Where to Launch a Website Template: Webflow, Framer, WordPress, Shopify and Other Marketplaces
A website template launches inside the builder it runs on, and each builder admits creators differently. Framer publishes a template immediately with no review. Webflow requires you to apply and be vetted as a template designer. The WordPress.org Theme Directory reviews every theme, and the Shopify Theme Store rejects anything that is not exclusive to it. Choose the builder first, because the same design cannot simply be copied across all four.
How strict is each builder about who can sell a template?
Template marketplaces sit on a spectrum from open to gated, and where a marketplace sits tells you how to spend your time. On the open end you publish today and find out about quality from buyers. On the gated end you spend weeks on a portfolio or on meeting a requirement list before a single sale. Facts below were read on each builder’s own pages on 13 November 2026.
| Marketplace | Gate | Money side, as its pages state |
|---|---|---|
| Framer Community | None: published immediately, no review or waiting period | You keep 100% of paid template revenue; free templates can earn affiliate income |
| Webflow Marketplace | Application and vetting as a template designer | 95% commission to the designer; Webflow keeps 5% for payment processing |
| WordPress.org Theme Directory | Submitted for review against its Theme Review Guidelines | Not read; check the guidelines before you plan to charge |
| Shopify Theme Store | Rejected if any requirement is missed; must be exclusive to the store | Not read; see Shopify’s theme pages |
Where a cell says not read, we found no statement on the pages we could load. Check the marketplace itself before you plan around a revenue figure.
Which marketplaces should you consider, and in what order?
Order them by how fast you learn. The open marketplaces teach you what buyers want, and the gated ones reward you once you know.
01 Framer Community
Framer’s community gallery, where a finished template is published straight from the editor.
- Review
- None: its help page says templates are published immediately, with no review process or waiting period
- Revenue
- You keep 100% of paid sales; free templates can earn affiliate income when someone signs up through them
- Needs
- A preview URL and a remix URL, plus a name, byline, description, categories and pricing
Because nothing stops a bad template going live, the page tells you to review everything carefully first. Open the preview on a phone and check every link, since there is no reviewer to catch a broken one.
You can add a personal message when you publish, which becomes a feed update for people who follow you. That is a small, free first audience once you have a few followers.
02 Webflow Marketplace (template designers)
Webflow’s template marketplace, open to designers who apply and are approved.
- Gate
- An application to become a template designer; the page calls the vetting process detailed
- Commission
- 95% to the designer on every template sale; Webflow keeps 5% for payment processing
- Selling elsewhere
- Fulfillment links let you sell a template anywhere
The application is a vetting step, so build a few strong, responsive sites in Webflow before you apply and keep them tidy enough to show. The page itself quotes designers saying the process is detailed and worth it.
Because fulfillment links exist, you can sell on your own site and still let buyers install the template into Webflow. That is useful while you wait for approval.
Visit Webflow Marketplace (template designers) (webflow.com) →
03 WordPress.org Theme Directory
The official directory of themes for WordPress, with a manual review before a theme is distributed.
- Route
- Log in, upload a zip; the page says it is submitted for review for distribution on the Theme Directory
- Rules
- Governed by the Theme Review Guidelines, which the developer pages link
- Updates
- Raise the version in style.css and upload the zip again
A directory theme reaches people who search inside their own WordPress dashboard, which is a different audience from a marketplace shopper. It suits a free theme meant to build your name.
Read the review guidelines before you build, not after: they decide what code and licence a theme may use. For plugins rather than themes, see the WordPress plugin guide.
04 Shopify Theme Store
Shopify’s curated store for storefront themes, with strict requirements.
- Exclusivity
- Themes on the store can only be distributed through it, not on other marketplaces
- Originality
- Must be fundamentally different from other store themes, including your own; Dawn- or Horizon-derived themes are not eligible
- Codebase
- Shopify’s Skeleton Theme is the only approved starting codebase; otherwise original code
- Testing
- Poorly tested themes are rejected without further review
Exclusivity is the decision. If you list a theme here, you cannot also sell it on another marketplace, so this is for a design you are prepared to commit to Shopify entirely.
Themes may not contain designer credits such as a link to your website, or affiliate links, in the theme files. Plan your attribution elsewhere.
05 ThemeForest (Envato Market)
A large paid marketplace for website templates and themes across several platforms.
- Our check
- Its author pages refused an automated fetch; we did not read its review or fee terms
- Fits when
- You want a multi-platform marketplace and accept its terms
Read the author terms for exclusivity, the revenue split and what happens to your price. We could not check them, so we state none.
A template that is exclusive to another marketplace, such as the Shopify Theme Store, cannot be listed here, so choose one destination for each design.
06 Post your build ideas (our board)
A free launch board with no account, no queue and no ads.
- Fits when
- The template has a live demo site and a buy link on its marketplace page
- Limit
- Four screenshots at most on the listing; a builder-heavy audience, not a buyer crowd
Link the live demo as the product page, name the platform in the first sentence and describe who it is for, such as a clinic, a portfolio or a restaurant. A specific niche is easier to recommend.
The landing page ideas guide and the board’s creative tool ideas can seed niches you have not covered.
How do you decide where the first template goes?
- You want a sale this month: Framer Community. No gate, a clear revenue rule and an instant listing.
- You are already good at Webflow: apply as a designer, and publish on your own site with a fulfillment link while the application is open.
- You want a free theme to build a name: the WordPress.org Theme Directory, after reading its guidelines.
- You can commit to one platform and design to its rules: the Shopify Theme Store.
The website template playbook has a dated plan, the UI kit places to launch cover selling design files, and the Figma plugin guide covers the tool side of the same buyers.
Frequently asked questions
Does Framer review templates before they go live?
No. Framer’s help page says templates are published immediately after you submit them, with no review process or waiting period, and that you keep 100% of the revenue from paid templates. Because nothing screens them, the page advises reviewing the name, description, categories and pricing carefully before you publish.
How do I become a Webflow template designer?
You apply through Webflow’s template designer page and are vetted before you can submit templates. The page describes the process as detailed and says designers earn a 95% commission, with Webflow keeping 5% for payment processing. It also says fulfillment links let you sell templates anywhere, including your own site.
Can I sell a Shopify theme on other marketplaces too?
Not if it is on the Shopify Theme Store. Shopify’s requirements say themes listed there can only be distributed through the store and must not be distributed on other marketplaces. They also cannot contain designer credits or affiliate links in the theme files, and must be fundamentally different from other store themes.
Post your build ideas publishes this page and runs a free launch board that competes with some of the sites it names. Facts about other sites came from their own pages on the date shown above; terms, queues and prices change, so confirm on their sites before you decide. About the publisher.