5 Great BuddyPress WordPress Themes

BuddyPress is a social networking WordPress plugin that was created by Automattic (the developers of WordPress). It supports groups, notifications, activity streams, private messaging, profiles and more. It also offers integration with Automattic’s discussion forum plugin bbPress. This plugin has become so popular that people have developed WordPress Themes for it, which are also known as BuddyPress WordPress Themes.

Your existing website can be customized to work with BuddyPress, however it has become more common for BuddyPress users to use a compatible WordPress theme instead.

Here are my Top 5 BuddyPress WordPress Themes

1. Cinematix

Cinematix is a social networking theme that works with BuddyPress, bbPress, WPMU, and WooCommerce. The theme comes with 10 colorful color schemes and two different front page layouts. I found some of the color schemes, such as red and pink, are bit too much; however the light skins look great.

The theme is responsive and has support for over 40 types of BuddyPress pages and it integrates with Contact Form 7 too. It also comes packaged with the OneByOne Slider. Cinematix also comes with a useful shortcode that allows you to restrict content to registered members. Google fonts can be selected via the admin area too.

2. MesoColumn

There are a number of free BuddyPress compatible themes available on WordPress.org; however MesoColumn is my favorite free option. It is a blogging theme, magazine theme, eCommerce theme, and community theme; all rolled into one.

Designed using HTML5 and CSS3, MesoColumn has great widget support and support for Google web fonts and unlimited color options. It also comes with great Google Adsense and banner support. An online store can be added using the theme by installing WooCommerce or JigoShop and there are additional page templates for a links page and a sitemap page.

3. Buddy

Buddy is a mobile-friendly versatile design that has support for BuddyPress and bbPress. The template is optimized for high pixel density devices such as the iPad and includes a skin manager that lets you change colors and fonts.

The theme settings area allows you to customize common settings for categories, posts, pages, BuddyPress, bbPress, and styling. Buddy also has support for shortcodes and comes packaged with a JW video player worth $80. It is ready for translation too.

4. Engage

Engage is one of the most professional looking BuddyPress designs available online. It has the look and feel of a business design, but is still very colorful.

The theme supports BuddyPress and bbPress and has support for shortcodes. The settings area allows you to customize heading and link colors. Text headings used in the home page and footer can also be changed and the theme also comes with a built in jQuery contact form.

5. OneCommunity

OneCommunity is a great looking design that was created specifically for BuddyPress. It has support for shortcodes, Google fonts, WPMU, WooCommerce, and bbPress. It comes with 9 different color schemes and integrates with the Contact Form 7 WordPress plugin.

The design displays notification messages as pop ups. The theme is also responsive and offers four different front page layouts. Two WordPress plugins are also included in the zip file: OneByOne Slider and Ajax Search Pro.

I hope you enjoyed this list of great BuddyPress designs. Please feel free to share your favorite BuddyPress WordPress Themes in the comment area below.

Thanks,
Kevin