WordPress designs and the trends to watch in 2025

From block-based layouts to performance-first design, WordPress in 2025 is all about speed, flexibility and cleaner user experiences. Here’s what’s shaping the future of website design.

Why WordPress design matters more than ever

Designing with WordPress in 2025 is no longer just about building pages. It’s about creating digital spaces that work hard for the people using them. Whether you’re designing for a client or working on your own project, the process now includes layout thinking, mobile behaviour, accessibility planning, and clear visual communication. WordPress continues to lead the way as a flexible content platform, and design is right at the heart of what makes a site successful. It’s not only about how things look, but also how fast they load, how easy they are to update, and how well they work on different devices.

You’ll often hear the term WordPress design used in different ways. For some, it refers to choosing themes and colours. But for many designers, it means taking control of every section such as building layouts using blocks and patterns, shaping structure, and refining how people move through the site. With WordPress moving further into block-based editing and full site customisation, design is now part of nearly every decision made in a build. The tools have improved, expectations have shifted, and there’s more space than ever to create thoughtful, flexible designs that adapt to real-world needs.

This is also where MaxiBlocks fits in. It’s a visual design system made to work directly in WordPress, with thousands of blocks, icons, and full-page patterns ready to use. Designers can start with a blank page or build out full sites using the ready-made WordPress template sites, each one designed to offer structure and inspiration without locking you in. With layout control, style cards, and a drag-and-drop interface, MaxiBlocks helps turn ideas into working sites faster, while still giving you room to customise everything. It’s design made easier, without shortcuts on quality.

Ready to switch? Get started with MaxiBlocks now!

How WordPress design influences the appearance of websites

WordPress design plays a central role in how people build and shape websites today. With over 43% of the internet now powered by WordPress, designing websites with it is no longer just about picking colours or fonts, it’s about creating clear, functional spaces that work across devices and meet different needs. From small business sites to portfolios and online stores, WordPress is the go-to platform for people who want flexibility and control over how their site looks and functions.

The term WordPress design is used across many industries, and it means different things depending on the project. For some, it’s about setting up a layout that’s easy to navigate. For others, it’s about creating a branded experience that feels polished and professional. As block-based tools have become more advanced, more designers are moving away from static templates and towards design systems that give them room to customise, edit, and refine as they go.

The future of WordPress design is being shaped by performance, accessibility, and responsiveness. There’s a strong shift towards faster-loading sites, lighter layouts, and features that improve the user experience such as on mobile. New tools are being developed to support these needs, including reusable patterns, full site editing, and responsive design features. And with so much of the WordPress community focused on improvement, designers have more options than ever before to create sites that work well and feel good to use.

MaxiBlocks supports this shift by giving you everything you need to design with purpose. From layout control to interactive elements, it’s built to help you create sites that are both functional and visually appealing. The Pro library includes WordPress patterns, icons, page designs, and template sites that can be customised to fit any project. And with performance-focused output and intuitive tools, it fits naturally into the way modern design work is done.

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Build stunning websites faster with a modern WordPress builder that gives you creative freedom and clean, performance-optimised code. MaxiBlocks is open-source and designed to help designers, developers, and beginners create professional websites without limits.

WordPress Powerful blocks

Powerful blocks

Build anything with an ever-growing library of flexible, customisable blocks. No complexity, no limits.

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Instant designs

Instant designs

Choose from 2,000+ layouts to create beautiful pages in seconds. Just drag, drop and personalise to taste.

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Massive icon library

Massive icon library

Enhance your design with 14,000+ built-in SVG icons and shapes. No extra plugins or licences needed.

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No-code editing

No-code editing

See changes instantly with a visual editor. Experiment freely, design fearlessly and never touch code.

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One-click styles

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Design tools

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MaxiBlocks WordPress website builder

Why MaxiBlocks is built for WordPress designs

When it comes to WordPress designs, MaxiBlocks is most certainly your go-to tool. It works directly with the block editor, meaning you can design visually without needing to learn a separate interface or rely on third-party plugins. Everything from layout and spacing to colour and content is editable in one place, making the whole process more efficient. Whether you’re creating a landing page, a full business site, or something in between, MaxiBlocks gives you the control and flexibility to do it well and quickly.

