Installing Astra Pro the Right Way: Free Astra First, Then Pro, Then Your First Template
Astra Pro confuses new users for one simple reason: it is not a standalone theme. If you search for it in your themes list and try to activate it alone, nothing works the way you expect. Astra Pro is a premium add-on that sits on top of the free Astra theme. Get that order right — free Astra first, Pro second, template third — and the whole setup becomes straightforward. Get it backwards and you will spend an afternoon wondering why your site looks broken.
This guide walks through the full process, step by step, including how seller-assisted activation works when you buy through WP Theme Bazar. It assumes a fresh or existing WordPress site and no coding knowledge.
Buy Astra Pro: message us on WhatsApp https://wa.me/8801919052411 with the product name — bKash/Nagad accepted, activation within minutes.
Before you start: what you need
You need three things before touching any settings:
- A WordPress site you can log into as an administrator.
- The free Astra theme, available from the WordPress theme directory.
- Your Astra Pro purchase through WP Theme Bazar, where activation is seller-assisted — the WP Theme Bazar team activates the original license directly on your site, and the private license key is never shared with you.
That third point surprises some buyers, so let us be clear about it: you do not receive a license file or key to paste in yourself. You provide site access at checkout as instructed, and the seller's team completes the activation on your site. This is normal for this store and it is how the original license is kept valid. Plan for that handoff step instead of expecting an instant download-and-activate flow.
A quick note on cost, since it affects your decision before you install anything: Astra Pro through WP Theme Bazar is listed at ৳500 one-time for lifetime use, and the product page also shows a ৳500–৳1,000 range for variations — price may change — see the product page for the current price. The official pricing, as stated on the product page, is $69 per year (up to 3 sites) or $249 lifetime (about ৳8,300 per year or about ৳30,000 once) — price may change — see the product page for the current price.
Step 1: Install the free Astra theme
Log into your WordPress dashboard and go to Appearance > Themes > Add New. Search for "Astra", find the theme by Brainstorm Force, and click Install, then Activate. Your site will immediately switch to Astra's clean default look. Do not worry that it looks plain right now — the free theme is deliberately minimal, and the Pro features are what add the header builder, layout controls, and WooCommerce modules later.
If Astra is already your active theme, skip this step entirely. If you are switching from another theme, take a backup first. Switching themes can change how menus, widgets, and homepage sections display, and a backup means you can undo the switch if anything looks wrong.
Step 2: Arrange Pro activation
This is the step that differs from a standard ThemeForest-style purchase. With WP Theme Bazar's seller-assisted activation, the team activates Astra Pro on your site directly. Follow the checkout instructions to provide the site access they need, and wait for confirmation that activation is complete before moving to the template step. Trying to import a Pro starter template before Pro is actually active is a common cause of missing header layouts and greyed-out options.
While you wait, you can prepare: decide what kind of site you are building (blog, business site, online shop, portfolio), gather your logo file, and write down your brand colors. That preparation makes the next steps take minutes instead of hours.
Step 3: Confirm Pro is active
Once activation is confirmed, check that Pro features are actually available. Go to Appearance > Astra Options in your dashboard, or open the Customizer and look for Pro sections such as the Header Builder, Footer Builder, and Site Builder options. If you see only the free options, Pro is not active yet — do not start building on the assumption that it will appear later. Confirm activation first.
It is also worth confirming, at this point, that your site is running a compatible setup: an up-to-date WordPress version, the free Astra theme active (not a different theme with a similar name), and no conflicting theme framework active at the same time. Astra Pro is not related to AstraZeneca, and it is a different product from GeneratePress, Kadence, Blocksy, and Neve — if your dashboard shows one of those themes active instead, Pro will not work until Astra itself is active.
Step 4: Import a Starter Template
Astra's 240+ Starter Templates are the fastest way to a finished-looking site. In your dashboard, look for the Starter Templates entry (under Appearance or as its own menu item, depending on your setup) and browse by category: business, blog, shop, portfolio, and more. Pick the template closest to your actual site, not the prettiest one in the list — a template built for a restaurant will need far more editing to become a consultancy site than a business template will.
When you import, choose whether to import the full demo content or just the design. If your site already has content, importing full demo posts and pages can create duplicates you will have to clean up. For a brand-new site, full import is fine and gives you realistic pages to edit. After import, check your homepage assignment under Settings > Reading — the imported homepage needs to be set as your front page, or visitors will still see the default blog listing.
Step 5: Set up the Header and Footer Builder
This is where Astra Pro starts to feel worth it. Open the Customizer and find the Header Builder. You will see rows — typically a top bar, a main header, and a below-header row — with slots for logo, menu, search, buttons, and widgets. Drag elements into place, then check the result on desktop, tablet, and mobile views inside the Customizer. The mobile header deserves special attention: Astra Pro's off-canvas and mobile navigation options let you design a completely different mobile menu experience, and most of your visitors will see that version first.
Do the same for the footer. The Footer Builder works on the same row-and-slot idea. Add your copyright line, a small menu, and social links if you use them, and keep it short — a footer that scrolls for three screens helps nobody.
Step 6: Configure your global design system
Before building individual pages, set your global defaults. In the Customizer, under Global settings, define your colors, typography, container widths, and button styles. This is one of Astra Pro's quiet superpowers: set it once, and every new page, post, and template inherits it. Sites that skip this step end up with five slightly different button colors and three heading styles, and fixing that later takes far longer than setting it now.
While you are here, consider the features that match your site type:
- Blog sites: turn on Blog Pro options for featured post layouts, related posts, and reading controls.
- Shops: open the WooCommerce module and configure the shop layout, quick view, off-canvas sidebar, checkout style, and product gallery behavior.
- Business sites: set up a sticky header so navigation stays visible as visitors scroll, and add a mega menu if you have many service pages.
- All sites: if you manage client sites, look at the white label options, which let you present Astra under your own branding.
Step 7: Build your first real page
Now open a page with your preferred page builder — Astra Pro works with Gutenberg, Elementor, Beaver Builder, Brizy, and Spectra, so use whichever you already know. Start from your imported template's layout and replace the demo text and images with your own content, section by section. Resist the urge to redesign every section from scratch on day one. Your goal for the first page is a published, accurate page, not a perfect one.
Astra Pro's Site Builder with hooks is worth knowing about for later: it lets you place custom sections on 404 pages, archives, and single posts without editing theme files. You do not need it on day one, but when you want a custom call-to-action above every blog post or a special layout for your shop archive, that is the tool for it.
Common setup mistakes to avoid
- Installing Pro without free Astra. Pro adds features to Astra; it does not replace it.
- Importing templates before activation is confirmed. Missing Pro sections after import usually trace back to this.
- Skipping the mobile header check. A desktop-perfect header can still produce a broken mobile menu.
- Importing full demo content onto a live site with existing posts. Duplicates and mixed menus follow.
- Forgetting the homepage assignment. If your new homepage does not show, Settings > Reading is the first place to look.
If you follow the order in this guide — free theme, confirmed activation, template, header and footer, global styles, then content — you will avoid nearly all of them. And remember, Astra Pro's product page carries the store's own disclaimers and activation terms, so check there if anything about your specific activation scope is unclear. Astra's free version alone powers over 2 million installs with 5,000+ five-star ratings according to the product page, and Pro builds on that same lightweight foundation — under 50KB footprint per the product page — rather than replacing it with something heavier.
Buy Astra Pro: message us on WhatsApp https://wa.me/8801919052411 with the product name — bKash/Nagad accepted, activation within minutes.
