Generate Child Theme
Create child themes of any WordPress themes effortlessly with Generate Child Theme.
Solid choice
Generate Child Theme is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. It runs on 9K+ sites, is rated 4.3/5 and was last updated 4 months ago, and scores 66/100 on our health check.
How does it stack up?
Side-by-side on installs, updates, ratings & support
Daily downloads
Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.
Rankings
Where Generate Child Theme stands todayWordPress.org search rankings
Live position in the plugin search, top 100| Keyword | Position |
|---|---|
| child theme | #3 |
| child theme generator | #3 |
| custom theme | #13 |
| design | >100 |
| theme | #10 |
Version adoption
Share of active sites per release.
Rating breakdown
★★★★★★★★★★ 4.3 from 15 reviews
About Generate Child Theme
From the official readme · v2.3Description
Generate Child Theme allows you to create a child theme of any WordPress theme installed on your blog. The WordPress child theme generator plugin, Generate Child Theme is absolutely free and extremely easy to use as well. The plugin will help you create child themes in just a few minutes. It allows you to quickly create child themes from any theme that you have currently installed on your site. With Generate Child Theme, you will not have to deal with coding, or any configuration while creating a child theme. You will only have to fill up few fields—such as select parent theme, child theme’s name, theme description, author, and version—to create the child theme you desire. Therefore, create your own child theme effortlessly with the new child theme WordPress plugin, Generate Child Theme, and that too, without stressing your wallet.
Installation
The easy way (via Dashboard) :
- Go to Plugins > Add New
- Type in the Generate Child Theme in Search Plugins box
- Click Install Now to install the plugin
- After Installation click activate to start using the Generate Child Theme
- Go to Generate Child Theme from Dashboard menu
Not so easy way (via FTP) :
- Download the Generate Child Theme
- Unarchive Generate Child Theme plugin
- Copy folder with generate-child-theme.zip
- Open the ftp \wp-content\plugins\
- Paste the plug-ins folder in the folder
- Go to admin panel => open item “Plugins” => activate Generate Child Theme
- Go to Generate Child Theme from Dashboard menu
Changelog
2.3 (Released: May 27, 2026)
- Bug Fixed: Security improvements — input sanitization and nonce verification hardened throughout
- Bug Fixed: Child theme file generation now uses WordPress Filesystem API instead of file_put_contents()
- Bug Fixed: Scripts now load in the footer; hardcoded version strings replaced with plugin version constant
- Bug Fixed: Broken “Free Plugins” sidebar links
- Bug Fixed: PHP 8 deprecation notice from non-static method called statically
- Code: Strict comparisons and PHPCS compliance throughout
- Compatibility check up to version 7.0
2.2 (Released: March 09, 2026)
- Bug Fixed: WordPress.WP.AlternativeFunctions.file_system_operations_mkdir
- Bug Fixed: WordPress.WP.I18n.MissingTranslatorsComment
- Bug Fixed: WordPress.WP.I18n.TextDomainMismatch
- Bug Fixed: plugin_header_invalid_plugin_uri
- Bug Fixed: outdated_tested_upto_header
- Compatibility check up to version 7.0
2.1.1 (Released: May 13, 2025)
- Compatibility check up to version 6.8
2.1 (Released: April 10, 2024)
- Compatibility check up to version 6.5
2.0.1 (Released: February 21, 2024)
- Bug Fixed: CSRF vulnerability while generating child theme (Reported by: Darius Sveikauskas https://patchstack.com)
2.0 (Released: November 15, 2023)
- Compatibility check up to version 6.4
For developers
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Best Generate Child Theme alternatives
All child theme plugins →
FAQ
Generate Child Theme: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Sep 27, 2026
Is Generate Child Theme free?
Yes. Generate Child Theme is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.
Is Generate Child Theme safe to use in 2026?
Generate Child Theme is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. It runs on 9K+ sites, is rated 4.3/5 and was last updated 4 months ago, and scores 66/100 on our health check.
How many websites use Generate Child Theme?
Generate Child Theme is active on 9K+ WordPress websites and has been downloaded 144,402 times since it launched in February 2018. It was downloaded 2,034 times in the last 30 days.
Does Generate Child Theme work with WordPress 7.1?
Generate Child Theme is officially tested up to WordPress 7.0.6, while the latest release is 7.1.2. It may still work, but try it on a staging site first.
What PHP version does Generate Child Theme need?
Generate Child Theme requires PHP 7.4 or higher. Most hosts run PHP 8.x today, so it works on any modern WordPress hosting.
When was Generate Child Theme last updated?
The latest version, 2.3, was released on May 27, 2026 (4 months ago).
Who makes Generate Child Theme?
Generate Child Theme is developed and maintained by Catch Themes.
What are the best alternatives to Generate Child Theme?
The most popular alternatives to Generate Child Theme are Child Theme Configurator (300K+ installs), WP Child Theme Generator (20K+ installs) and Child Theme Creator by Orbi… (10K+ installs).
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