A big part of what makes MaxiBlocks stand out is the range of design tools that come with it. Style cards let you apply consistent design elements like fonts, spacing, and colours across your whole site. The interaction builder adds motion and hover effects with just a few clicks with no coding needed. Designers also get tools like shape dividers, scroll effects, and typography controls to refine every section. All of this works inside the WordPress editor, making it easier to stay focused without switching between systems or worrying about layout conflicts.

If you’re looking for professionally designed building blocks, MaxiBlocks has a full library ready to go. The Pro version includes over 2,000 patterns, 230+ page layouts, 14,000 icons and shapes, and more than 100 style cards. These are all designed to support clean, responsive, and modern WordPress designs. And with new template sites now available, you can start with a fully built site structure and make it your own. Everything is made to work together, so whether you’re a freelancer or part of a larger team, it’s a reliable way to build designs that perform well and look great.

Testimonials

Ab-so-lu-tely wonderful! And the templates – soooo many of them! I am getting kind of joyous vertigo from browsing through those beautiful, so beautiful templates! Maxiblocks are (is?) unbelievably generous. And still, I am getting lots of email, informing about new features being rolled out. I can’t fathom, how lucky I am, for getting so much quality for so little money…

Business in a plugin!:  I couldn’t believe how wow Maxi blocks is! I wanted a plugin website builder for Gutenberg that was templatized for easy deployment of professional websites. Maxi blocks makes me feel like a professional designer.

It should be WordPress Native: This is a promising great plugin that takes the WordPress Gutenberg a step forward & makes life much easier & site building more fun. Colors cards are great. It can be used combined with other good Gutenberg blocks plugins as Spectra & Kadence (not fully). Since it is based on Gutenberg it is better speed optimized than Elementor.

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How WordPress design has improved over time

WordPress design is often seen as choosing a theme and adding content. ut it’s become much more than that. For those actively building with WordPress, design now means shaping the structure of a site, planning how content flows, and creating layouts that work across devices. Whether you’re designing a single page, a reusable pattern, or a full template site, it’s about making design choices that influence usability, speed, and the overall feel of the site. WordPress has moved beyond fixed layouts, and with tools like full site editing, website design has become part of nearly every decision you make during a build. Every element, from headers and navigation to how buttons behave on mobile, can be shaped as part of the design process. It’s no longer just about how a site looks, but how it functions in the hands of real visitors.

That’s why this page and the 12 articles linked from it, approaches WordPress design as something you create. Each article dives into a different area, whether it’s how to design a landing page, a product page, or a complete template. This way, instead of treating design as a one-time choice, you can approach it as an evolving process where layout, structure, and design tools all work together. It also reflects how WordPress itself has evolved with patterns, blocks, templates, and style settings that all influence the design process. These tools give you the freedom to build with consistency across different sections while still being able to fine-tune the experience page by page. The aim is to help you design confidently, knowing that each decision builds on a system that’s made to grow with your project.

As a web designer, you’re not just working with a theme, you’re building a system that shapes how people interact with a site. That might involve setting up global styles, building headers and footers, or designing reusable components that can be adapted across multiple projects. WordPress now gives you the tools to do all of this inside the editor, and it’s changing the way people think about web design. With more visual control and fewer technical barriers, you can now approach each project with both creativity and structure. It’s a powerful shift, one that puts design back in the hands of the person building the site, and encourages a more thoughtful, customised approach to WordPress as a platform.

In this instance let’s focus on WordPress design as an active, hands-on process. It’s not about picking a theme and calling it done. It’s more about understanding how to shape each part of a site so that it works visually, structurally, and functionally. That includes knowing when to use patterns, how to build custom templates, and how to manage global styles in a way that supports the full site experience. Whether you’re designing a single page or planning a more complex layout, the goal is to make deliberate choices that improve how people interact with the site. WordPress gives you the tools and this page helps make sense of how to use them with purpose.

Success stories

Read genuine feedback from our users about their journey with MaxiBlocks

Just wanted to say this is an awesome product. Yall outdid yourselves. Designs are great and super easy to use.

