Before installing the Simple & Elegant theme, you have to install WordPress. To install WordPress, please check this page: How to install WordPress.
There are two ways to install Simple & Elegant. If you get a “stylesheet missing” issue during installation, please see the Common installing issues section below.
Method 1: Install from the WordPress backend
We assume you have already logged into your WordPress backend.
Step 1: Go to Dashboard > Appearance > Themes.
Step 2: Click Add New, then click Upload Theme.
Step 3: Upload the simple-elegant.zip file then click Activate. Note that if your downloaded package was Simple - Elegant v2.1.zip, you need to unzip that package first to get the simple-elegant.zip file — that is the actual theme file.
Step 4: Go to Appearance > Install Plugins to install the necessary plugins. Visual Composer and (Simple & Elegant) Addons are mandatory.
- Install (Simple & Elegant) Portfolio if you want a portfolio on your site.
- Install the WooCommerce plugin if you wish to set up a shop.
Method 2: Install via FTP
We assume you have knowledge of FTP. FileZilla is a free FTP client — you can learn more about it here.
Step 1: Unzip your download package from ThemeForest. If you don’t see a folder named simple-elegant, continue to unzip simple-elegant.zip — you’ll get a folder named simple-elegant.
Step 2: Upload the simple-elegant folder to ROOT_FOLDER/wp-content/themes/ on your server and wait for the upload to complete.
Step 3: Go to Dashboard > Appearance > Themes. You’ll see Simple & Elegant there — click to activate the theme.
Step 4: Go to Appearance > Install Plugins to install the necessary plugins. Visual Composer and (Simple & Elegant) Addons are mandatory. Install (Simple & Elegant) Portfolio for a portfolio, and WooCommerce for a shop.
Common installing issues
Theme is missing the style.css stylesheet. This usually means you uploaded the wrong zip. Make sure you upload simple-elegant.zip (the actual theme file), not the full ThemeForest download package.
Cannot upload… If you install via Method 1 (uploading from the backend), you may hit this because of your server’s upload limit. Check your limit at Dashboard > Media > Add New — you’ll see “Maximum upload file size: xx MB” at the bottom. The simple-elegant.zip file is 16 MB, so if your server’s upload limit is smaller (the default is 8 MB on most hosts), ask your hosting provider to increase it to at least 32 MB, or use Method 2 (FTP) instead.