--- title: "The Nexter Grid View Theme Builder: What It Is and How to Use It" url: https://nexterwp.com/blog/nexter-grid-view-theme-builder/ date: 2026-09-06 modified: 2026-09-06 author: "Aditya Sharma" description: "Open the Theme Builder in a site with a dozen templates and the old table view turns into a squint-and-scroll exercise: is \"header-shop\" the one with the mega menu, or..." image: https://nexterwp.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/themebuilder-1024x441.png word_count: 1000 --- # The Nexter Grid View Theme Builder: What It Is and How to Use It ## Key Takeaways - Nexter Grid View Theme Builder ships in the November 24, 2025 Unified Dashboard update and replaces the old plain table with a card-based layout for headers, footers, single post templates, archives, and 404 pages. - Grid View shows each template’s thumbnail-style preview, type, and display conditions, which helps a site with 15 to 20 templates be scanned in a few seconds. - WDesignKit provides ready-to-import templates for headers, footers, single posts, archives, and 404 pages inside the same Add New flow. - Grid View does not change templates or display conditions; switching between grid and table view only changes how the Theme Builder lists them. Open the Theme Builder in a site with a dozen templates and the old table view turns into a squint-and-scroll exercise: is "header-shop" the one with the mega menu, or is that "header-blog"? Nexter rebuilt that screen around a visual grid instead of a text table, and it shipped quietly inside a bigger November 2025 update. Most people only ever saw the changelog line. Here is what the Grid View Theme Builder actually does, and how to use it. Table of Contents ## What Changed: One Dashboard, One Visual Theme Builder The Grid View Theme Builder arrived alongside Nexter's Unified Dashboard update, announced November 24, 2025. Before that release, Nexter Blocks and Nexter Extension lived behind two separate admin menus, and the Theme Builder itself only offered a plain table: template name, template type, conditions, a row of icons, repeat. Functional, but not something you could scan. ![Nexter](https://nexterwp.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/nexter-pro-1024x568.png)Nexter's Unified Dashboard, shipped in the same November 2025 update as Grid View. Source: nexterwp.com product update, Nov 24, 2025. Grid View is the part of that update built specifically for the Theme Builder screen: a card-based layout where every header, footer, single post template, archive, and 404 page renders as a visual tile instead of a row of text. ## How to Switch to Grid View - Go to **Nexter → Theme Builder** in your WordPress admin (it lives inside the Unified Dashboard now, not a separate Nexter Extension menu). - Look for the view toggle in the top-right corner of the Theme Builder screen. - Switch from the table icon to the grid icon. Your existing templates instantly re-render as cards — nothing about the templates themselves changes, only how they're displayed. - Switch back to table view any time; Nexter remembers neither view is "correct," it's a display preference per user. ![Nexter Theme Builder in Grid View showing header, footer, and archive templates as visual cards](https://nexterwp.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/themebuilder.png)The Theme Builder's Grid View: every template renders as a card instead of a table row. Source: nexterwp.com product update, Nov 24, 2025. ## What You Can Actually Do From Grid View ### Scan every theme part at a glance Each card shows the template's thumbnail-style preview, its type (header, footer, single, archive, 404, and so on), and its display conditions. On a site with 15–20 templates — common once you're running different headers for a shop page versus a blog — that's the difference between opening five templates to find the right one and picking it out visually in a few seconds. ### Import pre-made templates through WDesignKit The same update paired Grid View with ready-to-import templates for headers, footers, single posts, archives, and 404 pages, pulled from [WDesignKit](https://wdesignkit.com/), Nexter's companion design-library plugin. Instead of starting a new theme part from a blank canvas, you can import a finished layout and adjust it, which matters most for the theme parts people build least often — 404 pages and archive templates rarely get the same attention as a homepage. ![WDesignKit template library homepage showing ready-made section and page designs](https://iad.microlink.io/g6XCHue_RrnE_B-xZg3AFgerI8RkOJKagXGABB7tfzSzjc204soGYHMMOVBIrFxHZU86BtGMtLhUH5AFcfM4hg.png)WDesignKit, the template library Grid View pulls pre-made theme parts from. Screenshot captured live, 2026-09-06. ### Spot what's active vs. what needs editing Because the visual state is front and center, an unfinished or unpublished template doesn't blend into a wall of text the way it can in a table. You notice the gap in the grid before a client does. ***Also Read:** [WordPress Theme Customization Without Touching Code](https://nexterwp.com/blog/wordpress-theme-customization/) — if you're new to block themes generally, start there before going deep on Nexter's Theme Builder specifically.* ## Grid View vs. Table View: When to Use Each Neither view is objectively better; they suit different moments in a build. - **Grid View** is faster when you're auditing a site with many templates, onboarding a client into an existing build, or deciding what to design next. - **Table View** is faster when you already know the exact template you want and just need to click straight into it, or when you're comparing display-condition rules side by side in a compact list. Most builders end up defaulting to Grid View day-to-day and dropping into Table View for that one condition-comparison task. ## Building Your First Template in Grid View - From the Grid View screen, click **Add New**. - Choose the template type — header, footer, single post, archive, or a custom template. - Pick **Start from Scratch** to build in Gutenberg with Nexter Blocks, or **Import from WDesignKit** to start from a finished layout. - Set your display conditions (for example, "Header → Shop page only" or "Footer → Entire site"). - Save and publish. The new card appears in your grid immediately, thumbnail and all. ***Also Read:** [How to Migrate from Elementor to Gutenberg](https://nexterwp.com/blog/elementor-to-gutenberg/) — if your existing theme parts are still built in Elementor, this walks through moving them into a Nexter/Gutenberg-based Theme Builder setup.* ## FAQ ### Do I lose my existing templates if I switch to Grid View? No. Grid View is purely a display mode for the Theme Builder screen. Your templates, their content, and their display conditions are unchanged — only the way they're listed changes. ### Is Grid View available on the free version of Nexter? Grid View is part of the Theme Builder inside the Nexter ecosystem's Unified Dashboard update; template-import access via WDesignKit and the full Theme Builder feature set follow Nexter's existing Free/Pro split for theme building. Check your current plan's Theme Builder access on the Nexter pricing page for specifics. ### Can I still build a template from scratch instead of importing one? Yes. WDesignKit's pre-made templates are optional. Grid View shows both an empty canvas and pre-made options in the same "Add New" flow. ## Conclusion Grid View doesn't replace anything you already had — it's a display layer on top of the same Theme Builder, and switching to it costs nothing. If you're managing more than a handful of templates, try it for a week before deciding whether Table View still earns a place in your workflow. ## Suggested Reading - [WordPress Theme Customization Without Touching Code](https://nexterwp.com/blog/wordpress-theme-customization/) - [How to Migrate from Elementor to Gutenberg](https://nexterwp.com/blog/elementor-to-gutenberg/) - [WordPress 7.1 Adds Tabs, but Not a Table of Contents. Do You Still Need a Blocks Plugin?](https://nexterwp.com/blog/do-you-still-need-a-gutenberg-blocks-plugin/) - [Web Design Trends 2026 (and How to Build Every One in Gutenberg)](https://nexterwp.com/blog/web-design-trends/) #### Stay updated with Helpful WordPress Tips, Insider Insights, and Exclusive Updates – Subscribe now to keep up with Everything Happening on WordPress! Subscribe