Roman

This is a promising great plugin that takes the WordPress Gutenberg a step forward & makes life much easier & site building more fun.

Ahrale

I picked this up on it’s first run and it’s proven to be a brilliant purchase. he team have been consistent in rolling out updates and have been helpful when I’ve sent them messages.

MarkJDraper

I bought Maxi after receiving the bill for next year of Elementor… Library of pages, elements or icons is huge. I’m building new pages in Maxi and didn’t need to learn too much. 

marcin945

WordPress design with MaxiBlocks vs Squarespace

When choosing a platform for website design, it’s important to consider how much creative control and flexibility you need. WordPress, especially when paired with tools like MaxiBlocks, offers an open-source environment that allows designers to customize every aspect of their site. In contrast, Squarespace provides a more streamlined experience with predefined templates, which can limit design customization and third-party integrations. This comparison outlines the differences between these two approaches to help you determine which aligns best with your design needs and project goals.

FeatureMaxiBlocks (WordPress design)Squarespace
Design flexibilityFull control over layout, spacing, styling, and structure within the block editorLimited flexibility—custom layouts often restricted by template rules
Ownership and portabilityOpen source with full control over site files, hosting, and contentContent locked into Squarespace’s platform; limited portability
Customisation toolsAdvanced design features including style cards, interaction builder, and 2,000+ editable patternsPreset themes with limited custom tools; deeper edits often require code
Performance and speedLightweight design output optimised for fast loading and mobile useCan be slower depending on the template and added features
Cost and scalabilityFree builder and theme; optional Pro design library at US$49/yearPaid plans start at US$16/month, with increased cost for extra features
Plugin and integration freedomCompatible with thousands of WordPress plugins and servicesClosed ecosystem; limited third-party app support

Choosing between WordPress with MaxiBlocks and Squarespace depends on your specific needs and preferences. WordPress, combined with MaxiBlocks, offers extensive customization and control, making it ideal for those who require a flexible and scalable website solution. On the other hand, Squarespace provides a more streamlined, all-in-one platform that’s user-friendly and requires less technical expertise. By understanding the strengths and limitations of each, you can select the platform that best aligns with your project goals and design requirements.

Should you have any queries about the MaxiBlocks capabilities please climb onto the Chat to us on our website and ask us anything!

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Getting the most out of WordPress design with MaxiBlocks

When you’re designing with WordPress, the tools you choose can make all the difference. MaxiBlocks gives you a full system to support creative work, from layout and styling to interactivity and consistency. To get the most out of the platform, it’s worth examining five  key features a little more closely. These features  can help speed up your workflow, improve your designs, and keep everything running smoothly.

Designer templates that are ready to adapt: MaxiBlocks comes with a huge collection of pre-designed templates, each created to help you build faster while keeping design quality high. You can drop these layouts into a page and customise them however you like. That includes the fonts, colours, spacing, and content.  All can be changed and customised. They give you a professional starting point without feeling rigid or overly styled.

Template sites to jumpstart full projects: for any size of build, the template sites are a very useful tool. These are full website structures you can start with. They come complete with homepage, service pages, about sections, and more. Instead of creating each part manually, you start with something solid and focus on refining it to fit your client or brand. It saves time and keeps the design work focused on improvement, not repetition.

Style cards for fast, consistent styling: one of the most powerful tools in MaxiBlocks is the style card system. These cards let you apply a full set of design rules such as typography, colour, and spacing across your entire site with a single click. It’s a simple way to keep everything consistent, especially when you’re building large sites or working across multiple projects.

Interaction builder for subtle effects: to bring a site to life, you’ll want a few interactive touches. The interaction builder allows you to add smooth scroll effects, hover changes, animations, and more without touching code. It’s a straightforward way to add polish and personality to your designs, helping key elements stand out and improving user experience along the way.

A massive library of icons and shapes: MaxiBlocks also includes over 14,000 icons and shapes, all fully scalable and customisable. Whether you’re creating a services page, a pricing table, or a visual feature list, these icons help tie the design together and make information easier to scan. They’re built to match the rest of the design system, so you can drop them in without worrying about style clashes.

