Newslay vs Nirvana
Two WordPress themes head to head: ranking, active installs, downloads and ratings, from our daily tracking of the WordPress.org directory.
At a glance
Nirvana leads the WordPress.org popular list today at #278, ahead of Newslay at #1,650. Over the last 7 days Nirvana slipped 5 places and Newslay slipped 4 places. Nirvana has the largest install base, roughly 11× the next: 10K+ active installs against 900+ for Newslay. Downloads this week: Nirvana 236 and Newslay 13. Ratings: Newslay 4★ from 2 and Nirvana 4.3★ from 69 reviews.
| Metric | Newslay | Nirvana |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #1,650 ▼ 4 | #278 ▼ 5 |
| Active installs | 900+ | 10K+ |
| Downloads, last 7 days | 13 | 236 |
| Rating | 4★ (2) | 4.3★ (69) |
| Type | Classic theme | Classic theme |
| Last updated | Aug 18, 2025 | Jan 26, 2026 |
| Current version | 1.7 | 1.6.5 |
| Best rank on record | #1,611 | #271 |
| Days in the top 50 | 0 | 0 |
| On WordPress.org since | Aug 2020 | Sep 2014 |
| 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, Newslay or Nirvana?
By active installs, Nirvana: 10K+ sites run it against 900+ for Newslay, according to WordPress.org figures captured on October 23, 2026.
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, Newslay or Nirvana?
Nirvana, at #278 on the WordPress.org popular themes list today, with Newslay at #1,650. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Is Newslay a block theme or a classic theme? And Nirvana?
Newslay is a classic theme, Nirvana 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.