Moove is a free, open-source Moodle theme by Willian Mano, released under GPL v3 and the most-installed free theme on moodle.org (26,041 sites in October 2026). It is a Boost child theme, so course pages and admin screens behave like standard Moodle, while it adds a modern front page, login page, fonts, footer and branding settings. Moove 5.3.1 already supports Moodle 5.3. It suits sites that want a clean look without a developer; for role-based dashboards or custom layouts you will need template overrides or a child theme.
Key takeaways
- Moove is free and open source (GPL v3), developed and maintained by Willian Mano since 2017.
- It is the most-installed free Moodle theme, with 26,041 sites listed on moodle.org in October 2026.
- It is a Boost child theme, so core Moodle behaviour, the course index and edit mode stay intact.
- Moove 5.3.1 supports Moodle 5.3; separate branches cover 5.2, 5.1 and 4.5 LTS. Install the one matching your version.
- No-code settings cover logo, colours, 15 fonts, front-page slider, marketing boxes, FAQ, footer, WhatsApp button and an experimental dark mode.
- The ceiling is layout: different dashboards or page structures need Mustache overrides or a child theme.
What is the Moove theme for Moodle?
Moove is a free, open-source Moodle theme developed and maintained by Willian Mano. It is published in the Moodle plugins directory and its source is on GitHub under the GNU GPL v3 licence, where the repository dates back to April 2017. Its own description is short: "A Moodle Boost child theme". It is the most-installed free theme in the directory, with 26,041 sites listed on moodle.org when we checked in October 2026.
Being a Boost child theme matters more than any screenshot. Moove's config.php declares $THEME->parents = ['boost'], so course pages, the course index drawer, the edit-mode switch and admin screens behave the way Moodle administrators expect. Moove then adds its own front page, login page, fonts, footer and a set of branding settings on top. It uses Mustache templates and a renderer factory, which is also how you override its layout when you outgrow the settings.
Does Moove support Moodle 5.3, and is it still maintained?
Yes. Moove keeps one Git branch per Moodle release, and the main branch already targets Moodle 5.3:
| Moove release | Branch | Requires Moodle | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.3.1 (version 2026101200) | main | 5.3 | Moodle 5.3 compatibility, colour modes, floating WhatsApp button |
| 5.2.2 (version 2026042200) | MOODLE_502_STABLE | 5.2 | Login page and policy-page fixes in July 2026 |
| 5.1.2 (version 2025093001) | MOODLE_501_STABLE | 5.1 | |
| 4.5.2 (version 2024100802) | MOODLE_405_STABLE | 4.5 LTS | For sites still on the 4.5 long-term support branch |
Moodle tagged version 5.3.0 on 3 October 2026. Moove's "Compatibility with moodle 5.3" commit landed on 8 October, and a Moodle 5.3 dashboard fix (duplicate dashboard blocks, issue #541) followed on 22 October. All of these branches are marked MATURITY_STABLE. For a free theme maintained by one developer, that is a fast and steady record.
The real caveat is coupling, not maintenance. With any third-party theme you cannot move to a new Moodle version until the theme supports it, and your upgrade timetable now depends on someone else's. Pick the branch that matches your Moodle version rather than the newest code, and test every Moodle upgrade with the theme on a staging copy first. Our Moodle upgrade guide covers that process.
What can you customise in Moove without code?
Moove's settings live under Site administration > Appearance > Themes > Moove, split into five tabs. From the plugin source:
- General: logo, favicon, preset (default or plain, or upload your own SCSS preset), login page background image, brand colour, secondary menu colour, site font (15 choices including Roboto, Poppins, Montserrat, Inter, Lato and Open Sans), course index on or off, and a classic breadcrumb option.
- Advanced: raw initial SCSS and raw SCSS boxes, a Google Analytics ID and extra CSS for H5P content.
- Front page: a slideshow (classic, centred or editorial layout) with per-slide image, title and caption; marketing boxes with icons and text; a site numbers section showing active users and courses; an FAQ section; and an option to hide teacher pictures.
- Footer: website, phone and email, social links (Facebook, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, Telegram, WhatsApp), and a floating WhatsApp contact button with a preset message.
- Colour mode: an experimental light/dark switch with a default mode (light, dark or system) and a separate dark-mode logo. It is off by default, and the theme warns that plugins not yet checked in dark mode may still draw light pages.
Some settings, such as the marketing boxes and the FAQ count, only show their input fields after you choose them and click Save. That trips up a lot of first-time setups.
Where you hit Moove's ceiling
| What you want to change | Possible in Moove settings? |
|---|---|
| Logo, favicon, brand colour, font, login background | Yes, General tab |
| Front-page slider, marketing boxes, numbers, FAQ | Yes, Front page tab |
| Footer contacts, social links, WhatsApp button | Yes, Footer tab |
| Spacing, type and colour tweaks beyond the pickers | Yes, with the raw SCSS boxes |
| Dark mode | Yes, but experimental and off by default |
| A different course card or dashboard layout | No, needs Mustache template overrides |
| Different home pages or dashboards per audience or role | No, needs custom development |
| New page templates or bespoke components | No, needs your own child theme |
If you are writing pages of SCSS to fight the supplied layout, you have passed the point where a settings-driven theme saves time. The better path then is a child theme of Moove or Boost, with your changes in templates rather than overrides piled into the settings page.
