Squarespace vs Wix

Updated October 2026 · AppBreakup editorial

Squarespace

Design-focused hosted website builder known for clean templates, with stores, bookings and email.

Paid

Visit Squarespace Squarespace profile

Wix

Hosted drag-and-drop website builder with templates, apps and built-in business tools.

Free plan + paid

Visit Wix Wix profile

The short answer

Squarespace suits creatives and small businesses who want a polished site with little design effort, thanks to its structured templates. Wix suits people who want more layout freedom, a free plan and a large app market for bookings, events and stores. The biggest difference is the editor: Wix lets you place elements anywhere, while Squarespace keeps layouts tidy within sections.

Squarespace or Wix: our take

Both are hosted, all-in-one builders that handle hosting, security and updates, so the choice mostly comes down to how you like to build. Wix uses a free-form canvas: you pick one of its 2,000+ templates or let its AI assistant draft a site, then drag elements wherever you want. That freedom is the main draw for beginners, but it also means mobile layouts can break if you are careless. Squarespace uses a section-based editor around carefully designed templates, which makes it hard to end up with a messy page but gives you less layout freedom.

On features, Wix leans on an app market that adds bookings, events, online stores, blogs, memberships and marketing tools, and Wix Studio is a separate workspace for agencies. Squarespace bundles blogging, stores, Acuity appointment scheduling, member areas, email campaigns and domain registration in one subscription, with a smaller extension ecosystem.

Pricing models differ. Wix has a free plan that needs no credit card, but it shows Wix branding and uses a Wix subdomain; paid plans add a custom domain and ecommerce, with a 14-day money-back guarantee and prices that vary by country. Squarespace has no free plan, only a 14-day free trial, then monthly or annual billing in local currency. Its Basic plan charges a 2% fee on online store sales, and there is a 7% fee on digital content and memberships. Both run in the browser with iOS and Android apps for managing your site. Neither makes it easy to move a site elsewhere; Wix in particular has no real export.

Pick Squarespace if you care most about a clean, consistent look and want a single subscription that covers the basics. Pick Wix if you want to start free, need specific add-ons from its app market, or want control over exactly where things sit on the page.

Choose Squarespace if…

Creatives and small businesses who want a polished site with minimal setup
Consistently well-designed templates
Stores, scheduling, memberships and email under one account

Choose Wix if…

Small businesses and individuals who want a hosted site with lots of add-on features
You want a free option (Squarespace is paid only)
Free-form editor with a large template library
Bookings, stores, events and blogs available as built-in apps

What is Squarespace?

Squarespace is a hosted website builder that leans on carefully designed templates. Its section-based editor keeps layouts tidy, so sites tend to look polished even when built by people with no design background. Beyond pages, it bundles blogging, online stores, appointment scheduling through Acuity, member areas, email campaigns and domain registration in one subscription. That all-in-one approach suits photographers, restaurants, consultants and small shops who want little to configure. The trade-offs are less layout freedom than Wix or Webflow, a smaller extension ecosystem, and transaction fees on the cheapest commerce plan. There is no free plan: you get a free trial, then pay monthly or annually, with prices shown in local currency. Sites are edited in the browser and the mobile apps handle store orders and quick edits. If you want a good-looking site quickly and do not need complex customisation, it is one of the safest choices.

What is Wix?

Wix is one of the largest hosted website builders. You pick a template or let its AI assistant draft a site, then move elements freely on a canvas rather than inside a strict grid. Hosting, security and updates are handled for you, and an app market adds bookings, events, online stores, blogs, memberships and marketing tools. Wix Studio is a separate workspace aimed at agencies and designers who build sites for clients. The freedom of the editor is the main draw for beginners, but it also means layouts can break on mobile if you are careless, and sites are hard to move off Wix later because there is no real export. The free plan shows Wix branding and uses a Wix subdomain; paid plans add a custom domain, more storage and ecommerce features, and prices vary by country. It runs in the browser, with iOS and Android apps for managing a site on the go.

Side by side

Attribute	Squarespace	Wix
Pricing	Paid	Free plan + paid
Open source	No	No
Self-hostable	No	No
Platforms	Web, iOS, Android	Web, iOS, Android
Best for	Creatives and small businesses who want a polished site with minimal setup	Small businesses and individuals who want a hosted site with lots of add-on features
Status	Active	Active

Verified facts, compared

Facts both apps publish, checked on each vendor's own site.

Fact	Squarespace	Wix
Founded	2003	2006