Let’s begin with arguably the number one alternative to Squarespace, at least as far as website builders go.
Wix is the third-most popular content management tool for building websites, which means the company is doing something right [1].
Here’s what the website builder can provide:
- An all-in-one experience that also includes domain registration. This means you may never need a third-party service and can do everything within the Wix interface.
- Wix’s own page builder – Editor X – is superlative and one of our favorites. We showcase this in our full tutorial on how to use Wix.
- Although you get a full-featured platform with Wix, you may still want to connect third-party services to it. Wix offers arguably the best app extension library among website builders due to its array of app niches and choices.
- There’s plenty of functionality to help build an online store with Wix too. You get options to sell online and in person, over 80 payment gateways, enterprise-grade security, gift cards, and much more.
However, the one chink in Wix’s armor is its reputation for inflexibility in some areas. For instance, you can’t change your site template once you’ve chosen one. Also, there’s no automated or assisted way to move content to another platform. This means, unless you use Wix forever, you’ll have a long-winded process to switch to another Squarespace alternative. This means you have to be sure that Wix is the right platform for you.
💳 Pricing
We cover Wix’s pricing in our dedicated article, but we can sum things up here. There are four tiers that range from $16–159 per month. For serious stores or business sites, the Business plan will give you the feature set you need.
Of course, this Squarespace alternative would be on the list! However, we’re cheating a little because it’s a two-for-one deal. On its own, Bluehost is a web host, so you’ll need a separate content management system. WordPress is ideal, as it’s open-source and offers near-infinite customization of your website through its diversity and assortment of plugins. Even better, Bluehost builds WordPress into many of its plans to give you the functionality you need with minimal effort.
Here’s what the combination gives you:
- A minimal-click setup for your site. In fact, thanks to the intuitive, clean, and crisp dashboard, using Bluehost on the whole is a breeze.
- Bluehost offers WonderSuite – a WordPress-powered site builder that leverages the benefits of the content management system (CMS). As such, you can use the native Block Editor and all the other features WordPress provides.
- You can harness the free content delivery network (CDN) to make sure your site loads fast, no matter where your traffic comes from.
- Bluehost gives you the functionality you need to set up an online store using WordPress and WooCommerce. You can even add payment gateways such as PayPal, Venmo, and many more.
On the whole, the WordPress and Bluehost tandem will give you the most flexibility and power for whatever site you want to create. While Wix is the direct competitor to Squarespace (as they’re both website builders), WordPress is the undisputed champion of website publishing platforms.
💳 Pricing
Bluehost’s pricing is straightforward, and we think it offers the most value on this list. You have four plans to choose from that range from $2.95 per month to $13.95 per month. The caveat is that these will be introductory prices for the first year only. You can choose to lengthen your contract to lock in those savings for three years, but you will still need to pay the full price eventually. However, even at full price, Bluehost’s offerings are competitive and affordable.
Ecommerce is big business (literally!), which means a website builder that can provide in this area will be a boon. Weebly is one of the best Squarespace alternatives if you want to sell both online and in person. This is thanks to its parent company, Square. However, this isn’t all Weebly can do. Let’s list what its key offerings are:
- Of course, there’s the ecommerce functionality to mention. You can sell online, but thanks to Square’s hardware, you also get to enjoy point-of-sale (POS) commerce.
- The drag-and-drop builder is a joy to use, with plenty of elements to help you build a store to your vision. There are lots of contextual options for specific elements, too.
- Weebly’s options include essential search engine optimization (SEO) tools and settings to help you capture the most traffic. You also get security features to help protect your site, such as a free SSL certificate to help keep your data encrypted and safe.
- The site builder (and the entire app, in truth) are straightforward to use. Our tutorial on how to use Weebly is perfect reading to find out more about what the platform can do.
For more on Weebly, you’ll want to check out our full review of the platform. We also compare Weebly and WordPress in a few different areas elsewhere on the blog.
💳 Pricing
Weebly offers one free plan and three paid ones. The free and Personal plan suffer from a lack of features, especially when you compare it to the top two tiers. For the premium plans, you’ll pay within a range of $10–26 per month, which is fantastic value. We cover Weebly’s pricing on the blog, so we encourage you to check this post out if you want to know more.
We cover Zyro a lot on the CodeinWP blog. In fact, it features on our list of the best website builders, too. It comes from the web host Hostinger, who delivers good-quality service and a near-insane pricing model. However, the focus here is on its website-building platform. Here’s what you get once you sign up:
- We like the artificial intelligence (AI) tools to help you build your site and brand, such as through logo creation.
- Your site will sit atop Hostinger’s servers. This means you get the same performance quality as the parent platform, which is reassuring to know.
- There is plenty of marketing integration across all plans. This means you can reach new users through Google Analytics, visitor remarketing, and much more.
- You’ll receive plenty of benefits once you sign up. For instance, there are SEO tools on hand to help you rank higher on search engines, the option to nab a free domain for a year, and free email for a year too.
On the whole, Zyro is one of the best Squarespace alternatives if you want to go with a trustworthy hosting provider with a good reputation.
💳 Pricing
Zyro’s pricing is one of the most straightforward and cheapest around. There are two plans: Website and Business. The latter gives you ecommerce functionality. Zyro is another company that uses introductory pricing to lure you in, which means for your initial period, you’ll pay $2.59–3.59. After that, the prices rise to $11.99–14.99. However, this is still fantastic value for a website builder from a reputable hosting provider.
Last but not least, Shopify is not only one of the best Squarespace alternatives; it’s staking a claim to be the number one ecommerce platform, too. We compare Shopify and Squarespace head-to-head elsewhere, but for now, let’s round up what the platforms offer:
- While there is no drag-and-drop page builder with Shopify, you have some of the most flexible and customizable content available. If you work with a developer, Shopify will arguably be at the top of your list of preferred ecommerce platforms.
- The back-end layout is easy to navigate, and you should find everything you need within a few clicks. Our dedicated tutorial on how to use Shopify takes a deep dive into the inner workings of the platform.
- We love the Shopify App Store, and it has plenty of ways to introduce third-party tools and services to your site. We cover some of the best of these in a dedicated roundup.
If you want to find out more about Shopify and how it can help your ecommerce, we have a full review on the blog to check out. However, be sure to take a quick look at the pricing below before you do!
💳 Pricing
Shopify provides three plans. For most users, the Basic plan will provide the most cost-effective solution at $39 per month. The other two plans range from $399 to $2,000 per month. However, for the Basic and Advanced plans, you can get the first three months for only one dollar, which is an amazing way to take Shopify for a spin.
These 5 best Squarespace alternatives are all tremendous 😻
The great thing about these five best Squarespace alternatives is how they each fit into a different niche or need. However, they can also float into each other’s territories.
- Wix and Zyro are arguably the closest alternatives to Squarespace, but Wix’s app library is superior in our opinion due to its wealth of choice. It’s the closest in quality and depth to WordPress’ extendibility options.
- For ecommerce Weebly and Shopify will tempt you, although they aren’t the only options on this list that let you set up a store.
- WordPress (using a host such as Bluehost) is going to be a worthier solution if you value flexibility and choice. It lets you decide how your site looks with thousands of swappable themes and near-complete customization options. What’s more, it lets you add practically any functionality you desire for free using WordPress plugins.
When it comes to the best Squarespace alternatives, we like WordPress the most. While it has a slightly higher learning curve than the rest, you can’t beat its pricing, performance, and all-around feature set.
Which of these best Squarespace alternatives do you think will help you succeed? Let us know in the comments section below!
