A handcrafted WordPress theme built for solo developers and freelancers. Zero plugins. Zero jQuery. Zero compromises — just clean, fast, beautiful code ready to show off your best work.
Why SoloDev
Every feature exists because a solo developer actually needed it. No bloat, no dependencies, no compromises.
Everything — forms, post types, dark mode, pagination, widgets, social sharing, PWA tags, unified RSS feed, enforcing CSP with per-request nonce — is built directly into the theme. No bloat, no plugin conflicts, no update chaos.
Three-way default: system preference, always light, or always dark — set in the Customizer. User
toggle persists in localStorage with zero flash on load. A pageshow listener re-syncs the colour scheme when the page is restored from the browser back-forward cache (bfcache); the handler is a named function with a paired pagehide cleanup listener so it never accumulates across navigations.
Contact, quote, and SEO audit forms all post via fetch() with inline messaging. Contact and SEO
audit forms auto-initialise via [data-ajax-form] HTML attributes — no separate wrapper
scripts needed. Nonce-verified, sanitized, honeypot-protected, rate-limited, HTML email
notifications with branded table layout. Each fetch uses an AbortController; the request is aborted on pagehide so handlers never fire on navigated-away pages.
Pull up to 200 repos from the GitHub REST API with language filter, real-time search, and client-side pagination. Cached 12 hours, token stays server-side only. A daily WP-Cron event proactively refreshes the cache so visitors never hit a cold-cache delay.
Show clients exactly what you're working on. Idea → In Progress → Near Completion → Shipped. Server-rendered board with live JS filtering by type and stage.
Hero copy, stats, pricing plans, hero CTA anchor (hero_cta_primary_anchor), 404 quote URL (error_404_quote_url), dark mode default, pagination counts, logo initials, GitHub
credentials, and social sharing toggle — all tweakable from the Customizer. All text and number settings use
postMessage transport for instant live preview without a page reload, powered by customize-preview.js (43 bindings). GitHub API token is masked as a password input.
Automatic JSON-LD for every page type. Homepage emits WebSite with a SearchAction for Sitelinks Searchbox eligibility. BreadcrumbList JSON-LD added on pages with 2+ breadcrumbs. Standalone Organization schema (with sameAs) links to the Person node via worksFor. Person schema queued globally on every page. BlogPosting includes wordCount, articleSection, and keywords. Feed autodiscovery links emitted for all three RSS channels. OG images validated to 1200×630 minimum before output. og:image:alt and twitter:image:alt use descriptive content (excerpt/SEO description) rather than page title. Sitemap taxonomy entries include <lastmod> dates.
A SoloDev Overview widget on the WP admin dashboard shows project count, download count, and the 5 most recent inquiries with colour-coded type and status badges — at a glance, without leaving the dashboard.
Project and Download CPTs register default block editor templates so new posts open with a useful starting structure. Starter content pre-fills sample pages, menus, and theme mods for an instant first impression on a fresh install.
Complete Template Set
From hero to case study, every page is fully designed and ready to fill with your real content. Just activate and go.
Hero with animated blobs, filterable project grid, pricing plans, testimonials, and contact CTA — all in one scroll.
Paginated archive of completed projects with server-side type filter. Filter buttons are
dynamic — only types with completed projects appear. Pretty URLs
(/projects/javascript/ etc.) — bookmarkable, SEO-friendly, and pagination-aware.
Bio paragraph, three stat cards, tech stack pill grid, and a work-together CTA. All content controlled via Customizer → About Page.
Three service cards, a four-step "How I work" process grid, and a quote CTA. Both card content and process steps are fully Customizer-driven.
Kanban board with Idea, In Progress, Near Completion, and Shipped columns. Filter by type and stage live.
Filterable, searchable product grid. Client-side pagination, category pills, live name search — all without a page reload.
Featured client feedback with star ratings, avatars, roles, and snapshot stats. Let your happy clients do the talking.
Paginated post archive with featured card, category sidebar, read time, and category-aware fallback images when no thumbnail is set.
Live GitHub repo showcase. Fetches up to 200 repos, language filter, real-time search, animated star/fork counters.
Detailed project intake form with budget, timeline, complexity sliders, and range inputs. AJAX submission, no reload.
Clean name/email/message form with sidebar info cards. AJAX submission with inline success/error messaging.
Site URL, theme, SEO plugin, schema types, and primary concern fields. Perfect for lead capture around your audit offering.
Custom Post Types
Four custom post types replace what would normally require multiple plugins. All built-in, all secure, all yours.
solodev_project
Full portfolio pieces with 16 meta fields. Type, stack, kanban stage, progress percentage, highlights, features list, tech stack pills, timeline, gallery, and related projects.
solodev_download
Distributable products with full metadata — version, license, file size, browser support, ZIP/GitHub/preview/docs links, changelog, setup guide, file tree, and an AJAX download counter.
solodev_testimonial
Client quotes with avatar, role, company, star rating (1–5), and a featured flag to promote your
best reviews to the top of the testimonials page. Display-only — no standalone front-end URLs (public => false). Aggregate rating cached in a 1-day transient, busted on save/trash/delete.
solodev_inquiry
Private form submissions from contact, quote, and SEO audit forms. Non-public, no public URL, non-deletable by non-admins. Manage status (New / Reviewed / Replied) from the WP admin.
JavaScript Features
Every interactive feature is pure ES6+ vanilla JavaScript. Fast, dependency-free, and readable.
aria-current="true" on the active link for screen readers
Design System
A full design token system with custom colors, shadows, animations, glassmorphism utilities, and component classes — all built on Tailwind v3.
Security & Hardening
Security isn't an afterthought here — it's baked into every form, AJAX handler, and data output from day one.
img-src narrowed to https://secure.gravatar.com
solodev_get_contact_email() instead of raw admin_email
Get Started
Download the zip, upload to WordPress via Appearance → Themes → Add New → Upload Theme, then activate.
Create pages with these slugs and the theme auto-applies the right template:
projectsProjects Archive
aboutAbout Page
servicesServices Page
boardPipeline Board
downloadsDownloads Grid
open-sourceGitHub Page
get-a-quoteQuote Form
contactContact Form
Head to Appearance → Customize and tweak to your heart's content:
Download SoloDev, install it in five minutes, and start showing the world what you've built. No license fees. No subscriptions. Just your work, beautifully presented.