TheGem Theme Review (2026): Demos, Builders, WooCommerce and Pricing

TheGem suits freelancers and store owners who want polished demos with Elementor or WPBakery. Its shop and design tools offer a lot in one purchase. The cost is complexity and a larger commitment to the theme: switching later can mean rebuilding pages.

What Is TheGem?

TheGem is a premium multipurpose WordPress theme made by CodexThemes. It launched on ThemeForest in 2016 (the changelog goes back to version 1.1.0 in September 2016) and has been one of the marketplace’s steady sellers since. The ThemeForest listing calls it a “Creative Multi-Purpose & WooCommerce WordPress Theme”.

“Multipurpose” means it is not built for one niche: the same theme can run an agency site, a restaurant, a blog or an online store.

The choice of edition matters more than the headline demo count. TheGem supplies separate Elementor and WPBakery theme packages, with companion tools and templates for each. Decide which editor you intend to maintain before choosing a design.

We assessed the official demos, documentation and current prices rather than a licensed installation. The demo measurements below are earlier public-page observations, not a current store test.

Demos and Pre-Built Websites

The pre-built demo library on the official TheGem site (vendor page).

The demo library is the main reason people buy TheGem. CodexThemes says there are more than 400 pre-built demos, and its demo browser filters them by type: agency, business, shop, blog and magazine, landing pages, listings, portfolio, one-pagers and niches such as restaurants, real estate, gyms, hotels, lawyers and medical practices.

The library mixes older designs with newer business and shop layouts. Check the actual pages, menu and product layout instead of assuming every design has the same level of polish or the same dependencies.

The official Tech Startup Business demo, one of the newest TheGem designs (Elementor edition).

The newer designs look current, with large type, rounded cards and dark modes. Some older demos in the library look dated, so look for the ones tagged “new” if you want a modern starting point.

The vendor says every demo exists in both an Elementor and a WPBakery version, demos can be mixed on one site, and one purchase covers the whole library, with no separate demo subscription. You can browse every demo for free before you buy, which is the best way to judge whether there is a design close to what you need.

Elementor or WPBakery: The Two Editions

TheGem’s page builders overview, “Two theme versions in one package” (vendor page).

This is the biggest difference between TheGem and many of its rivals. When you download TheGem, you get two themes: TheGem for Elementor and TheGem for WPBakery. Each has its own required plugin (TheGem Theme Elements) with the theme’s elements, extensions and custom post types.

TheGem for Elementor works with the free Elementor plugin. The vendor says it adds over 30 extra widgets with preset skins, dynamic tags, section parallax, custom breakpoints and a custom CSS field for every element. Because TheGem has its own header, footer, template and popup builders, the vendor says you do not need Elementor Pro.

TheGem for WPBakery bundles the WPBakery Page Builder plugin, so you do not need to buy it separately. You can edit in the backend (blocks in the admin) or on the front end. Salient and Uncode also build on WPBakery if you want to compare.

An existing WPBakery site may benefit from retaining its familiar editor. A new project can compare the free Elementor workflow with the matching demos. We have not verified feature parity between the two editions, so check a required element rather than assuming nothing is lost when choosing one.

Two cautions:

• Pick one edition and stay with it. Layouts built in one edition do not carry over to the other. Switching later means rebuilding pages.
• Theme lock-in still applies. TheGem’s own elements and templates only work while TheGem is active. If you switch themes later, expect to rebuild those parts. With the Elementor edition, plain Elementor sections survive a theme change better than WPBakery shortcodes do.

Builders, Theme Options and Design Tools

The vendor advertises tools for headers, footers, templates, content loops, popups and store layouts. Their practical value is reducing the number of separate design products, provided the chosen edition covers the actual requirement.

TheGem’s Theme Options panel, as shown on the official Theme Options page (vendor image).

The Theme Options panel handles site-wide settings such as header, footer, typography, colors, WooCommerce and performance. Page Options override them on a single page.

TheGem Blocks adds reusable sections, while the theme options cover site-wide appearance and page-specific overrides. Dynamic content and ACF support can help a structured business site, but need checking against the field types and templates it uses.

Bundled sliders and WPBakery depend on their distribution terms. Translation, privacy and accessibility claims should be checked on the finished site; their presence in a feature list does not establish compliance or compatibility with every extension.

WooCommerce Features

The best seller product grid on the official Creative Fashion Shop demo (WPBakery edition).