- 1Pick the Moove version that matches your Moodle
Download from the Moodle plugins directory, or use the matching GitHub branch: main for Moodle 5.3, MOODLE_502_STABLE for 5.2, MOODLE_405_STABLE for 4.5 LTS.
- 2Install on a staging copy first
Changing the theme changes every page for every user, so test on a clone of your site, never straight on production.
- 3Add the theme to Moodle
Use Site administration > Plugins > Install plugins with the ZIP, or unzip it into the theme folder and keep the folder name moove.
- 4Run the upgrade and activate Moove
Visit Site administration > Notifications to complete the install, then select Moove under Appearance > Themes.
- 5Set branding on the General tab
Upload your logo and favicon, set the brand colour and font, and add a login background image.
- 6Build the front page, then purge caches
Configure the slider, marketing boxes and footer, click Save to reveal dependent fields, purge all caches, and check the front page, a course page and the login page on a phone.
Moove is the right call when
- You want a clean, modern Moodle quickly without writing code
- Branding means a logo, colours, a font and front-page content
- You have no front-end developer and no theme budget
- You want a widely used theme that tracks each Moodle release
- You plan to build a child theme on a well-known base
Look further when
- Different audiences or roles need different dashboards
- Your brand team needs template-level, not settings-level, control
- You are writing lots of SCSS to fight the layout
- Dark mode must be production-ready across every plugin
- Your upgrade plan cannot wait on a third-party theme release
Is Moove still maintained? Yes
Moove added Moodle 5.3 support within days of Moodle 5.3.0 being tagged on 3 October 2026, and kept fixing 5.3 issues through October. The question to ask is not whether it is maintained, but whether a settings-driven theme can express what your learners need.
Before you switch a live site
Install on staging, check the front page, a course page, the dashboard, the login page and mobile view, and confirm key plugins still render. Note your previous theme so you can switch back, and purge all caches after every change.
Is Moove better than Academi, Boost Union or Adaptable?
They solve different problems. Moove is the easiest modern starting point. Academi gives a more marketing-style, catalogue front page. Boost Union stays closest to core Boost and is the most upgrade-safe. Adaptable exposes the most layout settings. Our guide to the best free Moodle themes in 2026 compares all of them, and the best Moodle themes with advanced features round-up covers premium options.
| If you need | Choose |
|---|---|
| A clean, modern site with little effort | Moove |
| A marketing-style course catalogue front page | Academi |
| The safest upgrades, close to core Boost | Boost Union |
| The most layout configuration without code | Adaptable |
| Role-based dashboards or a strict brand system | A custom child theme |
Who should use Moove?
Moove fits schools, colleges, coaching institutes and training teams that want Moodle to look modern quickly, have no front-end developer, and are happy for branding to mean a logo, colours, a font and curated front-page content. It is also a sensible base for a child theme, because it is widely used, well understood and tracks each Moodle release.
It is the wrong tool when different audiences need different experiences, when your brand team needs pixel-level control, or when you cannot accept waiting on a third-party release before a Moodle upgrade.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Moove theme for Moodle free?
Yes. Moove is free and open source under the GNU GPL v3 licence. You can download it from the Moodle plugins directory or GitHub and use it without a licence fee.
Who develops the Moove theme?
Willian Mano develops and maintains Moove. The source code, issue tracker and documentation wiki are public on GitHub, where the project started in April 2017.
Does Moove work with Moodle 5.3?
Yes. Moove 5.3.1 on the main branch requires Moodle 5.3. Older branches cover Moodle 5.2, 5.1 and 4.5 LTS, so install the version that matches your site.
How do I install the Moove theme in Moodle?
Upload the ZIP through Site administration > Plugins > Install plugins, or copy the moove folder into Moodle's theme directory. Then go to Site administration > Notifications to finish the install and select Moove under Appearance > Themes.
Is Moove a Boost child theme?
Yes. Its config sets Boost as the parent theme, so it inherits Boost's page structure, course index and edit mode and adds its own front page, login page and branding settings.
Does Moove have a dark mode?
Yes, as an experimental option. Turn on colour modes in the Colour mode tab, choose a default mode and upload a dark logo. It is off by default because some plugins may not display correctly in dark mode yet.
How do I change the Moove front page?
Use the Front page tab to set the slideshow, marketing boxes, site numbers and FAQ. For marketing boxes and FAQs, choose the number you want and click Save to reveal the input fields.
Moove or Academi: which should I choose?
Choose Moove for a clean, modern site with simple branding. Choose Academi if you want a marketing-style course catalogue front page. Both are free Boost child themes.
Sources
Checked in November 2026: the Moove repository on GitHub (README, config.php, settings.php, version.php on the main, MOODLE_502_STABLE, MOODLE_501_STABLE and MOODLE_405_STABLE branches, and the commit history); the Moove entry in the Moodle plugins directory (install count as of October 2026); the Moodle v5.3.0 tag; and the Moove documentation wiki. Settings and versions change with each release; check the plugin page before you install.
Written by Mihir Jana, founder of edzlms. Connect on LinkedIn.
Want Moove set up, or a theme that goes beyond it?
Moove is a good free starting point. If you need it installed, branded and kept working through Moodle upgrades, or you have outgrown it and need a custom child theme, our Moodle DevOps support team can help, and we will tell you honestly when Moove is already the right answer.