Should I choose Shopify or Squarespace for My E-commerce Website?
Working on your business website is stressful. There are so many options out there, and making that investment in web design can feel a bit overwhelming. As a web designer and business owner, I understand the need for clarity and confidence before making an impactful decision.
When choosing e-commerce platforms, there are two that I work with and highly recommend for business sites. These two platforms are known as Shopify and Squarespace. In this post, I will provide the information you need to decide whether Shopify or Squarespace is the right option for your business website.
Intro to Shopify
Shopify is perhaps the most popular e-commerce platform available. The platform allows you to create your own online store with point-of-sale software installed. Shopify is known for being friendly to both small and large-scale businesses and can even integrate into your in-person retail store with Shopify POS.
One of the big benefits of Shopify is its marketplace of apps and themes you can easily apply to your store. This means that there are lots of people developing tools and features that can enhance your business website.
The drawback of this though is that most of these apps are paid. So on top of your monthly fees, you may also be required to pay monthly app fees depending on the one you choose.
The strength of Shopify is that it’s really focused on e-commerce first. This goes from user experience to marketing tools and a wealth of free resources to support business owners.
Intro to Squarespace
The other superstar of e-commerce is Squarespace, known for its accessible website-building features and the simplicity of setting up a business website. I love Squarespace as a website builder because its easy-to-use features including drag-and-drop design functions. Squarespace actually got its start as a solution for building websites, like WordPress and other website-building websites.
I also work with Squarespace because of its ease of use and ability to convert sites into online stores very easily. Squarespace’s online store creation is simple, just like their website-building tool is. The platform makes it easy to set up a website and online shop on your own without too much of a headache or learning curve.
What Features Does Shopify Offer for E-commerce?
Shopify is packed full of features that are available in all of their pricing plans. Some of the best features that Shopify offers for e-commerce websites include:
Unlimited products
Unlimited bandwidth
Fraud analysis
Manual order creation
Discount codes
Abandoned cart recovery emails
Financial reports
Customer support
Staff logins
Of these features, the ones that I think set Shopify apart are the lack of additional charges to add more products and the transparency of offering all of the features to all of the pricing tiers.
The abandoned cart recovery emails feature helps business owners to secure sales, and the customer support for Shopify is great. In addition, the shipping and inventory options from Shopify will take a lot of the pressure off of your workflow.
What Features Does Squarespace Offer for E-commerce?
Like Shopify, Squarespace also has plenty of e-commerce features that elevate its point-of-sale offerings through its websites. I love these features that Squarespace has to offer:
Product Merchandising
Shipping labels
Subscription sales
Discounts
Inventory Management
Order Status
Afterpay
Multiple payment methods
Sell through Instagram and Facebook
I especially like how Squarespace is flexible with payment methods and integrates into other platforms to make sales off the website. These features allow business owners to really elevate their online store.
The merchandising features through Squarespace are great for organization, and the sales options in Squarespace are excellent. My clients are commonly impressed with how much Squarespace does to help secure sales.
Shopify Pricing Structure
Shopify offers its services as a platform in three different pricing tiers, which can help you to save some cash if you don’t need to upgrade. (Prices in USD)
Basic – $29/month
Shopify – $79/month
Advanced – $299/month
The differences between each tier are in four categories – reports, inventory locations, shipping discounts, and staff accounts. You get better quality reports, additional inventory locations, shipping discounts, and staff accounts with each upgrade tier.
Shopify doesn’t charge transaction fees if you use their payment processing. If you choose to use a third-party provider there is a 0.5-3% fee depending on the plan you choose.
Squarespace Pricing Structure
In an effort to help accommodate different business needs, Squarespace also offers four pricing tiers to their customers. (Prices in USD)
Personal – $23/month
Business – $33/month
Commerce Basic – $36/month
Commerce Advanced – $65/month
Squarespace offers a tier for folks who don’t need e-commerce and their higher tiers include features more features for shipping and advanced discounts.
The Business tier (the lowest commerce tier) has a 3% transaction fee. As you move to the next higher tiers they remove the transaction fee, and credit card processing fees still apply.
What Are the Key Differences Between the Two?
There are many similarities between the two platforms. I like both of them because they allow you to create a website and sell your products through the same interface, but some differences set them apart.
I like Shopify because Shopify was made for e-commerce first. When interacting with Shopify, you will notice that there are many options and features that Shopify has for its online stores. Reiterating their marketplace app and theme store is very attractive for serious online businesses.
However, Squarespace is still an excellent option for business websites. As a web designer, I like Squarespace because it is easy to use. There are many customization options, and the websites are also optimized for mobile users. The design features in Squarespace are plentiful, and though there are fewer e-commerce options, the point-of-sale system in Squarespace is still fully capable of making sales and running an online store.
So Which Should You Pick — Shopify vs. Squarespace?
If your primary business is providing a service and you focus heavily on your services but want to offer some products online I would recommend Squarespace.
For service-based businesses, Squarespace also has tools like scheduling, courses, and memberships, and easy-to-use email marketing.
If your business is focused on selling online and moving products, I would recommend Shopify.
As mentioned, I regularly work with both options and feel confident recommending both platforms to my clients. These two options are the top e-commerce solutions for a reason, and you shouldn’t have any regrets about picking either one. However, each business has individual needs, and there are differences between the two options.
I hope this blog post has helped you gather enough information to make a decision.
I’d be happy to help you design your e-commerce website. Contact me today to discuss your project!