Wix vs Squarespace: Features, Pricing and Verdict

Wix has a free plan and paid plans from $17 a month. Squarespace has no free plan and starts at $19 a month. Compare pricing, fees, design and best fits.

By Galactic News Editorial · Published 2026-11-09T22:29:14+00:00 · Updated 2026-11-09T22:29:14+00:00

Wix and Squarespace are the two best-known website builders. Both let you build a site without code. Wix is more flexible and has a free plan. Squarespace is more design-led and charges from day one. This comparison uses published prices from both vendors to help you pick the right one.

Wix vs Squarespace at a glance

Wix vs Squarespace pricing compared

Wix has a free plan and four paid plans. On yearly billing, Light costs $17 per month. Core costs $29 per month. Business costs $39 per month. Business Elite costs $159 per month. Monthly billing costs more: Light is $24, Core is $36, Business is $46, and Business Elite is $172 per month. The free plan includes hosting and the editor, with Wix branding and a Wix subdomain.

Squarespace has four plans and no free tier. On yearly billing, Basic costs $19 per month. Core costs $29 per month. Plus costs $49 per month. Advanced costs $99 per month. Monthly billing costs $25, $39, $65, and $139 per month. Every site starts with a 14-day free trial. No credit card is needed for the trial.

The entry prices are close. Wix Light at $17 a month undercuts Squarespace Basic at $19 a month. The gap grows at the top. Wix Business Elite at $159 a month costs far more than Squarespace Advanced at $99 a month. Most buyers will never need the top tier of either builder.

Ecommerce and transaction fees

Wix takes payments from the Core plan at $29 per month. Core adds basic ecommerce, scheduling, and 50 GB of storage. Business adds standard ecommerce and 100 GB of storage. Wix charges 0% platform commission on premium plans. Payment processing fees from the gateway still apply.

Squarespace lets every plan sell. Basic adds a 2% transaction fee on store sales. Core, Plus, and Advanced charge 0% on physical product sales. Card processing starts at 2.9% plus $0.30 on domestic cards. Digital content and memberships carry a fee too: 7% on Basic, 5% on Core, 1% on Plus, and 0% on Advanced.

The fee ladder matters for sellers. A shop on Squarespace Basic pays 2% on every sale. The same shop on Core pays no Squarespace fee. A Wix shop on Core pays no platform commission from the start. If you sell a lot, the higher plan often pays for itself in saved fees.

Design and ease of use

Wix gives you more freedom. Its drag-and-drop editor lets you place elements anywhere. It offers hundreds of templates and a large app market. That freedom helps beginners build fast. It can also lead to messy layouts if you move things carelessly. Wix includes AI creation tools that draft a site from a few answers.

Squarespace gives you less freedom and better defaults. Its templates are polished and consistent. The editor keeps spacing and type tidy. That suits portfolios, photographers, and design-led brands. Squarespace also includes built-in tools for blogging, courses, and memberships. It has fewer third-party apps than Wix. If you want a beautiful site with little effort, Squarespace is the easier path.

Features and flexibility

Wix has the wider app market. You can add bookings, events, restaurants, and marketing tools. Its plans scale from a free hobby site to a large store. Wix Studio is a separate platform for agencies and freelancers. It starts from $19 per month.

Squarespace keeps more features built in. Invoicing, courses, memberships, and email campaigns sit inside the same account. Its email campaigns are a paid add-on in some regions. Squarespace supports custom code on Core and above. It also supports third-party integrations on Core. Both builders include hosting, SSL, and 24/7 customer care.

Who should choose Wix?

Choose Wix if you want a free start. The free plan lets you build and publish before you pay. Choose Wix if you want maximum flexibility. The editor and app market suit many site types. Choose Wix if you sell online and want 0% platform commission from the Core plan.

Choose Wix if your budget is tight. Light at $17 a month is the cheapest paid plan of the two. It covers portfolios and simple business sites. Just note that Light cannot take payments. Selling starts at Core.

Who should choose Squarespace?

Choose Squarespace if design matters most. Its templates look good with little work. It suits photographers, designers, writers, and restaurants. Choose Squarespace if you sell courses or memberships. The built-in tools and the fee ladder reward higher plans.

Choose Squarespace if you want one tidy system. Blogging, commerce, and email sit together. You trade the free plan and the big app market for polish and simplicity.

Both builders also handle domains and email. Each one gives a free domain for the first year on paid plans. Business email is a separate cost on both. Connect a domain you already own if you prefer. Check the renewal price of the domain before you commit.

Try both free options first. Wix lets you build free for as long as you like. Squarespace gives you 14 days. A short test build shows which editor feels right before you pay.

Bottom line: Wix vs Squarespace verdict

Wix wins on price, flexibility, and the free plan. Squarespace wins on design and built-in polish. A beginner on a budget should start with Wix. A portfolio or a design-led brand should pick Squarespace. Both builders are good. The right one is the one that matches how you work, not the one with the longer feature list.