This tutorial explains all about Bootstrap 4 Templates and Themes. Learn to create Bootstrap starter templates, bootstrap official themes, etc.:
In this tutorial, we have covered templates vs themes, an introduction to templates, starter templates, pros and cons of using templates, an introduction to themes, official themes, reasons to use official themes, pros and cons of using themes. We have also listed frequently asked questions of templates and themes.
Please note that we have used Bootstrap version 4 in all examples.
=> Read Through The Easy Bootstrap Training Series
Let’s begin!
Table of Contents:
Bootstrap Template And Theme
Are a template and a theme the same?
There is confusion between a template and a theme among some beginners. In brief, a theme is a full design (if not mostly completed design) for a website, while a template is a page layout and not a full website design.
The official Bootstrap website, Bootstrap Studio, Start Bootstrap are some websites that provide templates and/or themes for Bootstrap.
Note: Even though templates and themes are different, the terms theme and template are often interchangeably used.
Bootstrap 4 Templates
A template is a great starting point to create a web page or to create a website/application. Most of the Bootstrap templates are created using simple HTML and CSS.
Bootstrap Starter Template
You can use the below template (programming code) as the starter template for your project.
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<!-- Meta Tags -->
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, shrink-to-fit=no">
<!-- Bootstrap CSS -->
<link rel="stylesheet"
href="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/bootstrap@4.5.3/dist/css/bootstrap.min.css">
<!-- Title -->
<title>Hello World!</title>
</head>
<body>
<h1>Welcome!</h1>
<!-- Bootstrap JavaScript -->
<script src="https://code.jquery.com/jquery-3.5.1.slim.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/bootstrap@4.5.3/dist/js/bootstrap.bundle.min.js"></script>
</body>
</html>
Pros and Cons of Using Bootstrap Template
Pros:
There are several advantages of using templates. Some of the advantages are listed below.
- A template is a great starting point to build a website or a software application.
- Even a novice developer can easily get started with developments using templates.
- It is also a great starting point for executing your design ideas since no or fewer design decisions have been made yet.
- It saves time, effort, and cost as well.
Cons:
There are some disadvantages of using templates as well. Some of the disadvantages are listed below.
- Sometimes customization of a template may be difficult if the template has a lot of CSS.
- Without proper customization, all projects look similar.
Bootstrap 4 Themes
The simplest and quickest way to create a Bootstrap website is to use a theme.
Most of the Bootstrap themes are created using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Many free themes and also paid themes are available in the market.
Official Bootstrap Themes
The official Bootstrap website provides a lot of themes for developers under different categories such as,
- Admin & dashboard
- Landing and corporate
- Application
- E-commerce and retail
- Portfolio and blog
- Specialty
The following chart shows some of the popular themes provided by Bootstrap.
| Theme Name | Category | Bootstrap Version | Created By |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keen – Multi Demo Admin Dashboard Theme | Admin & Dashboard | Versio 4.6.0 | KeenThemes |
| Square – Premium Theme | Landing & Corporate | Versio 4.5.2 | Webinning |
| Spaces – Listings Map+ Dashboard Theme | E-Commerce & Retail | Versio 4.5.0 | Themesberg |
| Focus | Portfolio & Blog | Versio 4.5.0 | 11bits |
| Directory – Directory & Listing Theme | E-Commerce & Retail | Versio 4.5.3 | Bootstrapious |
| Touche – Cafe & Restaurant Theme | Specialty | Versio 4.3.1 | Simpleqode |
| Varkala – E-commerce theme | E-Commerce & Retail | Versio 4.4.1 | Bootstrapious |
| Milo – Magazine/Blog Theme | Portfolio & Blog | Versio 4.3.1 | Bootlab |
| Rocket – Startup Front + Dashboard Theme | Admin & Dashboard | Versio 4.5.0 | Themesberg |
| Spyre – Slick contemporary multipurpose theme | Landing & Corporate | Versio 4.5.2 | Webinning |
| Boomerang – Business & Corporate Theme | Landing & Corporate | Versio 4.2.1 | 2theme |
| Wizixo – Multipurpose Corporate Theme | Landing & Corporate | Versio 4.6.0 | Webestica |
=> Click here to find out more about official Bootstrap themes
Reasons to use Official Bootstrap Themes
The following list below shows some of the reasons to use the themes provided by the official website of Bootstrap.
- Have an excellent average user rating of 4.9 out of 5.
- 100% money-back guarantee.
- Receive free updates.
- Free support for six months.
Pros and Cons of Using Bootstrap Theme
Pros:
There are several advantages of using themes. Some of the advantages are listed below.
- The biggest advantage is that a theme helps you to create a beautiful website or a software application with minimum effort and time.
- Since themes are fully designed, you do not need to worry about design decisions.
- Some theme providers offer customizations as an extra service that helps you to add more features to your website.
- It also helps to save money as less time and effort needed for the design and development of the project.
Cons:
There are some disadvantages of using themes as well. Some of the disadvantages are listed below.
- Customizing a theme can be a challenging task, especially with raw CSS since the theme is already (fully) designed.
- Usually, your website or the software application is limited to the features given by the theme provider.
- Without proper customization, all projects look similar.
Frequently Asked Questions
In this section, we are going to look at some of the FAQs of Bootstrap 4 templates and themes.
Q #1) What is a Bootstrap theme?
Answer: In simple words, a Bootstrap theme is a full design (if not mostly completed design) for a website.
Q #2) Are Bootstrap themes free?
Answer: Not all themes are free, but there are several free Bootstrap themes available.
Q #3) What is a Bootstrap template?
Answer: In simple words, a Bootstrap template is a page layout.
Q #4) Why would you use a template?
Answer: A template helps to increase flexibility and complete the website in a shorter time.
Q #5) What are the types of templates?
Answer: There are different types of templates available. Some of them are,
- Bootstrap snippets
- Widgets
- Site templates
- App templates
- Page content templates
- Navigation templates
- Form templates
- Email templates
Q #6) What is the difference between a theme and a template?
Answer: A theme is a full design for a website while a template is a page layout and not a full website design.
Q #7) How can I get Bootstrap free templates?
Answer: You can just Google and find free templates.
Q #8) Are Bootstrap templates available for free?
Answer: There are a lot of free templates available.
Q #9) Can we use free templates for our websites?
Answer: Yes, we can use free templates for our websites.
Q #10) What is the AdminLTE template?
Answer: AdminLTE is a free Bootstrap admin template.
Conclusion
The Bootstrap framework allows you to create websites/applications using templates and themes. It is an efficient way to build a web page and/or an entire website. There are a lot of advantages to using templates and themes.
=> Check ALL Bootstrap Tutorials Here