Wix vs Squarespace: which is right for your business website?

At a glance

• Cost: Squarespace plans run from £14.40 to £94.80 a month billed annually, including estimated VAT. Wix shows plans from $17.77 to $159.77 a month on yearly billing, in US dollars for reference, excluding tax.

• Editing: Wix has its own editor, plus Wix Studio for agencies. Squarespace uses Fluid Engine, a drag-and-drop grid editor that keeps layouts tidier by default.

• Design: Squarespace's grid keeps pages consistent and tidy. Wix gives more room to experiment, and Wix Studio adds custom CSS.

• Apps and add-ons: Wix has over 800 apps in its App Market, most of them free. Squarespace offers a smaller set of Squarespace Extensions.

• Bookings: Wix Bookings is built in. Squarespace pairs with Acuity Scheduling, a Squarespace company.

• Ecommerce: Both sell online. Squarespace's Basic plan has a 2% transaction fee that disappears on Core and above.

• Team access: Wix offers detailed roles such as Content Writer. Squarespace's Basic plan allows two contributors; Core and above allow unlimited.

• Leaving: Wix sites cannot be exported to another host. Squarespace exports some content as a WordPress-format XML file.

Cost

As of October 2026, Squarespace's pricing page shows four plans in pounds, including estimated VAT. Billed annually, Basic is £14.40 a month, Core £20.40, Plus £34.80 and Advanced £94.80. Monthly billing costs more: £19.20, £28.80, £43.20 and £106.80. Code injection, for adding custom scripts, starts on Core.

Wix's plans page shows US dollar prices for reference and says prices and currency vary by location. As of October 2026 it lists Light at $17.77 a month, Core at $29.77, Business at $39.77 and Business Elite at $159.77, all for yearly subscriptions paid upfront, with tax added according to your billing address. Accepting payments starts on Core. Check the price in pounds at checkout, because the two companies present tax differently.

Card fees matter if you sell. In the UK, Wix Payments charges 2.1% plus 20p for standard card payments. Squarespace Payments lists 2.0% plus 25p on Basic and Core, falling to 1.7% on Plus and 1.5% on Advanced. Squarespace's Basic plan also adds a 2% online store transaction fee, which is 0% on Core and above.

The plan is usually a small part of the total. Design, copy and setup cost more, as our guide to website costs in the UK explains.

Ease of editing for your team

Squarespace's Fluid Engine lets you drag blocks onto a grid, which makes it hard to end up with a messy page. Its permissions are simple: a Website editor can edit content but cannot add pages or change styles, and per-page permissions are not supported.

Wix gives editors more freedom, and its roles are more detailed. A Content Writer, for example, can only edit text, links, media and existing CMS content. In Wix Studio, an agency can restrict a client to Content Mode so the design stays protected. One catch: Wix does not let you switch the template on an existing site, so a big redesign means building a new site.

Design freedom

Squarespace is a good fit when you want a refined, consistent look without much effort. Templates are a starting point, and the grid keeps things aligned on desktop and mobile.

Wix suits people who want to place things exactly where they like. Wix Studio, aimed at agencies and enterprises, adds responsive layout tools and custom CSS, which gives a designer more room to build something distinctive.

SEO and performance

Both platforms cover the basics. You can edit page titles, descriptions and URL slugs on each, and each creates a sitemap automatically. Wix will submit your sitemap to Google once you connect Search Console through its SEO Setup Checklist, which needs a Premium plan and a connected domain. Squarespace publishes a sitemap.xml and asks you to make sure SSL is set to secure.

Neither will rank a thin site. What makes the difference is useful content, good page structure and a fast experience, which is why we suggest reading up on Core Web Vitals.

Ecommerce

Both can run a small to medium shop. Squarespace includes subscriptions, digital products, gift cards and invoicing on all plans, with extras such as advanced discounts on Core and above. Wix splits ecommerce into Basic, Standard and Advanced levels across Core, Business and Business Elite.

If selling online is the main job of your site, it is worth comparing both with Shopify. Our Shopify vs Squarespace comparison and ecommerce web design page go into that.

Plugins and integrations

Wix is ahead on choice. Its App Market lists over 800 apps, and Wix says most are free to use. Wix Bookings handles appointments, classes and courses, with card, PayPal or in-person payments and email or SMS reminders, though you need to upgrade to accept bookings.

Squarespace keeps things tighter. Squarespace Extensions are third-party tools for jobs like tax compliance, drop shipping and SEO, and Acuity Scheduling covers appointments. Fewer options can be a plus if you want a simple setup.

Ownership, hosting and security

Both are hosted platforms, so security, hosting and SSL are handled for you. The trade-off is lock-in. Wix states that a site must be hosted and operated on Wix's servers and cannot be moved to another host.

Squarespace is also closed, but you can export part of your site as an XML file in WordPress format. That covers standard pages, one blog and text and image blocks. Store, portfolio and several other page types, plus your styles and custom CSS, do not export.

Moving from one to the other

There is no one-click switch in either direction. Squarespace's own guide says only products can be imported from Wix, by downloading a CSV, and the layout, design and other content must be rebuilt. Going the other way, Wix says it is not currently possible to import blog posts from Squarespace.

So treat a move as a rebuild. List every URL on the old site, map each one to its new page and set up 301 redirects. Squarespace's URL mappings hold roughly 2,500 lines and cannot redirect away from the homepage or file URLs. Wix allows up to 5,000 redirects per site, and they only work on a custom domain. Our redesign checklist walks through the process.

Which should you choose?

• A portfolio, studio or hospitality site where looks matter most: Squarespace, for polished templates and a tidy editor.

• A service business that takes bookings: Wix, with Bookings built in, or Squarespace with Acuity.

• You want lots of add-ons: Wix and its App Market.

• Several people editing with different levels of access: Wix's roles are more detailed.

• You want the option to leave later: Squarespace exports more, though neither is fully portable. If that matters a lot, look at Squarespace vs WordPress.

How we can help

We build on both. Websites start from £7,500 with a fixed quote after discovery, and at handover we transfer the site to your own Wix or Squarespace account. See our Wix web design and Squarespace web design services, or our website redesign service if you are moving platforms. If you are still weighing up options, our Framer vs Wix comparison may help. When you are ready, tell us about your project.

Frequently asked questions

Is Wix or Squarespace better for a small business?

It depends on what the site has to do. Squarespace suits businesses that want a polished, low-maintenance site, while Wix suits those who want more apps, built-in bookings and finer control over team access.

Is Wix cheaper than Squarespace?

Not clearly. Squarespace shows UK prices including VAT, from £14.40 a month billed annually, while Wix shows reference prices in US dollars excluding tax. Compare the final price in pounds at checkout for the plan you actually need.

Is Wix or Squarespace better for SEO?

Both handle the basics, including editable titles, descriptions, URLs and an automatic sitemap. Rankings depend far more on your content and site structure than on which of the two you choose.

Can I move my Wix site to Squarespace?

Only partly. Squarespace can import Wix products from a CSV file, but pages, design and other content need rebuilding, with 301 redirects set up for old URLs.

Can I take my Wix site to another host?

No. Wix says sites must be hosted and operated on its own servers. You can connect a domain bought elsewhere, but the site stays on Wix.

Which is better for online booking?

Wix Bookings is built into Wix and covers appointments, classes and courses. Squarespace works with Acuity Scheduling, which Squarespace owns.