Shopify vs Squarespace for E-Commerce: Which One Should You Use?
Squarespace is a genuinely good platform for certain things. E-commerce at any meaningful scale isn't really one of them. Here's why — and the situations where it might be the right call anyway.
Written by Justin (Jus)
Founder, Studio Elephant · Shopify Select Partner
Studio Elephant builds primarily in Shopify, so that bias is worth stating. The studio has also worked with Squarespace stores and has a clear sense of where each platform's strengths and limits are.
Quick comparison
| Shopify | Squarespace | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Stores where selling is the main job | Content-led sites with a small shop |
| Checkout | Stronger conversion path; Shop Pay and express options | Workable for low volume; weaker at scale |
| Catalogue / variants | Built for large catalogues and complex variants | Fine for small catalogues; gets awkward at scale |
| Apps / integrations | Large App Store for reviews, subscriptions, wholesale, and more | Fewer integrations; more limited beyond built-ins |
| Design out of the box | Good themes; more work to look distinctive | Stronger default templates for many brands |
Where Squarespace genuinely wins
Design quality out of the box
Squarespace templates are beautiful. The default visual quality is higher than most Shopify themes at equivalent price points. If aesthetics are a primary concern and you're willing to accept limitations in e-commerce functionality, Squarespace starts from a stronger visual position.
Content-forward businesses with a small shop
If you're primarily a content creator, photographer, or service business with a small shop component (merchandise, prints, a few digital products), Squarespace handles that combination well. The content tools are more integrated and polished than Shopify's.
Simplicity for very small operations
For a business selling ten to twenty products with minimal variants, simple shipping requirements, and modest sales volume, Squarespace is genuinely easier to manage. The operational complexity is lower.
Where Shopify wins for e-commerce
Checkout performance
Shopify's checkout converts significantly better than Squarespace's, particularly on mobile. Shopify has invested years in optimising the checkout experience. Shop Pay, the one-click checkout option for returning customers, has no equivalent on Squarespace.
Inventory and variant management
Shopify handles complex product catalogues — hundreds of products, multiple variants per product, bundles, digital products alongside physical — without strain. Squarespace's inventory management is functional for small catalogues but becomes unwieldy at scale.
App ecosystem
Shopify's app store has thousands of integrations — reviews, subscriptions, bundles, loyalty, upsells, wholesale, fulfilment. Squarespace's integration options are limited by comparison. If you need functionality beyond the built-in features, Shopify almost always has a solution; Squarespace may not.
Scalability
Shopify scales from a startup selling ten units a week to an enterprise doing hundreds of thousands of orders a month (Shopify Plus). Squarespace has a ceiling you'll hit if your business grows significantly.
My recommendation
If e-commerce is your primary business model — if you're selling physical products, building a proper catalogue, running ads to drive traffic, or planning to grow — use Shopify. The checkout performance difference alone justifies it at any meaningful sales volume.
If you're a service business, creative, or content brand with a small incidental shop, and the visual quality and content tools matter more than e-commerce optimisation — Squarespace is a reasonable choice. Just understand the ceiling you're accepting.
Author
Justin (Jus)
Justin (Jus) founded Studio Elephant, a Melbourne Shopify development and CRO studio. Studio Elephant has delivered over 250 Shopify stores for clients in Australia, New Zealand, the USA, Canada and the UK. Writing here comes from live audits and builds, not theory.
Common questions
Is Shopify better than Squarespace for e-commerce?
For most product businesses, yes. Shopify usually converts better at checkout, handles larger catalogues, and has a wider app ecosystem. Studio Elephant builds and optimises Shopify stores, and recommends Shopify when selling physical products is the core of the business.
When should I use Squarespace instead of Shopify?
Squarespace fits service businesses, creatives, and content brands with a small incidental shop of maybe ten to twenty products. If visual templates and content tools matter more than checkout performance and catalogue depth, Squarespace is a reasonable choice.
Does Shopify or Squarespace have a better checkout?
Shopify. Shop Pay and other express options have no strong Squarespace equivalent, and Shopify has spent years tightening the mobile checkout path. That gap matters once you run meaningful sales volume.
Can Squarespace handle a large product catalogue?
Not as well as Shopify. Squarespace inventory tools work for small catalogues and get unwieldy with hundreds of products, complex variants, bundles, or mixed digital and physical SKUs. Shopify is built for that scale.
Should I migrate from Squarespace to Shopify?
Migrate when e-commerce is becoming the main revenue engine and Squarespace limits checkout, apps, or catalogue growth. Studio Elephant theme setups start from $2,400 AUD and custom builds from $5,000 AUD if you need help building a Shopify storefront that converts.