Pen vs The Retail Storefront
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 #742, ahead of The Retail Storefront at #5,781. Over the last 7 days Pen slipped 4 places and The Retail Storefront climbed 172 places. Pen has the largest install base, roughly 50× the next: 2K+ active installs against 40+ for The Retail Storefront. Downloads this week: Pen 50 and The Retail Storefront 14.
| Metric | Pen | The Retail Storefront |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #742 ▼ 4 | #5,781 ▲ 172 |
| Active installs | 2K+ | 40+ |
| Downloads, last 7 days | 50 | 14 |
| Rating | 5★ (49) | no ratings |
| Type | Classic theme | Classic theme |
| Last updated | Apr 3, 2025 | Oct 13, 2026 |
| Current version | 1.4.8 | 3.3.5 |
| Best rank on record | #713 | #5,099 |
| Days in the top 50 | 0 | 0 |
| On WordPress.org since | May 2019 | Jan 2025 |
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, Pen or The Retail Storefront?
By active installs, Pen: 2K+ sites run it against 40+ for The Retail Storefront, according to WordPress.org figures captured on November 4, 2026.
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, Pen or The Retail Storefront?
Pen, at #742 on the WordPress.org popular themes list today, with The Retail Storefront at #5,781. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Is Pen a block theme or a classic theme? And The Retail Storefront?
Pen is a classic theme, The Retail Storefront 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.