TheGem advertises product, shop, cart and checkout design tools, alongside filters, swatches, search and wishlist features. That can help a store maintain a consistent design without adding a separate layout plugin for every page.

The key question is the complete buying flow with real product variations and payment methods. We have not tested that in a licensed installation, so the screenshots illustrate vendor designs rather than a verified purchase.

The official TheGem shop demo with sidebar category, size and color filters.

The ThemeForest listing marks TheGem compatible with WooCommerce 6 through 10. As with any feature-heavy shop theme, test product pages, filters and checkout on a staging site after each update.

If your site is purely a store and you do not need TheGem’s agency and portfolio designs, the store-focused Flatsome and WoodMart are also worth comparing.

Performance: Lighthouse on Two Official Demos

TheGem’s marketing says the theme loads only the CSS and JavaScript each page needs, and that a one-click optimization tool in Theme Options turns on caching (it sets up the WP Super Cache plugin, per the documentation), CSS and JS minification, and delayed JavaScript. The vendor goes as far as saying the highest PageSpeed scores are “guaranteed”. We would not rely on that word for any theme.

Our earlier public-demo checks found different results for two different designs. They do not isolate the builder’s contribution or predict a finished customer’s site.

The Elementor Tech Startup Business demo scored 75 on mobile with largest content at 5.3 seconds, and 93 on desktop with 1.2 seconds. It transferred about 1.0 MB across 60 mobile requests.

The WPBakery Creative Fashion Shop scored 69 on mobile with largest content at 6.9 seconds, and 93 on desktop with 1.5 seconds. It transferred roughly 4.0 MB across 81 requests. These different designs do not isolate the builder’s contribution to speed.

Both demos looked stronger in the desktop measurements than on a simulated phone. The shop transferred roughly four times as much data, largely because of images. That is a reason to evaluate the selected demo’s media, rather than treat the theme’s optimization switch as a guaranteed score.

The demo software and hosting were outside our control. The much simpler pages in our theme speed comparison are not a fair head-to-head benchmark against these full designs. Test the finished site with its own content and plugins.

SEO

TheGem has no SEO suite of its own, and it does not need one. The vendor says it is compatible with Yoast SEO and other SEO plugins, uses proper heading and image markup, and includes Google Analytics integration and social sharing. The vendor also says good rankings are “guaranteed”. Treat that as marketing: rankings depend on your content and links far more than on your theme.

Support, Updates and Documentation

Support runs through CodexThemes’ own ticket system (a help desk on Ticksy), in English, German or Polish, according to the vendor. It is included for 6 months with a single-site license and 12 months with a direct multi-site license. The documentation is detailed, with separate sections for the Elementor and WPBakery editions, screenshots for most settings and video tutorials.

The current offers advertise continuing updates. The earlier changelog review included security fixes, so an existing site should stay current even if the design is finished. We have not measured a present support case or a current update inside a licensed account.

TheGem pricing and support terms

TheGem’s direct pricing on the official site (vendor page).

TheGem is a one-time purchase whichever way you buy it, with lifetime updates. Prices exclude tax.

Direct from CodexThemes

Direct single-site access currently costs $49 once with six months of support, extendable to twelve for $17. The displayed ten-site Professional offer costs $350 once, against a crossed-out $490, with twelve months of support. Other site-count choices are available; verify their selected checkout amount rather than applying the ten-site rate to every bundle.

Every direct license includes both theme editions, all demos and all features. A single-site license covers one live site plus one local copy and one staging copy. Direct purchases come with a 14-day no-questions refund, according to the vendor.

On ThemeForest

The Regular License currently costs $59 for one end product, with six months of support and theme updates under the listing terms. An ordinary online store is not automatically an Extended License use merely because it sells goods. Charging for access to the end product or unusual resale needs its own license check.

The direct page advertises a 14-day no-questions refund, while marketplace purchases follow Envato’s refund rules. The $49 direct offer has a lower opening price, but compare the actual site allowance, support term and purchase route rather than assuming every checkout is identical.

TheGem vs Other Premium Themes

Flatsome focuses more closely on WooCommerce through its own UX Builder. Avada also uses a theme-specific design system. TheGem’s distinguishing choice is its Elementor or WPBakery edition.

The7 and BeTheme offer other builder and licensing routes. For a site that needs fewer built-in design tools, compare Astra or Kadence with the editor you already use. The cost of maintaining or later rebuilding the layout can matter more than a small license-price difference.