Astra vs Sydney Themes comparison 💥
Astra Theme (Astra vs Sydney)
Uncover the features that make Astra a leading choice for WordPress enthusiasts...
In this review of Astra, we examine why it has captured the trust of over 2.3 million users. Celebrated for its speed, adaptability, and seamless functionality, Astra simplifies website creation for everyone from hobbyists to professionals. Whether building an online store, blog, or corporate platform, Astra offers all the essential tools for crafting high-quality websites.
Compared to competitors like GeneratePress and Ultra, Astra consistently outshines with its intuitive design and vast feature set. It’s more than just a theme—it’s a comprehensive solution for modern web development.
Advertisement
Speed plays a pivotal role in creating successful websites, and Astra excels in delivering fast loading times. Its lightweight architecture ensures that your site ranks well on search engines and provides a smooth browsing experience for visitors, keeping engagement high and bounce rates low.
Astra 4.0 brings innovative enhancements
The release of Astra 4.0 introduces powerful new features and improvements designed to simplify website creation. With faster loading times, enhanced customization options, and intuitive usability, Astra 4.0 remains a top-tier choice for WordPress users of all experience levels.
Spectra 2.0 elevates design capabilities
The inclusion of Spectra 2.0 transforms Astra into a design powerhouse. Featuring over 50 widgets and a user-friendly interface, this page builder empowers users to create dynamic, visually stunning websites with ease. Seamless integration ensures a smooth experience for designers and developers alike.
Celebrated by WordPress users
As one of the highest-rated WordPress themes, Astra enjoys widespread acclaim for its speed, ease of use, and flexibility. With millions of active users and consistently glowing reviews, it continues to be a favorite choice for web creators.
Optimized for eCommerce
Astra shines in eCommerce, offering seamless integration with WooCommerce. Advanced tools like Infinite Scroll, Quickview, and customizable grid layouts make it easy to create user-friendly and high-performing online stores that drive sales.
Effortless website creation with templates
Astra offers a comprehensive library of over 180 professionally designed starter templates. Tailored to various industries, these templates allow users to create polished websites in no time, without compromising on quality or functionality.
Fast and reliable performance
Astra’s lightweight structure ensures it consistently ranks among the fastest WordPress themes. Its performance-focused design guarantees rapid loading times, making it ideal for users who prioritize speed and reliability.
Works seamlessly with page builders
Astra is fully compatible with popular page builders like Elementor and Beaver Builder. This synergy provides users with limitless design possibilities, enabling them to craft custom, responsive websites effortlessly.
Boost SEO with schema integration
Schema markup is built into Astra, helping search engines better understand your site’s content. This feature enhances your SEO efforts, increasing visibility and driving organic traffic to your website.
Great for educational websites
Astra excels in the education sector, thanks to its compatibility with tools like LearnDash and LifterLMS. These integrations make it simple to create professional and engaging online learning platforms for educators and students alike.
Customizable headers and footers
With Astra Pro, you can design custom headers and footers tailored to your site’s aesthetic. These advanced tools allow for greater creativity and branding, all without requiring coding expertise.
Rich feature set for all needs
Astra’s wide-ranging features include typography controls, layout customization, and more. Whether you’re managing a small blog or a corporate website, Astra provides the resources needed for success.
Pricing options that deliver value
Astra offers exceptional value at $59 per year, with unlimited site usage. For agencies and developers, the lifetime license ensures long-term savings and flexibility.
SYDNEY THEME (Sydney vs Astra)
In this Sydney Theme review, we explore the standout features of this theme launched by aThemes, a company known for its quality WordPress themes. Started in 2013 by Charlie Livingston, aThemes has grown from a one-man operation to a team of six developers.
Sydney Theme Ratings
Checking Sydney's ratings on WordPress.org, we see that almost all users gave it 5 stars, except for a few outliers. The theme is well-regarded among designers and is highly ranked on WordPress.org for popular themes.
