Shopify vs. Squarespace
When clients ask whether they should choose Squarespace or Shopify for their eCommerce site, my answer is always: "It depends on you." Helpful, I know! While both platforms are excellent and will give you eCommerce capabilities—your choice should ideally hinge on your specific needs and preferences. Here are two things to consider:
FIRST — Consider what you sell. Do you offer physical products, services, or memberships? Shopify shines with large volumes of physical goods, thanks to its robust eCommerce features. Squarespace, on the other hand, excels with a broader range of offerings, especially when it comes to service-based businesses or more visually-driven websites.
SECOND — Think about how customizable your products are. Squarespace handles simple customizations, like adding a single monogram to a product, with ease. However, for more complex scenarios—such as varying price per monogram letter—Shopify, often via third-party plugins, may be the better choice.
Complex needs aside, both platforms can accommodate diverse requirements. I’ve successfully managed stores with thousands of variants on Squarespace and streamlined services on Shopify. The key is matching the platform to your business model and workflow.
In essence, Shopify is built for eCommerce, while Squarespace offers eCommerce as part of a broader web-building toolkit. Your ideal choice will depend on your product types, feature needs, and personal comfort with each platform. Whichever you choose, I’ll ensure your shop reflects your vision, connects with your ideal customers, and provides an outstanding shopping experience.
LET’S FIRST TALK CREDIT CARD PROCESSING FEES
If you're looking to sell online goods/services and accept credit card payments, processing fees are just part of the deal—think of them like the rent or utilities for a physical store. These fees cover everything from handling transactions to managing fraud and ensuring secure payments. While they might seem like an extra cost, accepting credit cards is key to reaching more customers and boosting sales. The convenience and increased revenue you gain from offering credit card options usually make these fees a smart investment for growing your online business.
Shopify
Shopify specializes in eCommerce features, themes, and apps. It offers flexibility and serves as a unique product showcase, sales channel, and primary brand touchpoint. Business owners and brand managers appreciate the simplicity of its hosting and support infrastructure. If you’re running a high-volume online store, Shopify might be the better option for you.
Shopify provides three primary pricing plans for new businesses, which vary based on your needs, team size, and selling markets or locations. Each plan comes with different credit card processing rates.
Their discounted annual Plans is shown here →
Shopify offers this 25% discount if you pay for your plan annually instead of monthly. Additional discounts and lower online variable platform fees are available if you subscribe to a 3-year Shopify Plus plan.
If you prefer to pay monthly, the rates are as follows— Basic: $39/month, Shopify: $105/month Advanced: $399/month, Plus: is the same at $2,300/month.
Included In Every Shopify Plan
Unlimited Products: Sell as many products as you want without restrictions.
Unlimited Bandwidth: No extra charges for online visitors or file uploads.
Brand Assets: Manage your logo, colors, and slogan.
Fraud Analysis: Detect and flag potentially fraudulent orders with Shopify Payments.
Manual Order Creation: Create and manage orders directly from your admin.
Discount Codes: Offer and manage discount codes and combinations.
Custom Pricing by Market: Adjust prices for specific regions and show local currencies (with Shopify Payments).
Abandoned Cart Recovery: Automatically email customers who leave without completing their purchase.
Analytics: Access key metrics like sales and visitor data.
Finance Reports: View and analyze financial data, including sales and payments.
Customer Support: 24/7 support via the Shopify Help Center.
Online Sales Channels: Sell through various online platforms and manage them from one admin.
Shopify POS: Process in-person sales with the Shopify POS app for iOS and Android.
Shopify Features
SHOPIFY PAYMENTS — Shopify Payments is Shopify’s integrated payment gateway, eliminating additional transaction fees ranging from 0.5% to 2% based on your plan. While you still pay standard credit card rates, using Shopify Payments avoids extra fees. Shopify supports major payment gateways like PayPal, Amazon Pay, and Square, as well as over 100 other options. Note that Shopify Payments is currently available in 17 countries.
SHOPIFY THEMES — Shopify offers a variety of themes suitable for different industries such as electronics, food, clothing, sports, and cosmetics. All themes are elegant, attractive, and mobile-responsive. When working with TheMuddShop we optimize your chosen theme for layout, navigation, user experience, SEO, back-end management, load speed, and third-party integrations.
SHIPPING — Shopify Shipping provides printable shipping labels and integrates with USPS, UPS, and DHL, offering discounted, pre-negotiated rates. For calculated shipping with FedEx, you need a FedEx account and must be on the Advanced Shopify or Plus plan. If you are on a lower plan, you can add this feature for a monthly fee or switch to yearly billing.
TAXES — Shopify automatically applies tax rates for specific regions, including the US, UK, EU, Canada, and Australia. For other regions, you can set up default taxes or customize them based on local tax laws and regulations.
CURRENCY — Shopify supports multi-currency selling, but you must use Shopify Payments as your payment processor. Alternatively, you can use third-party apps like Bold Multi-Currency to enable multi-currency sales.
