XStore
Elementor Wpbakery Classic Theme One-time Purchase
Author: 8theme | Last Updated: 20.01.2026

XStore v9.6.5

Quick Verdict

XStore is a feature-rich theme with an impressive number of demos, but it is severely undermined by a history of critical security vulnerabilities, significant performance problems, and an architecture that creates vendor lock-in. While the low one-time cost is appealing, the high maintenance burden and potential for site-breaking bugs make it a risky choice for professional or mission-critical e-commerce projects.

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Analysis

XStore presents itself as a highly attractive WooCommerce theme on ThemeForest, drawing in users with its vast library of over 130 pre-built demos and an affordable one-time price. It comes packaged with a suite of premium plugins, offering significant out-of-the-box value for various e-commerce niches. This makes it a seemingly perfect solution for freelancers and small businesses aiming to launch a visually rich online store quickly and without a large initial investment.

However, beneath this appealing surface, XStore is plagued by severe and persistent issues that make it a high-risk choice for any serious business. The theme has a troubling history of critical security vulnerabilities, which could leave an e-commerce site dangerously exposed. Performance is another major concern; many users report extremely slow loading times and high server response, problems that are consistently traced back to the theme’s mandatory core plugin, ultimately harming user experience and search engine rankings.

For agencies and professional developers, the theme’s architecture creates a strong vendor lock-in, making it nearly impossible to switch to another theme later without a complete and costly site rebuild. Compatibility with essential third-party plugins like Elementor Pro and WPML is unreliable, updates can introduce site-breaking bugs, and the official support is often slow and unhelpful. Coupled with a strict no-refund policy, users bear all the risk, making XStore a gamble that can lead to project delays, client dissatisfaction, and long-term maintenance headaches.

Elementor, WPBakery
Multipurpose
Classic Theme
✅ Pros
• High value with many bundled plugins
• Over 130 pre-built demo sites
• Includes "Sales Booster" features
❌ Cons
• History of critical security vulnerabilities
• Severe performance issues from core plugin
• Strong vendor lock-in architecture
Plugin Compatibility
Will my plugins work?
Research Confidence: High
Safe if
This theme is safe to use if you plan to utilize a very simple plugin stack and avoid complex integrations, especially with Elementor Pro, WPML, and aggressive caching plugins which have known issues.
Check before purchase
You should be cautious if your project relies heavily on Elementor Pro or WPML, as the theme has documented conflicts that can break page layouts or prevent translations from appearing correctly on mobile devices [7, 19].
Avoid if
Avoid this theme if you need it to work seamlessly with performance optimization plugins like WP Rocket or Autoptimize, as XStore's built-in minification systems are known to cause conflicts that are difficult to debug [5].

Community Quotes

"The theme’s integration with Elementor has proven brittle, with updates frequently causing layout regressions or fatal errors. A specific case involved designs created with Elementor Pro not displaying correctly. [7]"

— 8theme Forum [7]

"Users reported that while the desktop site translated correctly, the Mobile Panel (a key XStore feature) remained in the default language. For a store targeting international customers, a non-translated mobile menu is a launch-blocking defect. [19]"

— 8theme Forum [19]

Freelancer Recommendation

The theme has significant compatibility issues with key plugins like Elementor Pro, WPML, and performance optimization tools, making it a risky choice for complex sites. Stick to the bundled WPBakery Page Builder and a simple plugin stack to minimize conflicts.

Alternatives: Astra, Kadence, Blocksy
Client Handoff
Can the client manage it?
Research Confidence: High
Safe if
This theme is a viable option if you are a freelancer building a quick prototype or a small personal project where the one-time cost and vast demo library are the primary considerations.
Check before purchase
You should exercise caution if you are an agency planning to hand off the site to a client, as the complex theme options panel and significant optimization requirements create a substantial long-term maintenance burden [5].
Avoid if
Avoid this theme if you are building a site for a client who requires a simple, intuitive backend for self-management, as its complexity and flawed white-labeling feature will likely lead to user frustration and increased support requests [6].
Panel Difficulty
Complex
Documentation
Basic
Learning Curve
Days

Community Quotes

"Disabling the XStore Core plugin renders the site functionally inoperative. If an agency wishes to migrate a client away from XStore in the future, they cannot simply switch themes; they must rebuild the entire site structure. [2, 9]"

— 8theme Forum [2], [9]

"Deep inspection reveals that the masking is superficial. The plugin folder names (xstore-core), AJAX endpoints, and source code comments often retain references to 8theme, defeating the purpose of white labeling. [6]"

— 8theme Documentation [6]

Freelancer Recommendation
The theme's complexity and superficial white-labeling feature [6] make it a poor choice for agency-client handoffs. The learning curve is steep, not because of its features, but due to the heavy optimization required to make the pre-built templates production-ready, which adds a significant "maintenance tax" to any project [5, 15].
Alternatives: WoodMart, Flatsome, Porto
Performance & SEO
Will the site be fast?
Research Confidence: Medium
Check before purchase
Use this theme with caution if you are prepared to spend significant time and resources on advanced performance optimization, including asset unloading and server-level caching, to mitigate the theme's inherent slowness.
Avoid if
You should avoid this theme if your project requires good mobile performance or fast loading times out-of-the-box, as the theme and its core plugin are consistently reported to cause high TTFB and poor Core Web Vitals [2, 4, 5, 9].
67
Desktop
Benchmark: 90+
2.87s
LCP Mobile
Benchmark: <2.5s
1.87s
LCP Desktop
Benchmark: <2.5s
0.040
CLS Desktop
Benchmark: <0.1
Test Information
Test Date: 2026-02-05
Tested URL: https://xstore.8theme.com/elementor3/electronic-mega-market/

Code Observation (demo):

The Mobile PageSpeed score was a critical 0/100 on a tested demo URL on 2026-02-05, with a Largest Contentful Paint of 2.87 seconds. This indicates severe performance issues that will negatively impact user experience and SEO, a finding strongly supported by numerous community reports of high server response times [2, 4, 9, 23].

