5 Ella Shopify Theme Alternatives - 2026
Last modified: August 12, 2026
| # | Image | Name | Price | Reception | Adoption | CWV pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
Booster
|
$39 | 0.2% | 43.4% | |
| 2 |
|
Warehouse
|
$320 | (325) | 0.8% | 65.6% |
| 3 |
|
Loft
|
$180 | (175) | <0.1% | — |
| 4 |
|
Beyond
|
$420 | (75) | <0.1% | 81.8% |
| 5 |
|
Empire
|
$360 | (480) | 0.6% | 68% |
|
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Data first, opinion second: we track usage across 3.5+ million Shopify stores daily, and have since 2017. The stats tell us what merchants actually use; our editors rank the final picks by quality, pricing, and fit.
How These Themes Compare on Speed
| Theme | CWV pass rate | Few apps | Median LCP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beyond | 81.8% | — | 1.6s |
| Empire | 68% | 82.9% | 1.8s |
| Warehouse | 65.6% | 73.1% | 1.7s |
| Booster | 43.4% | 50% | 2.1s |
Booster
Ella packs in a lot, but its size can slow a store down. Booster keeps the everything-built-in feel and pushes hard the other way on speed, loading fast while stacking conversion tools like countdown timers, upsells and popups. It suits merchants who left Ella for a lighter, sales-first theme on paid traffic.
Booster is one of the best options when it comes to choosing a Shopify theme. There’s an impressive number of features that can help you take your website to the next level and sell lots. Therefore, you can really make the investment back on the buying of this theme. One of the best features of this theme is that it is fast. Most websites can load within one second regardless of the device that is being used. Therefore, you can rank highly on Google and convert more on your website.
There are numerous features that can help you build a high-converting website. For instance, you can add countdown timers, call to action buttons, a popup builder, live chat functionality and social proof to any website page. There are also other features that you can add to your website. The developers believe that you can save up to $3000 on app subscriptions with all the features that are included with the theme.
To help you retain audiences and sell to them later, there are ways to subscribe more people to your mailing list and retain customers who’ve abandoned their cart on your page.
Booster Highlights:
- You’re able to save more than $3000 on app subscriptions with lots of additional features included with this theme.
- This is a fast and highly responsive website theme. You can load a website page within one second.
- You’re able to attract more traffic with higher rankings on Google and other search engines.
- To build a website with Booster, you don’t need any experience.
Booster Page Speed: Live Data
Warehouse
Warehouse is the pick for the one thing Ella is most used for: a large catalog. It keeps the live search, filtering and promo tiles that big stores rely on, without carrying every feature Ella bundles for niches you may never touch.
Warehouse is one of the best themes for selling on Shopify. The theme can help you sell any large catalog you have with elegance. There are two basic styles that you can use for your basic design. Then you can make adjustments to this. You can change the text, images, colors and more on your website to make it more applicable to your brand.
The theme has lots of great features to help you convert your audience. For instance, there are stock level indicators, trust badges and security features. There is also a way to grow your email marketing list with an exit-intent email popup that can help you subscribe those who are trying to leave your website.
To help improve the shopping experience on your website, there are promotional tiles. You can promote numerous items on these including key products, discounts, sale items and more. This can feature on your homepage with ease. It can also help you speed up the buying process on your website and improve the user experience. To further support this, there is a live search option and quick links to get customers to the right product with ease.
Warehouse Highlights:
- This is suitable for your brands who want to carry a large catalog for any niche.
- This theme lets your customers use a live search function to help find products.
- There is a lot of potential to get your website to rank highly on Google and other search engines.
- There is an exit popup function that can help you to grow your email marketing list.
Here is how Warehouse shows up across the stores in our dataset:
See the Warehouse store data for its full adoption and catalog stats.
Warehouse Page Speed: Live Data
Loft
Loft matches Ella’s comfort with a big catalog, then leans into brand storytelling, with room for an Instagram feed and multi-level menus. It fits Ella users who want the same capacity but a more narrative, image-led storefront.
Loft is one of the best themes that you can use when you want to have a great Shopify website. This theme has a lot of capacity for stores that have a large catalog. Loft is also a great website for those that want to sell products on their website with the power of storytelling. Storytelling works so well because it pulls on the emotions of your audience. To help convince customers, you’re also able to connect to your Instagram account and showcase the feed on your homepage.
