Squarespace vs Shopify for Ecommerce
Picking between Squarespace and Shopify comes down to what matters most for your business. Both platforms can handle online selling, but they're built for different priorities and business sizes.
TL;DR:
- Shopify wins on advanced ecommerce features and scalability
- Squarespace beats Shopify on design quality and ease of use
- Squarespace works well for smaller stores that need beautiful presentation
- Shopify handles complex inventory, dropshipping, and growth better
- Your choice depends on whether you prioritise looks or advanced selling tools
Ecommerce Features
Squarespace covers the basics well. You get product pages, checkout, inventory tracking, and payment processing. The ecommerce tools work fine for smaller stores selling up to a few hundred products. You can handle variants, set up discount codes, and manage orders without much fuss.
The limitations show up when you want to do more complex things. Multi-channel selling is limited, the abandoned cart recovery is basic, and you don't get the detailed analytics that growing businesses need.
Shopify was built specifically for ecommerce. You get proper inventory management, detailed reporting, multi-channel selling (Amazon, eBay, Facebook, Instagram), and hundreds of apps to extend functionality. The abandoned cart recovery is more sophisticated, and you can handle complex product variants easily.
Shopify also handles dropshipping better, with direct integrations to suppliers and better automation for order fulfilment.
Design and Templates
Squarespace templates look better out of the box. The design quality is consistently high, and you don't need much customisation to get a professional-looking site. The visual editor makes it easy to adjust layouts, and everything tends to look polished without much effort.
The downside is fewer templates to choose from, and customising beyond what's built-in requires more technical knowledge.
Shopify has more templates, but the quality varies. Some look great, others feel dated. The good news is you have more options, and the theme marketplace is huge. Customisation is more flexible if you know what you're doing, but achieving that polished Squarespace look takes more work.
Ease of Use
Squarespace wins here. The interface is cleaner and more intuitive. Adding products, updating pages, and managing content feels straightforward. The learning curve is gentler, especially if you're not particularly technical.
Shopify has more features, which means more complexity. The interface can feel overwhelming at first, and there are more settings to configure. Once you're up to speed it's fine, but expect a steeper learning curve.
Pricing and Value
Both platforms charge monthly fees plus transaction costs. Squarespace tends to be slightly cheaper for basic plans, but Shopify's transaction fees drop as you upgrade plans. For higher-volume stores, Shopify often works out more cost-effective.
The real difference is what you get for your money. Squarespace includes hosting, design tools, and basic ecommerce in a neat package. Shopify gives you more ecommerce functionality but you might need paid apps to get everything you want.
When to Choose Each Platform
Pick Squarespace if:
- Design quality matters more than advanced features
- You're selling fewer than 100 products
- You want a website that happens to sell things, not just a shop
- You're not particularly technical
- You need a portfolio site with some selling capability
Pick Shopify if:
- You're planning to scale significantly
- Ecommerce is your primary business model
- You need advanced inventory management
- You want to sell across multiple channels
- You're comfortable with more complex tools
FAQs
Can Squarespace handle a proper online store?
Yes, but it depends on your definition of "proper." For smaller stores with straightforward needs, it works well. For complex operations or rapid growth, you'll hit limitations.
Is Shopify overkill for small businesses?
Not necessarily. If you're planning to grow or need specific ecommerce features, starting with Shopify can save you migrating later. But if you just need to sell a few items, Squarespace might be simpler.
Which platform is better for SEO?
Both handle basic SEO fine. Squarespace has cleaner code out of the box, but Shopify gives you more control over technical SEO elements.
Jargon Buster
- Multi-channel selling: Selling your products across different platforms like Amazon, eBay, and social media from one dashboard
- Abandoned cart recovery: Automated emails sent to customers who add items to their cart but don't complete the purchase
- Dropshipping: Selling products you don't stock yourself – when someone buys, you order from your supplier who ships directly to the customer
- Product variants: Different versions of the same product, like sizes, colours, or styles
Wrap-up
Neither platform is objectively better – they're designed for different priorities. Squarespace excels when you want something that looks professional with minimal effort and covers basic selling needs. Shopify wins when ecommerce features and scalability matter more than having the prettiest templates.
Consider where you want to be in two years, not just where you are now. If you're unsure about growth plans, Squarespace's simplicity might be worth more than Shopify's advanced features you might never use.
Join Pixelhaze Academy for more detailed tutorials on getting the most from either platform.