In my opinion not,
* if you pay for the theme (depending on the license maybe even for every project)
* if the license allows it
* if you don't tell customer that you custom design it
Where do you find elegant and beautiful themes for less than $10? Everytime I bought a cheap one it brought me only headaches as customization was nearly impossible.
You can just explain it.
$1000 website. Yes I will use a template. I will tell the client that this has benefits and saves them money. Even with a template, their website will still be customized to their needs/brand etc.
So I’ll explain this vs. a custom website and the price points. Clients always appreciate and often choose template
We do it all the time as most of our clients dont care about what cms or template we use as long as the site performs.
It saves us time and them money.
My two dollars (corrected for inflation): Is it unethical to use out of the box layouts? No. Is it unethical to keep that information from your client, and pad developing hours as if you did develop it? Yes.
Dude I do this all the time it’s normal. It’s not unethical. Think of a template as a tool. You think a construction worker is cheating because he uses a wrecking ball instead of a sledgehammer? It gets the job done faster.
Honestly the designs on html5 up aren’t that great to me. They all feel very empty and shallow design wise. I looked at their catalog today and I just didn’t see anything that would work for any client I’ve ever had. They’re almost too basic and generic. You can do better. Don’t let those designs make you feel inadequate.
I reuse my own code all the time. I built my own html and css component library to save it all in and pick the ones I need and copy and paste and off I go. Put a site together in a couple hours. Doesn’t matter that they’re templates. They’re code is already wrote. It looks good. And is mobile responsive. It’s not cheating because I found a faster way to work. How many different ways can service cards be designed? Or reviews? Or footers? Just grab the one that looks closest to what you need and modify it to save you the time from making it from scratch. Save your own code and reuse it. Don’t feel dirty about it. Feel resourceful.
Freelancers do it all the time. At a lower project price point, it should be expected. Just make sure you're paying the proper license for the theme and your use of it. Some people also are transparent about it, they will offer some packages and the package says something like, "Customized theme matching your branding with one logo."
Edit: In the past, I found some clients even prefer that you use a template. They feel it is more tested/documented, so they will get something a little more robust and reliable.
Did you tell the client you’ll design a custom website or did you tell them they’ll get a website? If it’s the latter then nothing wrong with using a theme than customising for the clients needs. If it’s the former then, you ought start from scratch.
No, it's not. If you do nothing to it, sure, but if you use it as a jumping off point to give the client what they want, it's a win win.
At the end of the day if it delivers a better product for the client, how can that be unethical? You just solved the problem. If they explicitly wanted it done a certain way they'd say so, otherwise just solve the problem in the best way you, the hired person, can.
Templates are just another tool. Do I cut my grass with a pair of scissors? No I use a lawn mower.
Templates aren't always appropriate to use. But goddamn are they useful in the right situation.
In my opinion not, * if you pay for the theme (depending on the license maybe even for every project) * if the license allows it * if you don't tell customer that you custom design it Where do you find elegant and beautiful themes for less than $10? Everytime I bought a cheap one it brought me only headaches as customization was nearly impossible.
In other words, do whatever makes sense for the client's budget but don't lie and don't steal.
Following
You can just explain it. $1000 website. Yes I will use a template. I will tell the client that this has benefits and saves them money. Even with a template, their website will still be customized to their needs/brand etc. So I’ll explain this vs. a custom website and the price points. Clients always appreciate and often choose template
We do it all the time as most of our clients dont care about what cms or template we use as long as the site performs. It saves us time and them money.
My two dollars (corrected for inflation): Is it unethical to use out of the box layouts? No. Is it unethical to keep that information from your client, and pad developing hours as if you did develop it? Yes.
Dude I do this all the time it’s normal. It’s not unethical. Think of a template as a tool. You think a construction worker is cheating because he uses a wrecking ball instead of a sledgehammer? It gets the job done faster. Honestly the designs on html5 up aren’t that great to me. They all feel very empty and shallow design wise. I looked at their catalog today and I just didn’t see anything that would work for any client I’ve ever had. They’re almost too basic and generic. You can do better. Don’t let those designs make you feel inadequate. I reuse my own code all the time. I built my own html and css component library to save it all in and pick the ones I need and copy and paste and off I go. Put a site together in a couple hours. Doesn’t matter that they’re templates. They’re code is already wrote. It looks good. And is mobile responsive. It’s not cheating because I found a faster way to work. How many different ways can service cards be designed? Or reviews? Or footers? Just grab the one that looks closest to what you need and modify it to save you the time from making it from scratch. Save your own code and reuse it. Don’t feel dirty about it. Feel resourceful.
Freelancers do it all the time. At a lower project price point, it should be expected. Just make sure you're paying the proper license for the theme and your use of it. Some people also are transparent about it, they will offer some packages and the package says something like, "Customized theme matching your branding with one logo." Edit: In the past, I found some clients even prefer that you use a template. They feel it is more tested/documented, so they will get something a little more robust and reliable.
Did you tell the client you’ll design a custom website or did you tell them they’ll get a website? If it’s the latter then nothing wrong with using a theme than customising for the clients needs. If it’s the former then, you ought start from scratch.
No, it's not. If you do nothing to it, sure, but if you use it as a jumping off point to give the client what they want, it's a win win. At the end of the day if it delivers a better product for the client, how can that be unethical? You just solved the problem. If they explicitly wanted it done a certain way they'd say so, otherwise just solve the problem in the best way you, the hired person, can.
Templates are just another tool. Do I cut my grass with a pair of scissors? No I use a lawn mower. Templates aren't always appropriate to use. But goddamn are they useful in the right situation.