Squarespace and Wix are two of the best-known website builders, and people often ask which one to pick. The short answer is that both can produce a good small business website, and the right one depends on how you like to work. This article compares them as fairly as we can.
A caution before we start. Both companies update their products, templates, plans and prices regularly. We have kept to general strengths and avoided precise feature lists that may be out of date by the time you read this. Check each company’s own site for current details, including pricing.
How they feel to use
Squarespace works from templates with a set structure. You edit sections and blocks within the layout the template provides. The result is that sites tend to look consistent and tidy, even in the hands of someone with no design training. The cost of that structure is less freedom to move things wherever you like.
Wix takes a freer approach. You can usually place elements almost anywhere on the page, and there is a big range of templates and a large app market. That makes it flexible, and it also means you can end up with a layout that looks uneven or breaks on a phone if you are not careful.
Wix has also offered tools that build a first draft of a site for you from a few questions. Squarespace has had similar helpers. These features keep changing, so see what is on offer when you sign up.
Design and templates
Squarespace has a name for clean, modern templates, and is popular with photographers, designers and small shops that want a polished look. Wix has a larger variety of templates across many industries, with a mix of quality.
Whichever you pick, a template is a starting point. The look of a small business site depends mostly on your photos, your wording and how much you leave out. Fewer, better elements nearly always beat a busy page.
Flexibility and add-ons
Wix generally offers more apps and extras, which suits people who want to add things like bookings, events or memberships. Squarespace includes a good set of built-in features and has extensions, but it tends to be more contained.
More choice is helpful if you have unusual needs and a headache if you do not. Many local service businesses need only a few pages, a contact form and a phone number. For that, both platforms are more than enough.
Online shops and bookings
Both platforms can sell products and take bookings. If your main goal is a large online store, a platform built for selling, such as Shopify, may suit you better, and we look at it in our builder roundup. For a few products or a simple booking page, either platform may do the job. Check the plan you need, since selling features often sit on higher tiers.
SEO tools
Both builders let you edit page titles, descriptions, headings and image descriptions, and both produce mobile-friendly sites. In practice the platform makes a modest difference to local search results.
What matters far more is the content on your pages, your Google Business Profile, consistent listings and reviews. A beautifully designed site on either platform will not appear in local results by itself. See our local SEO checklist for the work that counts.
Mobile and speed
Both create mobile versions of your site. Squarespace’s structure tends to keep mobile layouts consistent. On Wix, you should check each page on a real phone, because freeform layouts can behave differently. Speed depends on the images you upload, the apps you add and the template, so keep photos a sensible size and avoid loading the page with extras.
Support and learning curve
Both have help centres, tutorials and support channels, with the level of support varying by plan. If you are a complete beginner, set aside time to learn the editor. Neither is hard, but neither is instant.
Ownership and leaving
This point is the same for both. Your site lives on their platform. If you leave, you can generally take your text and images but not the design. Domains are different: if you buy a domain through either company, make sure it is registered in your name and that you know how to transfer it out. Pricing for domains and renewals varies, so read the terms.
Pros and cons at a glance
Squarespace
- Pro: polished, consistent design with little effort.
- Pro: fewer decisions, which many beginners like.
- Con: less freedom over layout.
- Con: fewer third-party extras than Wix.
Wix
- Pro: very flexible, with lots of templates and apps.
- Pro: easy to start and experiment.
- Con: freedom makes messy layouts easy to create.
- Con: some features depend on paid apps or higher plans.
Who should pick which
Pick Squarespace if you want a tidy, attractive site, you do not want to fuss with design, and you are happy working within a structure. It often suits creative businesses and service businesses with a handful of pages.
Pick Wix if you like to tinker, want a specific feature from the app market, or want to lay things out your own way.
In both cases, try before you buy. Build one page on each, view it on your phone, and see which editor you would be happy to open every month. For our own comparisons with each, see Straight Up Web vs Wix and Straight Up Web vs Squarespace.
Or skip the building
Both platforms assume you will build the site. If you would rather not, that is the gap we fill. For $500 + GST we build up to 5 pages, write the words, and have it live in about a week, with one round of changes. You own the site and domain, and the first three months of Care hosting are included. After that, Care is $49 + GST a month, month to month with 30 days’ notice and no lock-in. See our websites and pricing.
We do not build online shops or custom systems at that price. Larger jobs go to our sister studio ClickTheory. If a builder is a better fit for you, we are happy for you to use one. To compare options, read DIY vs paying someone, or start at the get started form.