About 19; min
Wix and Squarespace are the two biggest website builders for non-developers. Both promise beautiful sites without code. Both charge monthly subscriptions. But their pricing structures, template libraries, and e-commerce capabilities differ in ways that affect your total cost significantly.
Here’s how they compare in 2026 for personal sites, business sites, and online stores.
Quick Pricing Comparison
| Plan | Wix | Squarespace |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Yes (Wix ads, no custom domain) | No (14-day trial only) |
| Personal/Light | $17/mo | $16/mo |
| Business/Core | $32/mo | $27/mo |
| Business Elite/Commerce | $159/mo | $33/mo (Basic Commerce) |
| E-commerce Advanced | $159/mo (same) | $65/mo (Advanced Commerce) |
Prices are annual billing. Monthly billing adds 20–40% on top.
Wix Pricing Breakdown
Wix’s free plan is genuinely free but comes with a yourname.wixsite.com subdomain and Wix banner ads. For testing ideas, it works. For anything public-facing, you need at least the Light plan ($17/month) to remove branding and use a custom domain.
The Core plan at $32/month is where Wix becomes a business tool — payment acceptance, proper analytics, and 50 GB of storage. The jump to Business Elite at $159/month is steep and mostly adds unlimited storage and VIP support.
Wix’s Hidden Costs
- Apps: Many Wix App Market apps cost $5–$50/month on top of your plan. Booking apps, advanced forms, and marketing tools often require paid app subscriptions
- E-commerce transaction fees: Wix charges 0% transaction fees on Core and above, but payment processor fees (Stripe/PayPal) still apply at 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction
- Domain: First year free with annual plans, then $15–$20/year renewal
- Email: Google Workspace integration available but not included — $6/user/month extra
Squarespace Pricing Breakdown
Squarespace doesn’t have a free plan — just a 14-day trial. The Personal plan at $16/month is $1 cheaper than Wix’s equivalent Light plan. The Business plan at $27/month is $5 cheaper than Wix Core.
The 3% Transaction Fee Trap
Squarespace Business plan charges a 3% transaction fee on e-commerce sales (on top of payment processor fees). Selling $5,000/month in products costs $150/month in Squarespace fees alone. Upgrading to Basic Commerce ($33/month) drops the fee to 0%. If you sell more than $200/month, the upgrade pays for itself.
Design and Templates
| Feature | Wix | Squarespace |
|---|---|---|
| Template count | 800+ | 150+ |
| Design quality | Good (varies widely) | Excellent (consistently polished) |
| Drag-and-drop editor | Full pixel-level control | Section-based (more constrained) |
| Switch templates after launch | No (must rebuild) | Yes (preserves content) |
| Custom CSS | Limited | Business plan and above |
| Mobile editing | Separate mobile editor | Responsive by default |
| AI builder | Wix ADI (auto-design) | Squarespace Blueprint |
Squarespace templates are more consistently beautiful — every template looks professional. Wix has more templates but quality varies. Wix’s drag-and-drop editor gives you pixel-level control; Squarespace’s section-based editor is more constrained but produces cleaner results for non-designers.
Critical difference: Squarespace lets you switch templates after launch while keeping your content. Wix doesn’t — changing templates means rebuilding your site. Choose carefully on Wix.
E-Commerce Comparison
| Feature | Wix Core ($32) | Squarespace Basic Commerce ($33) |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction fee | 0% | 0% |
| Products | 50,000 | Unlimited |
| Subscriptions | Yes | Advanced Commerce ($65) only |
| Abandoned cart recovery | Yes | Advanced Commerce ($65) only |
| POS | Wix POS ($10/mo add-on) | Included |
| Shipping integrations | USPS, ShipStation | USPS, FedEx, UPS |
| Gift cards | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-currency | Yes | Advanced Commerce only |
Wix includes abandoned cart recovery and subscription products at $32/month. Squarespace locks both behind Advanced Commerce at $65/month. For e-commerce sellers, Wix offers more features at a lower price point.
However, Squarespace’s product pages look better by default. The built-in product photography layouts, zoom features, and gallery styles produce a more premium shopping experience without customization.
Cost Scenarios
Personal portfolio or blog
| Platform | Plan | Monthly | Annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wix | Light | $17 | $204 |
| Squarespace | Personal | $16 | $192 |
Small business with online store ($3K/mo revenue)
| Platform | Plan | Monthly | Transaction Fees | Annual Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wix | Core | $32 | $0 | $384 |
| Squarespace | Business | $27 | $90/mo (3%) | $1,404 |
| Squarespace | Basic Commerce | $33 | $0 | $396 |
If you’re selling online, Squarespace Business + 3% fees costs $1,404/year — 3.5x more than Wix Core or Squarespace Basic Commerce at ~$390/year. Always choose Basic Commerce over Business if you have any e-commerce sales.
Growing e-commerce ($20K/mo revenue)
| Platform | Plan | Monthly | Annual (with features needed) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wix | Core | $32 | $384 |
| Squarespace | Advanced Commerce | $65 | $780 |
At $20K/month revenue, Wix Core ($32) includes abandoned cart, subscriptions, and multi-currency. Squarespace needs Advanced Commerce ($65) for the same features — $396/year more expensive.
SEO and Marketing
| Feature | Wix | Squarespace |
|---|---|---|
| SEO tools | Wix SEO Wiz (guided) | Built-in SEO panel |
| Blog | Good | Better (cleaner design) |
| Email marketing | Wix Email ($9.90/mo) | Squarespace Email ($7/mo) |
| Social media tools | Basic | Basic |
| Page speed | Average (heavier code) | Good (cleaner code) |
| Schema markup | App required | Built-in (limited) |
Squarespace sites generally load faster and produce cleaner HTML, which gives a slight SEO edge. Wix has improved significantly but still generates heavier pages, especially with many third-party apps installed.
Best for design quality: Squarespace — consistently beautiful templates, cleaner code, and a more polished end result. The default choice for portfolios, restaurants, and brand-focused sites.
Best for e-commerce value: Wix Core at $32/month — abandoned cart, subscriptions, and multi-currency included. Squarespace charges $65/month for the same features.
Best for creative freedom: Wix — pixel-level drag-and-drop editing gives you more control. Better for unique, non-template layouts.
Best for beginners: Squarespace — the constrained editor produces better results for people without design skills. Harder to make an ugly site.
Skip if: You need a serious online store. Both platforms cap out below what Shopify offers. If e-commerce is your primary business, use Shopify instead.
FAQ
Can I switch from Wix to Squarespace?
There’s no automatic migration. You’ll need to manually recreate pages and re-upload media. Blog posts can be exported from Wix as XML and imported to Squarespace. Budget 1–3 days depending on site size.
Which is better for SEO?
Both are adequate. Squarespace has a slight edge due to cleaner code and faster page loads. Neither matches a properly optimized WordPress site, but for most small businesses, the difference is negligible.
Do I own my domain if I cancel?
Domains registered through either platform can be transferred to another registrar. The process takes 5–7 days. Always register your domain separately (Namecheap, Cloudflare) to avoid lock-in.
Which platform has better support?
Squarespace offers 24/7 email support and live chat on all plans. Wix has 24/7 phone callback support on premium plans and email/chat on all plans. Both are responsive, but Squarespace’s documentation is better organized.