Sydney Theme Demos
The Sydney theme offers around 12 modern demos that can be installed with a single click. The selection isn't vast, but since the theme is relatively new, more demos will likely be added soon. Sydney also includes 2 special WooCommerce demos to quickly start webshops.
The great thing about demo websites is that they allow for a fast start. The website is already live but still with placeholder photos and text. Just insert your logo, update the text and images, and you're on your way to having your own website.
Sydney for Online Shops
I count only 2 demos for webshops. While the theme is fully compatible with WooCommerce, if you're building an online store, I recommend using a theme like Astra or another theme from my top 10 WooCommerce themes. You can certainly create a good webshop with Sydney, but there are better options available.
Sydney Theme Speed
The Sydney theme is among the fastest themes for WordPress and should be included in my list of fastest WP themes. With just the theme and a well-configured cache plugin, it achieves the results shown above. Check out a Sydney demo to see its speed in action. You can also optimize your website for loading times with this tutorial.
Sydney's Page Builder Compatibility
The Sydney theme uses its own Building Blocks by default but is compatible with Beaver Builder and Elementor Pro, one of the best page builders available. While you can use Sydney's native tools, I strongly recommend using Elementor for the best experience. Even the free version of Elementor adds significant functionality, but the Pro version takes it to another level.
Google Fonts in Sydney
With Sydney, there's no need for additional plugins to access Google Fonts. The theme includes over 600 fonts right out of the box. You can customize the fonts for different sections of your site with ease, ensuring a cohesive and stylish look.
Sydney's Widget Options
Sydney offers a variety of useful widgets even in its free version, including Contact Info, Video, Call to Action, Clients, Employees, Facts, Latest News, Services Types, Lists, Social Profiles, Testimonials, Skills, Timeline (Pro), and Latest News Carousel (Pro). The theme is compatible with all major page builders, allowing you to choose the one that best fits your needs.
Additional Features of Sydney
Sydney has over 200,000 active installations and has been downloaded many more times. It’s a solid business theme for WordPress. Additional features include Frontpage Blocks, excellent SEO (although it lacks Schema Markup), full responsiveness on all devices, Parallax Backgrounds, Crelly Slider Support (Pro), and stunning Full-Screen Backgrounds. If Sydney has caught your interest, I suggest exploring more on their official website.
Conclusion on Sydney Theme
Sydney is an excellent theme with impressive loading times and beautiful demo layouts. The setup is quick and easy, and while it's suitable for creating online shops, it only offers 2 demos for this purpose. Sydney is ideally suited for business websites and is fully Translation Ready. For more options, you might want to check out my list of the top 10 WordPress themes this year.
Sydney vs Astra Conclusion
Thank you for reading this Sydney vs Astra comparison. It's clear that Sydney is a very good theme, but comparing it to Astra is challenging. I rank Astra highly among the best themes for [2025], while Sydney is not in the top tier. The combination of Astra Pro and Elementor Pro is one of my favorite setups for building impressive websites quickly.
Rating Features with Stars ⭐
| Feature | Astra | Sydney |
|---|---|---|
| Page Builder Compatibility | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Speed | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| SEO | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Design Flexibility | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| WooCommerce Support | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Customizability | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Support | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Starter Templates | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Mobile Optimization | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Pricing | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
FAQs
1. Which theme is better for e-commerce?
Both Astra and Sydney are great for e-commerce, but Astra offers faster loading times and more WooCommerce-specific features.
2. Is Astra really faster than Sydney?
Yes, Astra typically has faster loading times compared to Sydney, especially with its optimized code and performance enhancements.
3. Can I use Elementor with Sydney?
Yes, Sydney is compatible with Elementor, although it uses its own Building Blocks by default. Using Elementor can enhance your design capabilities.
4. Which theme offers better SEO features?
Both themes have strong SEO features, but Astra includes built-in schema markup, which can provide an edge in search engine visibility.
5. What are the pricing options for these themes?
Astra costs $59 per year, while Sydney is free with optional paid upgrades for additional features.
Advertisement
