In this video Jamie Marsland shows one of the reasons why it is easier for new users to get started building their site with a Classic theme than a block theme.

In this video we take a deep dive into the current state of WordPress block themes. We look at the most popular ones, we look under the hood to understand block themes, and we look at the current stats. I have a better understanding of block themes after going through this process.

While this article clarifies the differences between Classic, Hybrid, and Block themes, its real value is in the excellent summary of features available for block themes and how to access them.

Block Theme Development – Here is a good article by Bud Kraus on working with theme.json. It covers the order of the cascade, definition of elements, and includes a reference section.

Working with Block Themes – This article by Frank Klein considers the advantages to using a child theme vs forking the theme. The best route is a bit different with block themes than classic themes.

Here is a great overview of 2025 theme and of a few useful features coming in WordPress 6.7.

The WordPress theme directory reaches a major milestone with 1,000 block themes. It has been a while coming, but the number of submissions seems to have picked up.

Up to now it has been difficult for plugins to register custom block templates. WordPress 6.7 adds a new Template Registration API for plugins.

This article by Jeremy Holcombe provides a very thorough look at using the theme.json file for creating your own block theme and for customizing blocks. It is a good resource for power users and theme authors.