What Squarespace is (in plain English)

Squarespace is an all‑in‑one website and commerce platform that lets you build a polished site, sell products and services, take bookings, run email campaigns, and manage it all from one place. You get beautiful templates, reliable hosting, built‑in SEO and analytics, plus commerce, member areas, and scheduling—without stitching together a dozen tools. It’s designed so non‑developers can launch quickly, and power users can extend it with integrations and APIs. (squarespace.com)

Core features at a glance

• Design that stays on‑brand. The drag‑and‑drop editor (Fluid Engine) gives you precise layout control on desktop and mobile, so pages look consistent and professional across devices. (squarespace.com)

• Commerce that’s ready on day one. Sell physical and digital products, subscriptions, services, and content; manage variants and unlimited SKUs; set discounts; print labels; and track orders—all in the same dashboard. (squarespace.com)

• Scheduling and appointments. Add a branded booking page, take deposits, send automated reminders, and offer packages, memberships, and gift cards—fully integrated with Stripe, Square, or PayPal. (squarespace.com)

• Email campaigns that match your site. Design, schedule, and automate emails using your site’s styles, with analytics that tie engagement to site traffic and sales. (newsroom.squarespace.com)

• Built‑in SEO essentials. Automatic sitemaps, SSL, structured data, clean URLs, Google Search Console integration, and page‑level SEO controls are included—no plugin hunt required. (squarespace.com)

• Analytics you’ll actually use. Traffic, sales, funnels, abandoned carts, sources, geography, and conversion metrics—on desktop and in the mobile app—so you can see what’s working and double down. (squarespace.com)

• POS for in‑person selling. Take payments with Square hardware via the Squarespace app; online and in‑store sales, inventory, and customers stay in sync. (POS currently available in the United States.) (squarespace.com)

• Domains and hosting handled. Secure hosting with SSL, DDoS protections, and a free custom domain for the first year on annual site plans keeps setup simple and safe. (squarespace.com)

• Extensions and integrations. Connect accounting, shipping, tax automation, print‑on‑demand, social, and more to streamline operations—right from a curated marketplace. (squarespace.com)

• Team access and controls. Invite contributors with scoped permissions, or use Squarespace Enterprise roles for organization‑wide governance across multiple sites. (support.squarespace.com)

• APIs and developer tools. Use Commerce APIs and the Developer Platform to integrate back‑office systems or build custom workflows when you need deeper control. (developers.squarespace.com)

Why this matters for a harmonized, structured back office

• One system of record for web, store, and bookings. Products, inventory, orders, invoices, clients, and subscribers live under one roof—reducing duplicate data and manual reconciliations. POS and online stay in sync for accurate stock and reporting. (squarespace.com)

• Standardized processes out of the box. Built‑in flows for catalog management, order lifecycle, returns, discounts, abandoned checkout, and subscription sales enforce consistent day‑to‑day operations. (squarespace.com)

• Connected finance and compliance. Extensions for accounting and automated U.S. sales tax calculations (via TaxJar) cut admin time and help keep filings clean. (newsroom.squarespace.com)

• Scheduling that feeds your CRM and marketing. Bookings create and enrich client profiles, trigger automated reminders, and can pipe mailing list opt‑ins straight into your email campaigns for a tight loop from service to marketing. (squarespace.com)

• Unified analytics for better decisions. See acquisition, behavior, and revenue in one place; analyze funnels and conversion metrics to prioritize the tweaks that move the needle. Mobile access keeps teams aligned on the go. (squarespace.com)

• Controlled collaboration. Role‑based permissions let you separate duties (store manager vs. content editor vs. billing) and scale safely across teams and vendors—key for auditability and risk reduction. (support.squarespace.com)

• Scale via vetted integrations, not random glue. Shipping, inventory sync, and print‑on‑demand tools are curated to minimize maintenance debt and keep data flows predictable. (squarespace.com)

Pricing and plan structure (time‑agnostic overview)

• Website plans come in tiers with increasing features and contributor limits. Over time, Squarespace has used plan names like Personal/Business/Commerce as well as Basic/Core/Plus/Advanced; expect similar tiering today. Annual billing typically offers savings and includes a free custom domain for the first year on eligible plans. (domains.squarespace.com)

• Commerce features scale by tier. Higher tiers remove Squarespace’s store transaction fees, add advanced merchandising, deeper analytics, POS eligibility, and API access for more complex operations. Payment processor fees still apply. (squarespace.com)

• Add‑ons are modular.

• Scheduling (Acuity) is a separate subscription you can use with or without a Squarespace site. (newsroom.squarespace.com)

• Email Campaigns is an add‑on with plan levels for sends and automations. (newsroom.squarespace.com)

• Member Areas is an add‑on to monetize gated content with plan‑based transaction fees. (newsroom.squarespace.com)

• Domains and security are bundled smartly. Annual site plans often include the first year of domain registration; SSL and DDoS protections are included with hosting. (domains.squarespace.com)

Note: Exact plan names, inclusions, and rates evolve. The structure above is stable, but you should review the current options in your Squarespace account before purchasing.

Where Squarespace