Are All WordPress Themes Compatible With Page Builders?

When your WordPress theme isn’t compatible with your page builder, this can cause significant software conflicts that slow down the development process. However, a flexible and well-coded option like Beaver Builder can work well no matter which theme you use.

In this post, we’ll explain some common issues you could face when using incompatible page builders and themes. Then, we’ll show you why Beaver Builder can help prevent these problems. Let’s get started!

Are All WordPress Themes Compatible With Page Builders?

Before we discuss software compatibility, let’s briefly cover the difference between a theme and a page builder. A WordPress theme is a pre-coded design that you can install on your website. In contrast, a page builder is a plugin that enables you to easily customize the content area of individual pages and posts.

Since WordPress is an open-source project, many different developers have created themes and plugins that can be used on any website. These tools and designs must meet the platform’s standards for coding:

However, you might still encounter poor-quality themes and plugins. Some software might not meet the coding standards but still ends up in the WordPress directory. Therefore, certain themes may not be completely compatible with specific page builders.

Before you install a page builder, you can check the developer’s website for known incompatibility issues. For example, Elementor has a long list of plugin and theme conflicts. This includes premium and free block-based themes:

If you’re only using a default WordPress theme and the Block Editor, you’ll likely never experience compatibility issues. However, any third-party plugins or themes could potentially cause conflicts.

Potential Problems Due to Theme Incompatibility

When your page builder and theme are incompatible, it can cause some common WordPress errors on both the front end and back end of your website. Since these conflicts can occur in many ways, they can manifest in different bugs on your site.

If there is a major conflict, this could result in the White Screen of Death (WSOD). This is when your site fully crashes, locking you out of your WordPress admin dashboard. In this case, all you see is a blank, white screen.

In other cases, you may just experience a few annoying glitches while managing your website. If your theme and page builder are incompatible, you may not be able to open the page editing screen. This will prevent you from customizing your website design and functionality.

Other problems that can arise from theme and page builder incompatibility include:

• The editing bar doesn’t appear on the screen
• The module settings boxes refuse to open
• The page freezes while editing or saving the draft

Additionally, you may notice some design errors or inconsistencies on the front end of your site. If the theme and page builder can’t work seamlessly together, your site might not look or function how you want it to. Certain elements like buttons or forms may not work properly, leading to a poor user experience for visitors.

Reasons Why Your Theme and Page Builder May Be Incompatible

As we mentioned earlier, WordPress is open-source, which means that there will be many opportunities for conflicting software. Whenever you install a third-party page builder, it’s possible that it won’t be compatible with the theme that you want to use.

In general, this incompatibility happens when two pieces of third-party software aren’t designed to work together. It’s also important to check whether your chosen theme already comes with a built-in page builder.

For example, Divi has its own builder, so installing another one might cause conflicts on your site:

Also, some theme developers choose not to include the Loop. This WordPress mechanism displays lists of your posts on one page. Since the Loop is an important part of WordPress, omitting it from the theme can lead to incompatibility with page builders that use it.

Lastly, your activated theme could have enqueued or hardcoded its own version of jQuery. After you install a page builder that uses the standard jQuery, you could accidentally load two versions.

However, keep in mind that incompatibilities can result from any conflicting software. Therefore, you’ll want to check other areas of your website to exclude other issues.

Beaver Builder: The Best Choice for Theme Compatibility

Since there are many problems that come from theme incompatibility, it’s important to choose the right tools for your website. Before you install a new theme or page builder, you’ll need to evaluate whether the software will work well together.

As a general rule, the best option is to find a page builder that works with many different themes. Beaver Builder is a flexible, responsive page builder that you can use to customize virtually any theme:

Plus, Beaver Builder was designed with clean code. This means it aligns with the WordPress coding standards.

Unlike other page builders, Beaver Builder is lightweight, cutting down on unnecessary features that may conflict with your theme. Additionally, this makes its interface extremely fast and easy to use.

Regardless of which theme you’re using, you’ll be able to quickly drag and drop content modules onto your pages:

Plus, Beaver Builder’s page templates were built specifically for the WordPress platform. When combined with a great WordPress theme, you can use these pre-designed layouts to create a responsive website:

While other page builders may slow down your website with a sluggish interface, Beaver Builder is built for speed. It can help you create stunning content with less load time, smaller page sizes, and fewer requests.

When you’re trying to achieve compatibility between your theme and page builder, you’ll need to make sure that your builder is flexible, responsive, and fast. Fortunately, Beaver Builder meets all of these requirements. Paired with a minimal WordPress theme, you’ll never have to worry about unexpected software conflicts during the design process.

How to Ensure Page Builder and Theme Compatibility

Even though Beaver Builder is coded to be flexible, there’s no guarantee that it will be optimized for every WordPress theme. For this reason, it’s also important to select a theme that you know will interact well with your page builder.

To choose the right theme, you’ll want to look for a minimal yet flexible design. Although you might be tempted to select a complex layout, it’s best to start simple to avoid potential conflicts with your page builder.

It’s also important to check the theme’s details before installation. The best themes will often have a high number of active installations and five-star reviews. You’ll also want to make sure that it’s been updated recently.

If you’re struggling to find a flexible theme, we recommend installing our Beaver Builder Theme. This has a lightweight, versatile Bootstrap framework that was designed to be extended by page builders like Beaver Builder:

Additionally, Astra and GeneratePress are two popular themes built for maximum compatibility. Both of these options are well-coded and tested with top-rated page builders.

Once you activate a theme, you can go ahead and install Beaver Builder Lite. This way, you can evaluate whether the builder is compatible with your favorite theme before purchasing a premium plan.

Even after you’ve taken these precautions, you may still experience theme conflicts. If this happens, go to Appearance > Themes and activate a default WordPress theme like Twenty Twenty One:

Then, you can check to see whether the problem has been resolved. If so, then the issue may have likely originated from the third-party theme. In this case, you’ll need to find a theme that is more compatible with your page builder.

Conclusion

As a web designer, you’ll likely need to install different third-party software to fulfill all the functional goals you’re aiming for. When you’re trying to find the best theme and page builder, the wrong choice could cause glitches across your site or more severe problems.

Fortunately, Beaver Builder is coded to work seamlessly with virtually any WordPress theme. Our page builder is responsive, intuitive, and fast, so you never have to worry about potential theme conflicts!

Related Questions

What is the difference between a WordPress theme and a page builder?

A WordPress theme determines the general layout of your website, including its header, footer, and sidebar. Meanwhile, a page builder enables you to customize different areas of your site with drag-and-drop editors, templates, and modules. Essentially, themes are the template for your entire site, while page builders are content editors.

Do you need to use a page builder with WordPress?

By default, WordPress comes with the Block Editor which you can use to edit posts and pages. However, page builders can provide more customization options while also being easier to use. For example, Beaver Builder’s drag-and-drop modules, pre-made templates, and fast page speed can help you design beautiful pages more efficiently.

About Will Morris

Will Morris is a staff writer at WordCandy. When he's not writing about WordPress, he likes to gig his stand-up comedy routine on the local circuit.