These tools are made to work together, which means the more you use them, the faster your workflow becomes. Whether you’re designing a full site or just refining a few pages, MaxiBlocks gives you everything you need to build with confidence.

WordPress_website_design_render
MaxiBlocks template library

Use case sample: Designing a creative WordPress site for a photography studio

A photography studio sought to create a website that not only showcased their portfolio but also reflected their unique artistic style. They engaged a freelance web designer with a background in painting, aiming to blend visual artistry with functional web design. The goal was to develop a site that served as both a digital portfolio and a booking tool, ensuring that the visuals stood out without compromising performance or user experience.

Background context: A growing photography studio approached a freelance web designer to help create a website that matched the creative energy of their work. The brief was simple but ambitious: the site needed to act as both a digital portfolio and a booking tool, while reflecting the unique style and personality behind the lens. The designer, who also works as a painter in her spare time, saw the project as an opportunity to blend her artistic instincts with a clean, functional web design. The client was particularly focused on presentation. The visuals needed to shine, but the layout couldn’t feel heavy or slow.

User actions: The designer chose WordPress and MaxiBlocks as her foundation. She started by building the site using one of MaxiBlocks’ template sites to give her a structured base. From there, she pulled in sections from the Pro design library, using image-focused patterns for the homepage, portfolio grid, and testimonials. To bring in a more expressive feel, she relied heavily on the interaction builder by adding scroll-triggered effects and subtle fade-ins that helped images emerge without distraction. She also used style cards to apply a palette that matched the studio’s branding, combining muted tones with bold accents to help the photography stand out. The built-in icon library helped her keep everything on-brand, especially on service pages and the contact form.

Observations and results: Once the site went live, both the studio team and their clients responded positively. The homepage was praised for its elegant transitions and intuitive layout, and the portfolio section became a key talking point in early client conversations. From a performance angle, the site loaded quickly despite being visually rich, thanks to the lightweight output of the MaxiBlocks builder. It displayed well across all screen sizes, which was especially important for clients browsing from mobile devices. The contact and enquiry sections also saw more engagement than expected, with several clients commenting that the site “felt like walking into a studio.”

Insights and performance notes: This project confirmed the value of having creative control at the block level, something that was especially important for a visually driven brand. The designer noted that the ability to customise every part of the layout, from image handling to scroll behaviour, gave her the freedom to reflect the personality of the studio without forcing the design into a predefined template. The style cards made colour matching and visual consistency easier, and the interaction builder helped her add life to the design without overdoing it. Importantly, the site didn’t require any custom coding or third-party plugins to hit the performance targets.

Takeaway for other users: For any designer working on a project where visuals are front and centre, MaxiBlocks offers the tools to deliver creative work without complexity. Starting with a solid design library saved time, but having the ability to customise every part of the layout meant the finished site felt original and personal. Whether the project is for a photographer, artist, or design-led brand, this use case shows how WordPress design with MaxiBlocks can support a more artistic approach without sacrificing function or performance.

The collaboration between the photography studio and the designer resulted in a website that effectively balanced aesthetic appeal with functionality. By utilizing WordPress and MaxiBlocks, the designer was able to craft a site that highlighted the studio’s work while providing an intuitive user experience. The project demonstrates how thoughtful design choices and the right tools can create a compelling online presence for creative professionals.

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Future opportunities for WordPress designs

As the tools for building in WordPress continue to evolve, so do the possibilities for design. One clear opportunity lies in expanding the ways designers use patterns and templates, not just for convenience, but for creative exploration. As more layout systems become standardised, there’s potential to build and share pattern libraries that reflect different industries, audiences, and design approaches. This will help streamline the design process while allowing for more consistent branding and quicker turnarounds across client projects. With platforms like MaxiBlocks already offering thousands of editable options, the potential to personalise and scale designs is only growing.

Another exciting development is the integration of artificial intelligence into WordPress design workflows. AI-assisted tools are beginning to help with layout suggestions, copy prompts, and even accessibility checks by giving designers more time to focus on creativity and structure. In the near future, we may see smart blocks that adjust based on content type or user interaction, or AI tools that help streamline the design handoff between different team members. For web designers, this means less time solving technical problems and more time making design decisions that matter.