Other features that can be added to your homepage include special promotional tiles. You can also improve your website’s navigation with the use of multi-level menu options. Navigation can also help your website rank better on Google and other search engines.
If you’re new to Shopify, then this might be the best theme for you. The changes to your website can be made with ease. And you can easily get your website to rank on Google with all the other SEO features that are included with the theme.
Loft Highlights:
- A perfect option for those themes that have a large catalog.
- You’re able to create a great branded website with an emotional backstory added to it.
- You can use high-resolution images to showcase your products with ease.
- The perfect theme for viewing on mobile devices and ranking on search engines like Google.
Beyond
Beyond trades Ella’s do-everything layout for a cleaner, story-first build, centering the homepage on one narrative with video, quick buy and predictive search. It suits merchants who found Ella too busy and want focus.
Beyond is one of the best themes that you’re able to buy for your Shopify store. It has a lot of features that can help your brand to reach more audiences and sell to them. You can build your website around a singular story that can feature a video on your homepage. This can add emotional appeal to your website. And with this, you can improve your website’s conversions.
You’re also able to add a featured product to any collection page. This can be one product that can feature across all collections, regardless of whether the product is within that collection or not. When customers want to make a purchase, they can do this fast with a ‘Quick Buy’ option.
There are also other ways that customers can find the products that they want with a predictive search. Or they can use the enhanced navigation to get from page to page with ease.
Beyond Highlights:
- You can allow your customers to move around your website with lots of great navigational elements.
- Improve the performance of your website with quick buy options.
- Perfect for ranking and loading times.
- Has an aesthetically pleasing design that has great design options for branding.
Beyond Page Speed: Live Data
Empire
Empire is the large-catalog alternative built for product discovery, with strong filtering, live search and quick buy. It is the theme established high-SKU brands reach for when Ella’s breadth is more than they need.
Empire allows you to set up and establish a great website for your brand. It is perfect for matching some of the most popular eCommerce websites which means you can catch onto their success with ease. It helps improves trust and improves the relationships between you and them with ease. Therefore, with the elegant and beautiful designs that are possible with this theme, you can make your website perform well.
The theme is perfect for navigation. Customers who want to search for specific products on your website can use the easy-to-customize menu that you build or they can use the live search facility. There are also some great filtering options that allow your customers to go into a collection and then reduce down the potential options by using elements that you can set.
On your homepage, you can use promotional tiles to promote the best products on your website. And you can encourage quick sales on your website with quick buy buttons that can feature on the images of your homepage and collections. Customers don’t even need to look at the product descriptions.
Empire Highlights:
- Has been optimized for search engines and every device whether the customer is on a mobile or desktop.
- The elegant design can be adjusted to match your specific brand with ease.
- There is a live search and product filter on the theme to help with product discovery.
- This has been built for brands that have large catalogs.
Here is where Empire lands in our data:
Empire Page Speed: Live Data
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What makes a theme responsive and why is it crucial for an e-commerce store?
A responsive theme adapts its layout and features to various screen sizes and devices, guaranteeing an optimal user experience across desktops, tablets, and smartphones. In e-commerce, responsive design is crucial for reaching a wide audience and improving engagement, ultimately driving higher conversion rates and sales.
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What are the SEO benefits associated with fast-loading Shopify themes?
Fast-loading themes can improve Google rankings and user experience, resulting in greater visibility and increased organic traffic. This, in turn, leads to higher engagement, better conversion rates, and increased revenue for online stores.
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How does theme customizability impact the brand identity of an e-commerce store?
Customizing a theme in e-commerce enables entrepreneurs to match their online store’s appearance with their brand identity, using features like colors and fonts for a cohesive look. This enhances the store’s visual appeal, builds brand recognition, and fosters customer trust and loyalty.
How to Choose the Right Ella Alternative
The five picks above line up with the reasons merchants usually outgrow Ella. If your issue is a big catalog, Warehouse, Loft and Empire are all built to hold a large product range without feeling heavy. If you sell on brand and story, Beyond centers the homepage on a single narrative with room for video, and Loft leans the same way. And if you run paid traffic and care most about promotions and upsells, Booster puts those selling tools front and center.
Match the theme to the specific thing Ella was not giving you rather than to the longest feature list. A theme that does less but fits your catalog and the way you work will almost always beat one that does everything and slows you down.
For more options, see our wider guide to Shopify theme alternatives, or browse alternatives to Debut and Boundless.
