I desire.

As long as it’s getting it’s updateds, that’s perfectly fine but I’d highly suggest installing 2024 on a “playground” site and get used to of it. You can even make it look exactly like 2017.Would_Hit_That

Conclusion

Because Twenty Seventeen undeniably holds a special place as an outlier among themes, the question of whether to continue using it yields a resounding ‘Yes!’ However, when considering whether any of the latest default WordPress themes can surpass my beloved Twenty Seventeen, Twenty Twenty-Four emerges as a strong contender. Aligned with its purpose of showcasing WordPress’ cutting-edge features, Twenty Twenty-Four renders previous themes — especially those predating Twenty Twenty-Two and the era of block themes — irrelevant.

Now, jumping from Twenty Seventeen to Twenty Twenty-four is “not for the faint of heart!” I will have to adapt to the new paradigm of block themes, which involves thinking in terms of blocks rather than traditional templates. I will need to learn how to use block patterns, templates, and global styles effectively. In keeping with this idea, I will have to reimplement all my customizations (i.e., CSS tweaks, child themes, custom functions) in Twenty Twenty-Four. I will have to iterate, refine, and adjust as needed to achieve the desired look and functionality.

While the shift may be challenging initially, it opens up exciting possibilities for customization and creativity. However, moving my existing content (posts, pages, widgets) from Twenty Seventeen to Twenty Twenty-Four will require careful planning; some content may not translate directly. Now, as you may know, if you are following this blog, the struggle to find enough time for CogitActive is a constant battle. As illustrated in my last post, the weekly posting schedule for this blog is still a challenge — despite my best efforts. Given my current insanely busy schedule, time will become even more scarce—before the situation eventually gets better. In other words, the shift is not for now and I may consider the Twenty Twenty-Five theme instead!

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¹ Unfortunately, I could not access the answer (without login). Maybe you will be more successful than me, so here is the question: Why is the WordPress “Twenty Seventeen” theme better than the newest “Twenty Twenty”? ^
² After several attempts — with Copilot not responding at all — I finally get this response Thank you for your patience. I couldn’t find a comprehensive side-by-side comparison of the latest WordPress default themes. ^
³ Either “Could any of the latest default WordPress themes outshine my beloved Twenty Seventeen?” or “Should I keep using Twenty Seventeen?” ^
⁴ The day after the release of WordPress 6.6. ^