Lastly, there’s a growing emphasis on mobile-first, lightweight design that performs well even under poor network conditions. As more people access websites through smartphones often in regions where internet speeds vary as WordPress designs must respond with efficiency and speed. This trend will continue to push design tools to produce cleaner code, faster loads, and better responsiveness across devices. It’s also a space where tools like MaxiBlocks can lead the way, offering performance-first features without cutting back on visual quality or creative control.

Final thoughts

WordPress designs continue to shape the way people build and present websites. What used to be a theme selection is now a process of choosing, refining, and combining design elements in a way that reflects the purpose of a site. Whether it’s layout planning, creating reusable templates, or designing for different screens and devices, the design side of WordPress is more hands-on than ever. The tools have become more intuitive, and expectations have risen alongside them, making design a core part of every successful build.

MaxiBlocks fits naturally into this shift. It’s not just a builder or a pattern library. It’s a full system made to support modern WordPress designs. From its massive collection of layout options to responsive editing, style cards, and interaction tools, it brings together everything a designer needs to work efficiently without sacrificing quality. Whether you’re working on one site or managing several projects, MaxiBlocks gives you the flexibility to adapt, experiment, and design with purpose.

FAQ’s on WordPress designs

What are WordPress designs?

WordPress designs refer to the way a website is visually and structurally built within the WordPress platform. This includes layouts, styling, templates, responsive behaviour, and how the user experiences the site across different devices.

Can WordPress designs be customised without coding?

Yes. With the WordPress block editor and design-focused tools like MaxiBlocks, it’s easy to create fully customised designs visually. You can edit colours, spacing, layouts, and interactive elements, all without writing code.

Are WordPress designs suitable for mobile users?

Definitely. Most modern WordPress design tools support responsive design, meaning layouts can be adjusted for tablets, smartphones, and desktops. Performance and accessibility are also major focuses in current design practices.

What is the difference between a theme and a design in WordPress? 

A theme provides a base structure and styling rules, while a design refers to how you build, customise, and style your content. With full site editing, you now have the freedom to design every part of a site, not just choose from theme presets.

How does MaxiBlocks improve WordPress designs?

MaxiBlocks gives you access to thousands of layout patterns, full pages, icons, and responsive tools. Everything is editable inside the block editor, so you can design your site visually without needing extra plugins or complex setups.

Is MaxiBlocks suitable for professional web designers?

Yes. MaxiBlocks is designed with creative flexibility and performance in mind. It supports custom design work, reusable layouts, and consistent styling, making it a great choice for freelancers, studios, and in-house teams.

Resources

Technical and coding

WebTNG
A helpful blog by a developer who shares insights and tutorials based on real-world experience. The goal is to give back after benefiting from others’ generosity online.

SolidWP
A company focused on WordPress security. They develop and sell trusted tools for improving site protection.

TechRadar
A well-known tech website offering buying advice, product reviews, and tutorials. Their mission is to help people understand and enjoy everyday technology.

SEO

Search Engine Journal
A respected source for SEO strategies, industry news, and expert insights into search engine marketing.

WordPress

Why WordPress?
WordPress is an ideal platform for creative freedom. It empowers both beginners and professionals to create sites that showcase their work. Artists and creatives use WordPress to build a strong online presence that goes beyond physical galleries.

This description is shared by Ultahost, a top-rated WordPress hosting provider offering services suited to creatives and businesses alike.

Learning WordPress

WordPress.org tutorials
Explore free lessons for beginners and advanced users at WordPress.org. A great place to start learning how to build your site from scratch.

Darrel Wilson on YouTube
Darrel teaches users how to make WordPress websites without needing coding knowledge. His videos focus on drag-and-drop builders and beginner-friendly design.

Jamie WP YouTube channel
Jamie creates WordPress tutorials and plugin development videos. He also offers premium courses for deeper learning, available through his website.

Inspiring WordPress designs for any type of site

Explore creative WordPress designs that balance style, performance, and usability.

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