Custom theme development
Block themes built from your design system — templates, patterns, theme.json tokens — with no page-builder dependency.
WordPress Development Services
WordPress built like software, not assembled from plugins.
Custom themes, editor-friendly block patterns, measurable performance work and technical SEO foundations — WordPress sites your marketing team can actually run.
What you receive
- Custom block theme with theme.json design tokens
- Registered block patterns for every page type
- Responsive templates verified on mobile, tablet and desktop
- Core Web Vitals report before and after
- Technical SEO setup: metadata, sitemap, schema, redirects
- Staging environment and deployment routine
- Backup and update procedure documentation
- Editor training walkthrough for your team
Overview
The short version
A WordPress site is usually slow and fragile for the same reason: it was assembled. A page builder, a dozen plugins that each ship their own CSS, and a theme nobody can safely update. Every change becomes a risk.
We build WordPress the way we build applications. A purpose-made theme, native block patterns your editors understand, the smallest viable plugin set, and performance measured before and after rather than promised.
Technologies
- WordPress
- PHP
- Block Editor (Gutenberg)
- theme.json
- WooCommerce
- ACF
- MySQL
- WP-CLI
- Core Web Vitals
- Schema.org
Each choice is made per engagement and written down with its reasoning.
Problems we solve
What usually brings people to this service
If one of these describes your situation, this is the right page.
01
The site is slow and you cannot see why
We profile what is actually loading — render-blocking assets, unoptimised images, plugin bloat, database queries — and fix the causes, with before-and-after measurements.
02
Editing breaks the layout
We ship registered block patterns and constrained theme settings, so content changes stay inside the design system instead of escaping it.
03
Plugin sprawl and update anxiety
We reduce the plugin set, replace what can be handled in the theme, and set up a staging environment so updates are tested rather than hoped through.
04
Technical SEO was never set up
Heading structure, metadata, canonical handling, sitemaps, schema and redirects get built in rather than bolted on by a plugin default.
Capabilities
What wordpress development covers at Hirelyx
Concrete capabilities rather than adjectives. Anything not listed here, we will tell you we do not do.
Block editor experience
Reusable patterns, locked layouts and sensible defaults so non-technical editors can publish confidently.
Performance and Core Web Vitals
Asset strategy, image pipeline, caching, font loading and database cleanup — measured against LCP, CLS and INP.
WooCommerce builds
Product architecture, checkout customisation, payment and shipping configuration, and performance work on catalogue pages.
Migrations and redesigns
Moving platforms or redesigning without losing rankings: URL mapping, 301 plans, and content parity checks.
Security and maintenance setup
Hardened configuration, least-privilege roles, backups, staging workflow and an update routine your team can follow.
Process
How a wordpress development engagement runs
Specific to this service. The wider seven-stage delivery process wraps around it.
- 01
Audit and inventory
Current performance, plugin set, content model, URL structure and ranking pages are documented first.
- 02
Content and template modelling
We define post types, taxonomies and the template set, so structure drives the build.
- 03
Theme build
Design tokens into theme.json, templates and block patterns, built against real content.
- 04
Performance pass
Measured optimisation of assets, images, caching and queries, with numbers recorded at each step.
- 05
SEO and launch
Redirect map applied, metadata and schema verified, sitemap submitted, and post-launch crawl checked.
Related work
Where this service has been applied
Entries marked as a content placeholder are reserved for projects whose details are not yet published.
WordPress DevelopmentWordPress E-commerce Build
Reserved for a WooCommerce build case study: custom block theme, catalogue performance work and checkout customisation.
Content placeholder- WordPress
- WooCommerce
- PHP
- theme.json
Digital MarketingSEO & Content Engine
Reserved for an organic growth case study: technical SEO remediation, content architecture and measured ranking movement.
Content placeholder- Google Search Console
- Google Analytics 4
- Schema.org
- Content strategy
Pricing
Current pricing for this service
WordPress tiers use the same price points as our other web builds. Fixed-scope quotes are confirmed in writing after discovery — nothing starts on an estimate alone.
Starter
$499per project
A compact marketing site or landing page.
- Up to 5 pages
- Custom block patterns
- Responsive across breakpoints
- Contact form and spam protection
- Technical SEO foundations
- 1 round of revisions
Professional
$1,499per project
A full custom theme with a real content model.
- Up to 15 pages and templates
- Custom post types and taxonomies
- Core Web Vitals optimisation pass
- Blog / insights architecture
- Staging environment and deploy routine
- 3 rounds of revisions
Enterprise
Customquote
WooCommerce, migrations or multi-site estates.
- WooCommerce or multi-site setup
- Platform migration with redirect map
- Third-party and CRM integrations
- Advanced performance engineering
- Editor training programme
- 3 months post-launch support
Questions
Frequently asked
The questions we are actually asked about wordpress development, answered without hedging.
Not for new builds. Page builders add significant front-end weight and lock your content into proprietary markup. We build block themes using the native editor, which keeps pages fast and keeps your content portable. If you already run a builder and want to keep it, we will work within it and say clearly what that costs in performance.
Yes — that is what block patterns and theme.json constraints are for. Editors compose pages from approved patterns with a controlled set of colours, spacing and type styles, so the design system holds.
It can, if URLs change without a plan. We inventory your indexed URLs and ranking pages first, produce a redirect map, keep heading structure and internal linking intact, and re-crawl after launch to catch anything broken.
We configure and harden hosting you own, and we will recommend options that match your traffic and budget. We do not resell hosting, so the recommendation has no margin attached to it.
We promise measurement and method, not a number. You get a baseline report, a prioritised list of fixes with expected impact, and a verified report after the work. On most plugin-heavy sites the available gains are large, but we will not quote a score before seeing the site.
Related solutions
Outcomes this service contributes to
01
Digital Growth
Organic and paid demand built on tracking that reconciles — technical SEO, content, Meta Ads and landing-page work, reported against cost per qualified lead.
02Custom Software
Internal tools, dashboards, APIs and platforms for the parts of your business no off-the-shelf product fits — typed, tested and delivered in your own repository.
Or browse all six services.
Ready to talk about wordpress development?
Tell us where you are now and what needs to be true in three months. You will get a written scope and a fixed quote before anything starts.
- A written scope and fixed quote before work starts
- Payments handled securely through Stripe
- Code, accounts and documentation stay yours
- Typical first reply within 24–48 hours
Prices shown exclude third-party costs such as hosting, model API usage and advertising spend, which are paid directly by you.