A theme sets your website's visual style: colors, typography, spacing, and layout defaults across pages, blogs, and docs. Use the theme library to compare designs, review their effect on your content, and apply the one you want.
Applying a theme changes the live site's appearance. Browsing and previewing do not. Your existing pages and content stay in place; you do not need to republish each page to use the new theme.
Before you change themes
Open the intended site's admin and save any unrelated work in another editor before you begin.
In Settings → Appearance, find the Theme card and note the current theme's name. Advanced theme details shows its ID and version if you need to distinguish custom versions. Take screenshots of important pages so you can compare the result.
Make sure you can manage themes and save site settings. If Appearance is missing or an action is disabled, ask your site's administrator for access. See Why can’t I see or edit a feature?.
If someone built your current theme, keep their original theme file or ask them to preserve the applied version before replacing it. A saved update with the same name may differ from the version visitors currently see.
Browse and choose a theme
- In Settings → Appearance → Theme, select Browse themes.
- On Available themes, search by name or use the available filters. Yours shows themes you uploaded or built. Light and Dark filters appear when those choices are available.
- Read the description and look at the colors and text style. Choose a card to open its review.
- Check the line naming the theme it would replace. If that is not the current theme you expected, return to Appearance and confirm the site before continuing.
The built-in options provide different starting points:
| Theme | Useful starting point |
|---|---|
| Minimalist | Business websites, service pages, landing pages, and docs. |
| Editorial | Blogs, publications, newsletters, and resource libraries. |
| Product | Product websites, launches, and documentation. |
| Commerce | Stores, catalogs, offers, and service sales. |
These are design choices. Applying Commerce, for example, does not create products or configure payments.
A Current badge identifies the applied theme. Yours identifies a saved custom theme. Saved update means a saved change to the current theme has not been applied yet; a familiar name does not necessarily mean you are reviewing the exact live version.
Choose Back to themes to keep browsing without changing the site.
Preview the theme on your content
The review includes previews for Home, Docs, Blog, and a page you have built. It uses available published content; it is not a preview of unsaved page edits or every page on the site.
- Wait for the previews to load and read their labels. A label containing sample means example content is being shown for that preview.
- Under Preview theme, switch between This theme and your current theme. Compare the same heading, image, navigation, and article under both designs.
- Use Preview appearance to inspect Light and Dark. This changes the preview, not your live site's appearance setting.
- Use Expand on a preview to inspect the full layout and scroll through the content.
- Open What changes when you apply and review the page types affected.
The page-type count describes changes to design defaults, not the number of pages you have or a list of content that will be replaced.
Sample content can appear while a preview loads, when there is no suitable published content, or when Cedros cannot load it. It does not mean your pages have been deleted. If an important page is represented only by a sample, resolve any loading error or arrange a review of that real page before relying on the preview.
Look for practical problems, not just a preferred color palette:
- Text: long headings fit, paragraphs are comfortable to read, and links stand out.
- Branding: your logo is visible against the background in each appearance mode you use.
- Navigation: menu labels remain legible and important links are easy to find.
- Images: crops, proportions, and text over images still work.
- Content: lists, tables, downloads, and long articles remain usable.
- Actions: buttons and form fields are clear, with visible labels and states.
Page-specific styling, shared layouts, and separately configured features can affect the final result. A theme preview is a useful comparison, but it does not replace checking the actual public pages.
Apply the selected theme
- Return Preview theme to This theme and confirm the review's theme name. Switching the comparison to your current theme does not change which theme the Apply theme action will apply.
- Select Apply theme.
- Read the Apply [theme name]? confirmation. It explains that colors, typography, and layout defaults will change while your pages and content stay in place.
- Select Apply theme in the dialog to confirm, or Cancel to leave the current theme in place.
- Wait for the result. A successful application returns you to Appearance, where the Theme card reports the selected theme.
This is the live change. There is no separate page-publishing step for the theme selection.
If you see an error, keep the message and check which theme Appearance reports before trying again. A connection interruption can leave the result uncertain; opening the confirmation dialog alone is not proof that the change succeeded.
Check the live site
Open View site from the Theme card, or load your public website in a separate tab. Refresh any public pages that were already open.
Check on both a desktop-sized window and a phone:
- Open your homepage and at least one important page with a long heading or several sections.
- Open the navigation, including its mobile menu, and follow your main customer links.
- Check the footer, contact information, and policy links.
- Open a blog post and a docs article if you publish them. Check the sidebar, page outline, lists, tables, and reading width.
- Review important forms and customer actions. Confirm labels, fields, and buttons remain visible and usable.
- Check light and dark appearance if your site offers both, including the logo, links, buttons, and image captions.
Use a signed-out or private window for a visitor check when the site permits public access. If the site is restricted, test with an account that has the intended visitor access. Signing in as an administrator can show a different experience.
Your page text, addresses, and media should still be present. If a particular section looks different from the rest, inspect its own layout or styling before changing the theme again. See Building a page with the visual editor and Reusing a shared layout across pages.
Switch back to a previous theme
Return to Settings → Appearance → Theme → Browse themes, open the previous theme, review it, and apply it through the same confirmation dialog. Then repeat the live-site checks.
Switching back changes the design again; it does not roll back page edits you made in the meantime.
For a custom theme, check the version and previews before applying it. The saved library entry may have been updated since you last used it. If you need the exact earlier design and it is no longer available, ask the person who maintains the theme for that version. A theme's name alone is not a backup.
Use a theme file someone has supplied
If your designer or developer has provided a Cedros theme file, select Upload theme from Available themes. The uploader accepts .json theme files.
Choose the file or drop it onto the upload area. Selecting or dropping the file starts the import immediately. A successful import opens the theme for review; it does not apply it automatically. Check the compatibility message, previews, and Advanced details before deciding whether to apply it.
Importing a theme with an existing theme ID can replace that library entry. Keep the original file if you may need it again. Follow Import a supplied theme file for preparation, replacement checks, and error recovery.
Use a file from a source you trust. A compatibility message means the file passed Cedros's theme checks; you still need to review readability, branding, and the effect on your pages. If validation fails, send the displayed error to the person who supplied the file and request a corrected version.
Troubleshoot a theme change
I cannot find a theme. Clear the search and filters. Use Yours for a saved custom theme. If an old review link says the theme is no longer in your library, return to Back to themes and choose an available entry.
The online catalog will not load. Read the displayed error and try again later. Built-in themes remain available independently of the online catalog. A catalog failure alone does not require changing your current theme.
Apply theme is disabled. The exact theme may already be applied, Cedros may still be loading, or your account may lack permission to save settings. Check the button's explanation. “Requires data:settings:write” means an administrator needs to grant the appropriate access.
The theme was saved, but the site has not changed. Look for Saved update in the library or a notice that saved changes are not live in Appearance. Use Review changes when offered, compare the saved version, and apply it when ready. Saving a custom theme and applying it are separate actions.
One page or component still looks different. Check whether it has its own layout, colors, or custom styling. Also confirm you are viewing the same site, language, and appearance mode. Do not delete or recreate content to make it match a theme preview.
Only one browser shows the old appearance. Reload the public page and compare it with a fresh window at the same address and appearance mode. If the difference persists, follow Why aren’t my page changes appearing live?.
If you need help, include the site address, previous and selected theme names, custom theme version if available, affected page addresses, screenshots, and the exact error. Note whether the issue appears in the preview, on the live site, or both. See Getting help and reporting a problem.