BoldWP Documentation

BoldWP is a starter WordPress theme for blogging and news websites. It is responsive/mobile-friendly, easy-to-use, and designed with a clean 2-column layout. BoldWP features 3 post styles, 2 navigation menus, a sticky menu and sticky sidebar, a header banner area, header and footer social buttons, 5 footer columns, full-width templates for posts/pages, a scroll-to-top button, and many customizer options. BoldWP theme also has RTL language support and a translation-ready codebase. The theme is very starter-friendly and easy to set up.

Method 1: Install via WordPress Dashboard (Recommended)

1. Log in to your WordPress Dashboard.
2. Navigate to Appearance → Themes → Add New.
3. Search for BoldWP in the search box.
4. Click Install on the BoldWP theme, then click Activate.

Method 2: Upload via WordPress Dashboard

1. Download the boldwp.zip theme file from WordPress.org.
2. Log in to your WordPress Dashboard.
3. Navigate to Appearance → Themes → Add New → Upload Theme.
4. Click Choose File, select the boldwp.zip file, and click Install Now.
5. After installation, click Activate.

Method 3: Upload via FTP/File Manager

1. Download the boldwp.zip theme file and extract it.
2. Connect to your server via FTP (FileZilla) or use your hosting File Manager.
3. Upload the extracted boldwp folder to /wp-content/themes/.
4. Go to your WordPress Dashboard → Appearance → Themes and activate BoldWP.

You can import the demo content, widgets, and Customizer settings shown in the BoldWP theme demo.

If your website already has existing posts with featured images, it's highly recommended to regenerate thumbnails after activating the BoldWP theme. This ensures that all images match the new theme's layout and display sizes.

Regenerating thumbnails is optional if your site is completely new and doesn't have any uploaded images yet.

However, if you imported the demo content, regenerating thumbnails is essential to display images correctly across the site.

1. Install and activate the Regenerate Thumbnails plugin.
2. Go to Tools → Regenerate Thumbnails.
3. Click the "Regenerate Thumbnails for All x Attachments" button to start the process.
4. Wait until all images are regenerated. This may take a few minutes depending on your media library size.
5. If you want, you can deactivate and delete the plugin once the process is complete.

This step ensures clean image alignment and sharp visuals throughout your website using the BoldWP theme.

Use the WordPress Customizer to add or manage the header image that appears at the top of your site.

How to add a header image

1. Go to Appearance → Customize → Header Image.
2. Click Add new image and choose/upload your image (recommended width: 1150px or larger).
3. Crop if prompted, then click Publish.

Useful options

• Hide Header Image from Everywhere – remove the header image globally.
• Remove Link from Header Image – keep the image but remove the homepage link.
• Hide Title/Description – hide the overlaid title/description text.
• Custom Title/Description – enter your own text for the header image area.
• Header Image Destination URL – set a custom link target when the image is clicked.

This theme includes two Display Locations for menus: Primary Menu, and Secondary Menu.

Right after installing the theme, WordPress may display your existing pages as the default menu items in these locations. You can replace them with your own custom menus containing links, categories, pages, and more by following the steps below:

1. Go to Appearance → Menus and click the create a new menu link.
2. Enter a name for your menu in the Menu Name field.
3. Select a display location for your menu by checking one of the available options under Display location
4. Click the Create Menu button.
   
5. To add items to the menu, use the options in the left-hand column—select the pages, posts, categories, or tags you want, then click Add to Menu.
6. To create dropdown menus, simply drag and nest the submenu items beneath the parent menu item.
7. Once you've added your links, click the Save Menu button.

There are 19 widget areas in the BoldWP theme. The free version does not bundle custom widgets; use WordPress core widgets or plugins of your choice inside these areas.

1. Header Right Widgets

   Located on the right side of the header. Ideal for a 728x90 banner ad using a "Custom HTML" widget.

2. Sidebar Widgets (Everywhere)

   Right-hand sidebar displayed on every page of your website.

3. Sidebar Widgets (Default HomePage)

   Right-hand sidebar displayed only on the default homepage (when showing latest posts).

4. Above Content Widgets (Everywhere)

   Above main content (above posts), shown on every page.

5. Above Content Widgets (Default HomePage)

   Above main content (above posts), shown on the default homepage (latest posts).

6. Below Content Widgets (Everywhere)

   Below main content (below posts), shown on every page.

7. Below Content Widgets (Default HomePage)

   Below main content (below posts), shown on the default homepage (latest posts).

8. Top Full Width Widgets (Everywhere)

   Full-width area after the primary menu, shown on every page.

9. Top Full Width Widgets (Default HomePage)

   Full-width area after the primary menu, shown only on the default homepage (latest posts).

10. Bottom Full Width Widgets (Everywhere)

    Full-width area before the footer, shown on every page.

11. Bottom Full Width Widgets (Default HomePage)

    Full-width area before the footer, shown on the default homepage (latest posts).

12. Single Post Bottom Widgets

    Appears at the bottom of single posts (all post types except pages/attachments).

13. Footer Top Widgets

    Full-width area above the footer columns.

14. Footer 1 Widgets

    Footer column 1.

15. Footer 2 Widgets

    Footer column 2.

16. Footer 3 Widgets

    Footer column 3.

17. Footer 4 Widgets

    Footer column 4.

18. Footer 5 Widgets

    Footer column 5.

19. Footer Bottom Widgets

    Full-width area below the footer columns.

BoldWP includes two custom page templates you can use for full-width layouts without sidebars.

• Full Width, no sidebar (Page) — Template for pages (template-full-width-page.php)
• Full Width, no sidebar (Post) — Template for posts (template-full-width-post.php)

How to apply a template

1. Edit a page or post in the WordPress editor.
2. In the Page Attributes (or Post Attributes) panel, open the Template dropdown.
3. Select Full Width, no sidebar and update/publish.

