# Squarespace vs Shopify for website builders

Squarespace and Shopify are closely matched for core workflows. Both offer a trial; both support API access, ai website builder, templates, and custom code. Squarespace has confirmed free plan, drag-and-drop editor, and responsive design. Shopify has confirmed starting price of £19.

## Key decision points

- Squarespace has confirmed free plan; free plan is not yet confirmed for Shopify.
- Shopify has confirmed starting price of £19; starting price is not yet confirmed for Squarespace.
- Squarespace has confirmed drag-and-drop editor; drag-and-drop editor is not yet confirmed for Shopify.
- Squarespace has confirmed responsive design; responsive design is not yet confirmed for Shopify.

## Choose Squarespace if…

- Choose Squarespace if confirmed free plan matters to you; this detail is not yet confirmed for Shopify.
- Choose Squarespace if confirmed drag-and-drop editor matters to you; this detail is not yet confirmed for Shopify.
- Choose Squarespace if confirmed responsive design matters to you; this detail is not yet confirmed for Shopify.

## Choose Shopify if…

- Choose Shopify if confirmed starting price of £19 matters to you; this detail is not yet confirmed for Squarespace.

## Features

| Feature | Squarespace | Shopify |
| --- | --- | --- |
| AI website builder | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/)) |
| Drag-and-drop editor | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/)) | Not confirmed |
| Templates | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/)) |
| Responsive design | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Not confirmed |
| Custom code | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |
| Blogging | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |
| Ecommerce | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/)) |
| Memberships | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Not confirmed |
| Booking | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Not confirmed |
| SEO tools | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |
| Custom domains | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |
| Free domain | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/pricing)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |
| Forms | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://apps.shopify.com/)) |
| Analytics | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |
| Client management | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Not confirmed |
| White labelling | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Not confirmed |
| Site export | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Not confirmed |

## Capacity

| Feature | Squarespace | Shopify |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Digital products | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://apps.shopify.com/)) |
| Multilingual sites | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |
| Storage | 30 (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/pricing)) | Not confirmed |
| Bandwidth | Not confirmed | 0 (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |
| Team members | 2 (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/pricing)) | 5 (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |

## Integrations

| Feature | Squarespace | Shopify |
| --- | --- | --- |
| App marketplace | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/)) |

## Technical

| Feature | Squarespace | Shopify |
| --- | --- | --- |
| API | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/premium)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |

## Pricing

| Feature | Squarespace | Shopify |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free plan | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/)) | Not confirmed |
| Free trial | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.squarespace.com/)) | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |
| Starting price | Not confirmed | £19 (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/pricing)) |

## Commercial

| Feature | Squarespace | Shopify |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Affiliate programme | Not confirmed | Yes (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/)) |
| Affiliate commission | Not confirmed | Not specified (verified 5 September 2026; [source](https://www.shopify.com/)) |

## Evidence

- **Squarespace — AI website builder:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/. Evidence: “Answer a few questions and let our AI website builder do the rest.”
- **Shopify — AI website builder:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/. Evidence: “Design fast with AI.”
- **Squarespace — Drag-and-drop editor:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/. Evidence: “Easily customize every design detail with our next-generation drag-and-drop editor.”
- **Squarespace — Templates:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Website Templates Start with a designer-made website template that looks professional from day one”
- **Shopify — Templates:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/. Evidence: “Pick a prebuilt theme.”
- **Squarespace — Responsive design:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Responsive Design and Editing Every page and design automatically adapts to look polished on any device”
- **Squarespace — Custom code:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Code block (basic) Included”
- **Shopify — Custom code:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “Build custom apps using Shopify APIs”
- **Squarespace — Blogging:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/. Evidence: “Post your ideas Launch a blog, grow your readership, and add paywalls to monetize access.”
- **Shopify — Blogging:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “embed buy buttons on an external website or blog”
- **Squarespace — Ecommerce:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/. Evidence: “Sell products Merchandise your products, accept payments, manage orders and shipping, and more.”
- **Shopify — Ecommerce:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/. Evidence: “The world’s best commerce platform.”
- **Squarespace — Digital products:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Sell courses, blogs, videos, memberships, subscriptions”
- **Shopify — Digital products:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://apps.shopify.com/. Evidence: “Shopify Digital Products”
- **Squarespace — Memberships:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Sell courses, blogs, videos, memberships, subscriptions”
- **Squarespace — Booking:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Get booked Seamless appointment booking, automated calendar management, and integrated payments.”
- **Squarespace — Multilingual sites:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Multilingual Sites”
- **Shopify — Multilingual sites:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “Translate your storefront”
- **Squarespace — SEO tools:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/. Evidence: “Search & AI Optimization Increase traffic from search and AI platforms with built-in SEO and AI site auditing tools.”
- **Shopify — SEO tools:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “automate marketing and SEO”
- **Squarespace — Custom domains:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/. Evidence: “Domains Register your dream domain. Free WHOIS privacy, SSL, and premium DNS included.”
- **Shopify — Custom domains:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “Custom domain name”
- **Squarespace — Free domain:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/pricing. Evidence: “Free custom domain* Included”
- **Shopify — Free domain:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “Every Shopify store also comes with a free myshopify.com address”
- **Squarespace — Storage:** 30. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/pricing. Evidence: “Video hosting & storage 30 min”
- **Shopify — Bandwidth:** 0. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “unlimited bandwidth (no bandwidth fees)”
- **Squarespace — Forms:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Generate leads via Form blocks”
- **Shopify — Forms:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://apps.shopify.com/. Evidence: “Shopify Forms”
- **Squarespace — Analytics:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/. Evidence: “Analytics Track your website’s performance with key traffic and ecommerce metrics.”
- **Shopify — Analytics:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “200+ real-time reports, plus custom analytics”
- **Squarespace — App marketplace:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Squarespace Extensions Included”
- **Shopify — App marketplace:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/. Evidence: “Shopify App Store”
- **Squarespace — Team members:** 2. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/pricing. Evidence: “Contributors 2”
- **Shopify — Team members:** 5. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “Up to 5 staff accounts”
- **Squarespace — Client management:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Invoice clients Legitimize your business and get paid with professional proposals, contracts, and invoices.”
- **Squarespace — White labelling:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “White Labelling”
- **Squarespace — Site export:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/feature-index. Evidence: “Site Export”
- **Squarespace — API:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/premium. Evidence: “Connect your stack to a powerful, extensible system with integrations, APIs, extensions, and automations”
- **Shopify — API:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “Build custom apps using Shopify APIs”
- **Squarespace — Free plan:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/. Evidence: “Start for free. No credit card required.”
- **Squarespace — Free trial:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.squarespace.com/. Evidence: “Start for free. No credit card required.”
- **Shopify — Free trial:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “Try 3 days free, then £1/month for 3 months.”
- **Shopify — Starting price:** £19. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing. Evidence: “Basic £19 /mo”
- **Shopify — Affiliate programme:** Yes. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/. Evidence: “Affiliates”
- **Shopify — Affiliate commission:** Not specified. Last verified 5 September 2026. Source: https://www.shopify.com/. Evidence: “Affiliates”