Side-by-side comparison · Website & App Builders

Shopify vs Squarespace

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

Best overall

Shopify

4.4

From $29/mo

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Squarespace

4.1

From $19/mo

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Comparing 2 tools. Add one more if you like.

At a glance

Shopify4.4

Best overallBest value

Pick it if: Anyone selling physical or digital products online, from first-time sellers to established brands.

Squarespace4.1

Pick it if: Small businesses, creatives and service providers who want a professional-looking website they can run themselves.

Overview

Attribute	Shopify	Squarespace
In one line	Online store platform with an AI assistant, Sidekick, that helps you build and run it.	Website builder with polished templates and an AI that drafts your whole site for you.
Pricing model	Paid	Paid
Starting price	$29/mo	$19/mo
Free plan	No	No
Works with Claude Code	Yes	Yes

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

Attribute	Shopify	Squarespace
Overall rating	4.4Winner	4.1
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.	4.5	4.5
FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together.	5.0	4.0
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.	4.0	4.5
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.	4.0	3.5
Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over.	4.5	4.0

Feature comparison

A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.

Attribute	Shopify	Squarespace
Access & platform
Free plan	No	No
Mobile app	Yes	Yes
Desktop app	–	No
Browser extension	–	No
API access	Yes	Yes
Teams & business
Team workspace	Yes	Yes
Enterprise plan or SSO	Yes	Yes
Connects to other apps	Yes	Yes
Open source or self-hosted	No	No
AI abilities
Works with your files	Yes	Yes
Understands images	Yes	–
Makes images	Yes	Yes
Makes video	No	No
Writes code	Yes	No
Runs agents or automations	Yes	No
Learns your brand or style	Yes	Yes
Works in many languages	Yes	Yes
Capabilities score	12/ 17	9/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

Attribute	Shopify	Squarespace
Plans	BasicOur pick $29/mo billed yearly, or $39 monthly New and solo sellers.	Basic $19/mo billed yearly, or $25 monthly A simple site for a service business.
	Grow $79/mo billed yearly, or $105 monthly Small teams with steady sales.	CoreOur pick $29/mo billed yearly, or $39 monthly Most small businesses, especially if you sell anything.
	Advanced $299/mo billed yearly, or $399 monthly Bigger stores selling internationally.	Plus $49/mo billed yearly, or $65 monthly Growing online stores.
	Plus From $2,300/mo High-volume and complex businesses.	Advanced $99/mo billed yearly, or $139 monthly Bigger stores and membership businesses.
Which plan to pick	Start on Basic; Sidekick and the core store are the same on every plan. Move to Grow when you add staff or your monthly sales are high enough that its lower card rates cover the price difference.	Use the 14-day trial to build your site with Blueprint before paying. Pick Core if you'll sell anything, since Basic charges a 2% fee on sales. Pay yearly to save around a quarter and get a free domain for the first year.

Key features

Attribute	Shopify	Squarespace
Standout features	Sidekick Shopify Magic Online store and checkout Sell everywhere Orders, stock and shipping App store	Blueprint AI site builder Designer templates Commerce AI writing and images Bookings and invoices Domains and email

Pros and cons

Attribute	Shopify	Squarespace
Pros	Everything to run a store in one account, from website to shipping labels Built-in AI on every plan, not a paid add-on Huge choice of apps, themes and experts Reliable and fast checkout that shoppers trust Public APIs, a CLI and developer tools	Templates look professional with very little effort Blueprint gives you a full draft site from a few questions Website, shop, bookings and invoices in one place Hosting, security and updates handled for you Easy enough to manage without a web designer
Cons	Paid apps and card fees add a lot to the monthly cost Extra transaction fee if you use a payment provider other than Shopify Payments Sidekick is for the store owner, not a chatbot for shoppers Bigger design changes still need theme code or a developer Support quality gets mixed reviews from merchants	No free plan, only a 14-day trial Basic takes a 2% fee on product sales Less design freedom than Webflow or Framer Bookings and email campaigns cost extra

Who each one is for

Attribute	Shopify	Squarespace
Best for	Launching an online store Running products, orders and stock in one place Writing product descriptions with AI Selling online and in person Store reporting and discounts by asking Sidekick	Professional sites for service businesses Portfolios for creatives and photographers Small online stores and digital products Sites that need bookings or memberships
You'll find it used by	Online stores Product brands Retailers Makers and creators Dropshippers	Small businesses Creatives Photographers Coaches Restaurants

Questions people ask

Which is better, Shopify or Squarespace?

Shopify scores highest overall in our ratings (Shopify 4.4/5 and Squarespace 4.1/5). Shopify is best for launching an online store and running products, orders and stock in one place. Squarespace is best for professional sites for service businesses and portfolios for creatives and photographers.

Which is cheaper, Shopify or Squarespace?

Shopify: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $29/mo. Squarespace: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $19/mo.

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.

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