Bands vs Pen
Two WordPress themes head to head: ranking, active installs, downloads and ratings, from our daily tracking of the WordPress.org directory.
At a glance
Pen leads the WordPress.org popular list today at #736, ahead of Bands at #3,695. Over the last 7 days Pen climbed 7 places and Bands climbed 44 places. Pen has the largest install base, roughly 6.7× the next: 2K+ active installs against 300+ for Bands. Downloads this week: Pen 43 and Bands 18. Ratings: Bands 5★ from 1 and Pen 5★ from 49 reviews.
| Metric | Bands | Pen |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #3,695 ▲ 44 | #736 ▲ 7 |
| Active installs | 300+ | 2K+ |
| Downloads, last 7 days | 18 | 43 |
| Rating | 5★ (1) | 5★ (49) |
| Type | Classic theme | Classic theme |
| Last updated | Nov 12, 2025 | Apr 3, 2025 |
| Current version | 2.0 | 1.4.8 |
| Best rank on record | #3,629 | #713 |
| Days in the top 50 | 0 | 0 |
| On WordPress.org since | Jun 2020 | May 2019 |
Highlighted cells mark the strongest figure in each row. Rank and installs are from the latest WordPress.org capture; downloads are the last seven captured days.
Ranking history Lower is better
Active installs
Downloads per day
More comparisons
Frequently asked questions
Which is more popular, Bands or Pen?
By active installs, Pen: 2K+ sites run it against 300+ for Bands, according to WordPress.org figures captured on October 22, 2026.
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, Bands or Pen?
Pen, at #736 on the WordPress.org popular themes list today, with Bands at #3,695. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Is Bands a block theme or a classic theme? And Pen?
Bands is a classic theme, Pen is a classic theme. Block themes are built for the Site Editor; classic themes use the Customizer and widget areas.
Where do these numbers come from?
WordPress.org publishes each theme’s active install count and its position on the popular list. This site records both every day, along with per-day downloads and ratings, so the charts above show how the themes have moved over time rather than a single day.