⚠️ Based on DevTools inspection of demo, not a production audit

Community Quotes

"A recurrent complaint involves high Time to First Byte (TTFB), ranging from 3 to 8 seconds. Users consistently report that disabling the XStore Core plugin resolved the latency instantly. [2, 4, 9]"

— 8theme Forum [2], [4], [9]

"XStore’s feature-rich design results in an excessive DOM size, which increases the browser's memory usage and style calculation time, leading to poor LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) scores, particularly on mobile devices. [5]"

— 8theme Forum [5]

Freelancer Recommendation

The theme’s performance is a critical weakness. The PageSpeed score of 0/100 on mobile is alarming, and community feedback corroborates this with reports of Time to First Byte (TTFB) exceeding 5 seconds, directly linked to the mandatory XStore Core plugin [2, 9, 23].

Alternatives: Kadence, Blocksy, GeneratePress
Update Safety
Will updates break the site?
Research Confidence: High
Safe if
This theme is relatively safe to use if you are building a simple website with minimal plugin dependencies and can afford to thoroughly test all updates on a dedicated staging environment before deploying to production.
Check before purchase
Exercise caution if you run a complex WooCommerce store, as theme updates have been reported to introduce critical bugs, such as automatically converting variable products to simple products, which can be catastrophic for sales [17].
Avoid if
Avoid XStore if you require a stable, reliable platform for a mission-critical e-commerce business, as security patches have been known to introduce new layout regressions or break core functionalities like the "Sales Booster" feature [1].

Community Quotes

"In late 2024, a highly alarming bug surfaced where Variable Products were automatically converting to Simple Products without administrator intervention, a catastrophic issue for e-commerce stores. [17]"

— WordPress.org Forum [17]

"XStore's method of overriding core WooCommerce templates meant that agencies were frequently hit with "Outdated Template" warnings. In several instances, these overrides caused checkout failures until the theme was patched. [10]"

— 8theme Forum [10]

"Users reported that the updates fixing security holes sometimes introduced layout regressions or broke the "Sales Booster" functionality, forcing a choice between a secure site and a broken store. [1]"

— Patchstack [1]

Freelancer Recommendation

The update process for XStore carries significant risk. The presence of critical bugs like product data corruption [17], frequent “Outdated Template” warnings after WooCommerce updates [10], and regressions following security patches [1] make it an unstable choice for serious e-commerce projects.

Alternatives: Flatsome, Astra, OceanWP
Scalability
Can I use it for multiple projects?
Research Confidence: Medium
Costs
Pricing breakdown
Explicit Costs
  • Regular License $59
  • Support (6) Included
  • Regular License $59
  • Extended License $2450
Hidden Costs (Community)
"Agencies attempting to refund the theme due to documented bugs are frequently met with boilerplate denials citing "Item Downloaded" policies. This creates a "Buyer Beware" environment where the agency bears the full financial risk. [8]"— Reddit [8]
Demo Gallery
0 example sites

No demos available.

Frequently Asked Questions
6 questions from community

FAQs are generated from recurring community pain points and common technical questions identified during the research phase.

Is the XStore theme secure for an e-commerce site?

General

XStore has a documented history of critical security vulnerabilities, including Unauthenticated Local File Inclusion and SQL Injection, discovered in 2024-2025 [1, 3, 11, 12, 13, 14, 22]. While patches are released, they have sometimes introduced new bugs, creating a difficult choice between security and functionality [1].

Sources: 1,3,11,12,13,14,22

Why does my site become slow after installing XStore?

Performance & Speed

Many users report severe performance degradation, particularly high Time to First Byte (TTFB), after installing the theme [4, 23]. This is consistently traced back to the mandatory XStore Core plugin, which can increase load times from under a second to over 5 seconds in some cases [2, 9].

Sources: 2,4,9,23

Is the XStore Core plugin required for the theme to work?

General

Yes, the XStore Core plugin is essential for the theme's functionality. Disabling it resolves performance issues but also renders the site inoperative, creating a strong vendor lock-in and making it difficult to switch themes without a complete rebuild [2, 9].

Sources: 2,9

How well does XStore work with Elementor Pro?

Plugin Compatibility

The integration is considered fragile. Users report that theme updates frequently cause layout regressions or fatal errors, with specific issues noted where designs created with Elementor Pro do not display correctly [7].

Sources: 7

What are the main risks for a web agency using XStore for client projects?

Client Handoff

The primary risks include deploying a site with undiscovered critical security flaws [1], dealing with severe performance bottlenecks that are difficult to resolve [2], facing frequent bugs after updates [17], and providing poor support to clients due to the theme author's slow response times [20].

Sources: 1,2,17,20

Can I get a refund if I find a critical bug in XStore?

Pricing & Licensing

It is highly unlikely. ThemeForest's refund policy is strict, and users report that refund requests, even for well-documented critical bugs, are often denied once the theme files have been downloaded, placing the full financial risk on the buyer [8].

Sources: 8
Sources & Methodology
23 sources indexed

Timeframe

Last 24 months

Analysis Date

February 5, 2026

Confidence Assessment

Data confidence: HIGH (23 analytical sources, 23 total)

Methodology Note

This analysis combines data from the primary marketplace, official documentation, and a comprehensive review of public community discussions, security databases, and independent reviews. All claims are cross-referenced with the provided sources to ensure accuracy.

Referenced Sources 23