fDesign vs Sydney
Two WordPress themes head to head: ranking, active installs, downloads and ratings, from our daily tracking of the WordPress.org directory.
At a glance
Sydney leads the WordPress.org popular list today at #33, ahead of fDesign at #7,719. Over the last 7 days Sydney slipped 2 places and fDesign slipped 25 places. Sydney has the largest install base, roughly 1143× the next: 80K+ active installs against 70+ for fDesign. Downloads this week: Sydney 20,877 and fDesign 11.
| Metric | fDesign | Sydney |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #7,719 ▼ 25 | #33 ▼ 2 |
| Active installs | 70+ | 80K+ |
| Downloads, last 7 days | 11 | 20,877 |
| Rating | no ratings | 4.9★ (794) |
| Type | Classic theme | Classic theme |
| Last updated | Jun 7, 2026 | Oct 22, 2026 |
| Current version | 1.5.2 | 2.73 |
| Best rank on record | #7,453 | #30 |
| Days in the top 50 | 0 | 763 |
| On WordPress.org since | Jul 2018 | Apr 2015 |
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, fDesign or Sydney?
By active installs, Sydney: 80K+ sites run it against 70+ for fDesign, according to WordPress.org figures captured on October 26, 2026.
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, fDesign or Sydney?
Sydney, at #33 on the WordPress.org popular themes list today, with fDesign at #7,719. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Is fDesign a block theme or a classic theme? And Sydney?
fDesign is a classic theme, Sydney 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.