News Store vs Square
Two WordPress themes head to head: ranking, active installs, downloads and ratings, from our daily tracking of the WordPress.org directory.
At a glance
Square leads the WordPress.org popular list today at #942, ahead of News Store at #1,137. Over the last 7 days Square climbed 5 places and News Store slipped 53 places. Square has the largest install base, roughly 20× the next: 2K+ active installs against 100+ for News Store. Downloads this week: Square 60 and News Store 14.
| Metric | News Store | Square |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #1,137 ▼ 53 | #942 ▲ 5 |
| Active installs | 100+ | 2K+ |
| Downloads, last 7 days | 14 | 60 |
| Rating | no ratings | 4.6★ (39) |
| Type | Classic theme | Classic theme |
| Last updated | Mar 15, 2026 | Jan 18, 2026 |
| Current version | 1.0.0 | 2.0.68 |
| Best rank on record | #779 | #941 |
| Days in the top 50 | 0 | 0 |
| On WordPress.org since | Dec 2025 | Feb 2016 |
| Sites detected by our detector | 0 | 1 |
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, News Store or Square?
By active installs, Square: 2K+ sites run it against 100+ for News Store, according to WordPress.org figures captured on October 25, 2026.
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, News Store or Square?
Square, at #942 on the WordPress.org popular themes list today, with News Store at #1,137. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Is News Store a block theme or a classic theme? And Square?
News Store is a classic theme, Square 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.