BoldWP uses the WordPress Customizer for theme options. Navigate to Appearance → Customize to access all options. Changes preview in real time before publishing.

BoldWP is fully translation-ready and supports Right-to-Left (RTL) languages like Arabic, Hebrew, and Persian out of the box.

🌐 Translating the Theme

The theme includes a boldwp.pot file located in the /languages folder inside the theme directory. You can use this file to create translations in your own language using any of the following tools:

• Poedit – Desktop translation editor (view tutorial)
• Loco Translate – Translate the theme directly from your WordPress dashboard (view tutorial)

After translating, save your files as:

• boldwp-[language_code].po
• boldwp-[language_code].mo

Place them inside the /languages folder in the theme.

↔️ RTL Language Support

BoldWP includes built-in RTL support. If your WordPress site language is set to an RTL language, the theme will automatically adjust layout direction, alignment, and spacing accordingly. No extra setup required.

If you're customizing your site with RTL content, make sure your text widgets, menus, and custom styles are also RTL-compatible for best results.

Here are some tips to get the best performance and SEO results with BoldWP:

• Optimize images – Use compressed images in JPEG/WebP format. Install an image optimization plugin like Imagify or EWWW Image Optimizer.
• Use caching – Install a caching plugin such as W3 Total Cache or WP Super Cache.
• Minimize plugins – Only use plugins you actually need. Deactivate and delete unused plugins.
• SEO plugin – Install an SEO plugin like Yoast SEO or All in One SEO to optimize meta titles, descriptions, and sitemaps.
• Use a CDN – Serve your static assets through a Content Delivery Network like Cloudflare for faster loading times worldwide.
• Update regularly – Keep WordPress core, themes, and plugins up to date for security and performance improvements.
• Choose good hosting – Use a reputable hosting provider with SSD storage and PHP 8.0+ support for optimal speed.
• Set featured images – Always set a featured image for each post to ensure consistent layouts and social media sharing.
• Disable unused features – If you do not use embedded videos, disable FitVids.JS via the theme options. If you do not need the loading animation, disable it too.

How do I set up the homepage?

By default, BoldWP displays your latest posts on the homepage. If you want a static page as the homepage, go to Settings → Reading, select "A static page", and choose your homepage and posts page.

How do I change the post style?

Go to Appearance → Customize → Theme Options → Post Summaries Options → Posts Style and select from Style 4, Style 5, or Style 9.

How do I add a banner/ad to the header?

Go to Appearance → Widgets and add a Custom HTML widget to the "Header Right Widgets" area. Paste your ad code (e.g., a 728×90 banner) into the widget.

How do I add social media links?

Go to Appearance → Customize → Theme Options → Header Social Buttons (or Footer Social Buttons) and enter the URLs for your social media profiles.

How do I use a full-width layout for a page?

Edit the page, and in the Page Attributes → Template dropdown, select "Full Width, no sidebar". Publish or update the page.

How do I change the number of posts per page?

Go to Appearance → Customize → Theme Options → Post Summaries Options → Number of Posts per Page and enter your desired number.

How do I add numbered pagination?

Numbered pagination is enabled by default. You can also install the WP-PageNavi plugin for enhanced pagination styling.

How do I change the footer copyright text?

Go to Appearance → Customize → Theme Options → Footer Options → Footer Copyright Notice and enter your desired text.

Images look blurry or cropped incorrectly

Regenerate your thumbnails after activating BoldWP. Install the Regenerate Thumbnails plugin, go to Tools → Regenerate Thumbnails, and run the process.

Menu not showing

Make sure you have created a menu and assigned it to a display location. Go to Appearance → Menus, select a display location (Primary Menu or Secondary Menu), and click Save Menu.

Sidebar not appearing

Ensure you have added widgets to the sidebar widget area via Appearance → Widgets. Also, check that you are not using a full-width page template, which hides the sidebar by design.

Social icons not showing in header/footer

You must enter at least one social URL for the icons to appear. Go to Appearance → Customize → Theme Options → Header Social Buttons (or Footer Social Buttons) and enter your profile URLs. Also ensure the "Hide Social Buttons" option is not checked.

Sticky sidebar not working

The sticky sidebar feature requires widgets in the sidebar and is disabled on full-width templates and 404 pages. It relies on the Theia Sticky Sidebar script which is automatically loaded when applicable.

Theme looks different from the demo

Import the demo content following the steps in the Import Demo Content section, then regenerate thumbnails. Make sure to configure the Customizer settings and menus to match.

Loading animation won't stop

If the loading animation persists, there may be a JavaScript error caused by a plugin conflict. Check your browser console for errors. You can also disable the animation via Theme Options → Other Options → Disable Site Loading Animation.

The BoldWP theme is released under the GNU General Public License v2.0 (GPL v2). You can use the theme on unlimited websites and modify the code.

What's included in free support:

• Help with theme installation and setup
• Bug fixes and troubleshooting related to the theme
• Guidance on using built-in theme features

What's not included in free support (but available as paid tasks):

• Theme customization or resolving third-party plugin conflicts
• Custom coding or feature implementation requests
• Performance tuning, SEO setup, or server configuration assistance

If you need help, please contact us. We typically respond within 24-48 hours on working days.

Contact Support

Upgrade to BoldWP PRO

For more features including color options, font options, news ticker, related posts, and much more, consider upgrading to BoldWP PRO.

You can use the following date format values to control how dates appear in various places such as custom widgets, post metadata, news tickers, and more. These formats follow the standard PHP date formatting rules used by WordPress. Refer to the table below to choose a format that best fits your design and content style.