Bricks Builder Developer: Templates, Components, Query Loops and Safe Updates

One install that is both theme and builder

Most WordPress sites pair a theme from one company with a page builder from another. Bricks collapses the pair. You install it as a theme, and the visual builder lives inside it. It is sold by Codeer Limited, a company registered in Cyprus, and it is not on wordpress.org: downloads and license keys come from my.bricksbuilder.io. Version 1.0 shipped on March 15, 2021, and 2.4.2 was current on September 28, 2026.

That design changes what a developer does. Your header, footer, archive and single-post layouts are not theme settings; they are Bricks templates under Bricks > Templates, each with conditions deciding where it appears. Changing the theme means changing the builder, so nobody should do it casually. Bricks replaces the theme-plus-builder pair; it publishes no statement on running Elementor or Divi alongside it, and we would not try. It can convert content to and from the block editor, but only core WordPress blocks convert, not third-party ones.

In Bricks, a layout built once is a layout fixed once. A layout built fifty times is fifty fixes.

The Bricks toolkit, matched to the work

Every Bricks plan includes the full feature set; the pricing page lists more than 110 elements alongside the Query Loop, Menu, Popup and WooCommerce builders. The skill is in choosing the right tool for each job, so the site stays editable after we leave.

The order matters as much as the tools. We set global classes and variables before building a single page, because a color or spacing value defined once can be changed once. Then templates, then components, then the pages that use them. Sites built the other way around, page first, end up with hundreds of local styles that nobody can change without opening every page. Untangling that is often the largest line on a Bricks quote.

Custom elements go in the child theme, not the builder

When a site needs something no Bricks element does, we write one. A custom element is a PHP class extending Bricks' Element class, registered with Bricks' register_element() method on WordPress's init hook. Its controls are defined in set_controls(), its HTML comes from render(), and any scripts load through enqueue_scripts(). Bricks' own documentation recommends keeping custom elements in the Bricks child theme, downloadable from your account dashboard, so they survive every Bricks update and sit in version control where a second developer can read them.

Often a component is enough

Before writing PHP, we check whether a component will do. Components are reusable blueprints: change the main one and every instance follows, while each instance keeps its own property values and slot content. They cover most repeated design, from pricing cards to team bios. Two limits matter: you cannot create a component from a Template or Query Filter element, and anything that needs custom data or server logic still belongs in a custom element.

Bricks 2.4 moved fast. Your production site shouldn't

Bricks 2.4 arrived on September 16, 2026 with AI-assisted site editing, the Bricks Browser, modular Cart, Checkout and My Account v2 elements and a WooCommerce setup wizard. The bug forum filled up in the weeks after: SVGs not showing in the new media manager in 2.4.1, images not loading, broken taxonomy delimiter options, the experimental CSS Sync feature deleting or merging Custom CSS edits, theme styles leaking into the block editor, and a critical error in Account Page V2 on PHP 7.4. None of that is unusual for a fast release cadence. It is exactly why updates need a routine.

• Every Bricks update runs on staging first, with the pages that make money checked by hand.
• Experimental features, CSS Sync included, stay off on production until they leave experimental status.
• If the site uses external CSS files, we regenerate them after the update, since stale files are a common cause of Bricks CSS not updating.
• Cart, checkout and My Account get a test order before the update goes live.
• The PHP version is checked against known issues, and the last known-good Bricks zip is kept on file for a quick rollback.

If the editor will not open at all after an update, Bricks builder not loading walks through the usual causes.

The third option

Athena CMS, with AI agents on staff.

Not a theme and not a blank Next.js repo. The content system we put behind every custom site: plain fields, a real preview, every version kept, and AI agents that handle the chores a plugin only nags you about.

• PPicassoImages
• AApolloSite analysis
• AAresCompetitor watch
• PPrometheusContent holes
• AAtlasPage depth and structure
• DDelphiAI search visibility

ZDAOAand 12 more agents. Two come with Athena; the rest are monthly add-ons.

Meet the agentsTake the Athena tour

PPicassoWeekly · ImagesAApolloWeekly · Site analysis

The speed settings Bricks leaves to you

Bricks makes strong speed claims: the vendor says it earns top A grades in Lighthouse and GTmetrix out of the box, and its front end runs on vanilla JavaScript with no jQuery. That is a good starting point. The defaults still need decisions. Out of the box, Bricks prints its generated styles inline. Switching Bricks > Settings > Performance > CSS Loading Method to External Files writes per-page CSS files the browser can cache, with a Regenerate CSS files button for after changes.

Fonts need the same care. The Font Manager can download Google Fonts to serve them from your own server, but an open forum report says the download pulls every unicode-range variant, so we trim the files to the character sets you use. On mobile, the Nav (Nestable) element shows nothing at the mobile breakpoint if its toggle is removed, which Bricks staff confirmed is expected; see Bricks mobile menu not working. The full tuning list is in the Bricks speed guide.

Bricks licensing, settled before we touch the site

A few terms save arguments later. Local and staging sites do not count against the site limit on any plan. The 60-day money-back guarantee covers the first purchase only, not renewals or upgrades; renewals have a 30-day refund window instead. Under the terms of service, once you have made at least one successful, non-refunded yearly payment, you may keep using Bricks after cancelling, though updates stop. We set the license up in your account, never ours, so the site does not depend on us. Details are on the Bricks pricing page.

How a Bricks project runs

1. 1

   Audit

   We map every template and its conditions, count one-off styles against global classes, list plugins and check the Bricks and PHP versions. It starts with the free site audit.

2. 2

   Fixed quote

   A written scope and one price, agreed before work begins.

3. 3

   Design system first

   Colors, type, spacing and global classes defined once, so every later page inherits them.

4. 4

   Templates and components

   Header, footer, archives, single layouts and the repeated blocks, built as components with clear property names.

5. 5

   Content through query loops

   Listings, related posts and product grids pulled from your content instead of pasted in.

6. 6

   Update rehearsal and handover

   A full update on staging, then a handover note covering templates, components, custom elements and the update routine.

Cost drivers, and the owners Bricks will frustrate

Cost follows the number of distinct templates, how many components and custom elements the design needs, WooCommerce depth, and how much existing one-off styling must be folded into classes. No prices here; the audit ends in a fixed quote, and WordPress financing is available. For how Bricks stacks up before you commit, compare Bricks vs Elementor and Kadence vs Bricks.

We will also tell you when Bricks is wrong. If your team wants to drag blocks around without learning classes and conditions, the learning curve will hurt more than it helps. If the site needs members, dashboards, a custom database or hundreds of generated pages, a Next.js build carries that more cleanly, with Athena CMS giving editors plain fields and agents like Aegis checking for intrusions daily. The trade is spelled out in Bricks vs Next.js, and the move in Bricks to Next.js. Our other theme work lives under WordPress theme developer services.