Kwik is the third starter template or starter theme to release for Thrive Theme Builder. The focus of Kwik is page speed and an emphasis on performing well under Google's Core Web Vitals. If speed and a new design interest you, read on!
The technical infrastructure of Thrive Theme Builder, and all of Thrive Suite for that matter, has already been addressed with Project Lightspeed and Thrive's on-going optimization efforts. Those things combined with best practices to speed up your Thrive Suite website will yield the greatest speed improvements.
Kwik gives Theme Builder users a starting point and a reference for what a well-optimized website can look like using Thrive Theme Builder. It focuses on the subtle nuances of design that can potentially improve speed, which are much harder to get right than a one-click optimization.
Is Kwik an actual theme?
Kwik is not a theme in the WordPress definition of themes. It is a theme for Thrive Theme Builder, which itself is a WordPress theme. It's best to consider Kwik a "starter theme" or a "theming" of Thrive Theme Builder. It's a collection of pre-built templates to get you started.
Is the Kwik theme faster than Shapeshift, Ommi, or any other Thrive Theme Builder theme?
Kwik utilizes good design principles and best practices. It minimizes background images, uses system fonts, reduces the amount of elements loading above the fold, and presents as a minimal footprint.
That said, Everything Kwik does is replicable using any of the starter designs. There is no technical difference between Kwik and any of the Theme Builder starting points. It's all design.
Is Kwik required for a good Core Web Vitals score?
There are numerous optimizations you can make that will have a much greater impact on your site's speed and your CWV scores. I have a guide available for how to improve your Thrive Suite website's speed that goes into these in details.
Kwik is a good starting point for those who want to keep their design minimal and not have it negatively impact how fast their site loads. But remember, as soon as you start customizing the templates you are potentially changing their effectiveness.
Are Shapeshift and Ommi as fast as Kwik?
I want to re-emphasize that none of the starter themes matter beyond a helpful hand in starting on your design. They're just templates with varying aesthetics. I used Shapeshift when I started this site, but as I showed in my how to get started with Thrive Theme Builder post, I literally strip my starter themes to blank pages.
Then I build whatever design I want. Most of my designs that are custom and built simply to look the way I want STILL score near-perfect on speed tests.
It's THEME BUILDER that's fast and optimized. Combined with a great host (like BigScoots), you don't need much else.
Should You Switch to Kwik Theme
If your website is already built or you've made any progress at all, you should not switch to Kwik. Make sure you're following best practices for speed and you're set.
If you haven't started your website yet, or want to do a complete redesign, then you can consider Kwik as a starting point for your design. I'm not a designer, but to me the look is modern/contemporary and minimalistic. If that's your thing, and you don't want to do a lot of customization, you'll love it. Need to squeeze out every ounce of speed you can get? It's going to give you a great start.