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Installing Drupal Themes

15/04/2025, by Ivan

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The recommended method for installing themes is via Composer.

Drupal 8 places all core themes in a directory named /core/themes, and all contributed or custom themes in a directory named /themes (in the webroot). Check the detailed contents of the README.txt file in the /themes directory for more information.

1. Download the theme.
You can find themes on Drupal.org as well as from third-party sites. Make sure the theme version matches your Drupal version.
When you first download a theme, it will appear as a compressed file, such as “.tar.gz” or “.zip.” You need to extract the compressed file, which will give you a folder containing the theme’s files.
 
2. Upload the folder.
Use FTP/Copy/SCP to upload the extracted theme folder to the appropriate theme directory in your Drupal installation. Drupal 8 places all core themes in /core/themes, and all contributed or custom themes in /themes (in the webroot). If you use a multisite installation, you can also place themes in sites/all/themes, and versions in sites/all/themes will take precedence. Alternatively, the sites/your_site_name/themes structure can be used to restrict themes to a specific site instance.
 
3. Read the instructions.
If the theme includes installation files (usually INSTALL.txt and/or README.txt), read them for specific setup instructions. Some themes require special steps to function correctly.
 
4. Enable and set as the default theme.
Navigate to the “Appearance” section (/admin/appearance) in your site’s main admin menu. Click “Install” to install the theme, and use “Set as default” to make it the active theme for your site. Alternatively, you can use “Install and set as default” to do both in one step.
 
5. Click the “Save configuration” button at the bottom.

If you encounter issues, check the theme’s issue queue and search the forums. If your problem hasn’t already been solved, post a question and someone will likely assist you.