Shopify Cost Breakdown*
SHOPIFY PLAN → $350 - 950 (ANNUALLY)
You can choose to pay for your Shopify Plan monthly or annually. Shopify, like any site that accepts credit cards, charges a fee for processing credit card payments. These fees vary depending on the plan you select (see above for rates per plan)
SHOPIFY THEME → $150 - 350 (ONE TIME)
Every Shopify store requires a theme to define its front end. You can browse available themes here. Shopify provides a default theme when you create an account. If you opt to use their default theme, our design rate will shift to a full website build ($1500 - $3500) instead of a customization fee.
WEB DESIGNER / DEVELOPER → $350 - 1250 (ONE TIME)
Once you’ve chosen a Shopify theme, you can hire TheMuddShop to set up your shop and customize your chosen theme to align with your brand. This includes backend setup (payment processing, shipping, product setup, SEO, etc.) and ensuring your site is user-friendly and unique.
THIRD-PARTY APPS → $5 - 50 (PER MONTH/APP)
Shopify is a powerful eCommerce platform but still has its limitations. To enhance your site’s functionality, you might need to integrate additional apps, which are purchased separately, usually on a monthly basis. Examples include analytics tools, SEO optimizers, marketing automation, advanced product variants, shipping carriers, and data insights.
WEBSITE MAINTENANCE → $175 - 475 (PER MONTH / AS NEEDED)
After your site launches, you may need ongoing support for updates, performance, apps, and functionality. TheMuddShop offers monthly maintenance plans to assist with all post-launch needs.
*all costs are approximates/estimates and subject to change
Squarespace
Squarespace excels in website design and content management—that includes e-commerce functionality There are specific rates and fees you pay when you complete a sale through Squarespace. Payment processing fees are charged for every purchase, while transaction fees depend on your billing plan.
Squarespace offers several pricing plans tailored to different needs and eCommerce setups. Each plan includes various features and capabilities.
Their discounted annual Plans is shown here →
If you prefer to pay monthly, the rates are as follows— Personal: $29/month, Business: $36/month, Commerce Basic: $40/month, Commerce Advanced $73/month.
You'll need to pay a fee for the processing of each transaction. You can connect a payment solution, like Squarespace Payments, or a third-party processor, Stripe, PayPal, or Square. You can see a breakdown of each of their processing fees here.
Included In Every Squarespace Plan
Fully-managed Cloud Hosting: ensuring your website remains available at all times
Unlimited Bandwidth: the amount of photos stored or visitors on a site won't affect load speed
14-day Free Trial: for first-time users
Customizable Templates: dozens of modern and minimalistic templates that we can customize and tailored to your wishes.
Mobile & Tablet Friendly: Every design automatically includes a unique mobile experience that matches the overall style of your website, so your content will look great on every device, every time.
Multiple Contributors and Access Levels: Give contributors selective access to your site, depending on their permissions.
Rich Image Manager: add and organize images via drag & drop builder. Edit images with ease.
Blogging: design and manage your own blog.
Built-in Analytics & Metrics: detailed analytics where you can track traffic, popular content, sales, and more.
Built-in SEO Tools: No plugins needed. Squarespace gives you everything you need to have an SEO-ready site.
Customer Support: fast and friendly support and numerous community forums
Extensions: Third-party tools may help you manage and grow your business. See individual detail pages for supported countries.
Squarespace Features
SQUARESPACE PAYMENTS — Squarespace Commerce integrates seamlessly with several payment gateways, including Squarespace's own payment processor, Stripe, and PayPal. While Squarespace doesn’t charge additional transaction fees beyond standard credit card processing rates, using its native payment solutions can simplify your setup. Note that Squarespace Payments is currently available in multiple countries, though its specific availability may vary.
SQUARESPACE TEMPLATES — Squarespace offers a wide range of elegant, industry-specific templates designed to be mobile-responsive and visually appealing. No need to purchase an external/third-party template. When working with TheMuddShop, we ensure your chosen template is finely tuned for performance and functionality.
SHIPPING — Squarespace provides shipping label printing through its integration with major carriers like USPS, UPS, and DHL. It also offers the capability to set up shipping rules and rates, though pre-negotiated rates are not included. For more advanced shipping features, such as calculated shipping rates and additional carrier integrations, you may need to explore third-party services or upgrade to a higher plan.
TAXES — Squarespace automatically calculates sales tax for specific regions, including the US and EU, based on the customer’s shipping address. For other locations, you can manually set up tax rates or use custom tax rules to comply with local regulations.
CURRENCY — Squarespace supports selling in multiple currencies, though this feature requires integrating with a third-party service. With the right setup, you can offer your customers the ability to view prices and make purchases in their preferred currency.
Squarespace Cost Breakdown*
SQUARESPACE PLAN → $192 - 588 (ANNUALLY) APPROX.
You can choose to pay for your Squarespace Plan monthly or annually. Credit card processing fees vary depending on the plan you choose (See, page ABOVE for rates per plan)
SQUARESPACE TEMPLATE → INCUDED
Squarespace provides a variety of elegant, mobile-responsive templates built into the platform, so there's no need to buy external templates
WEB DESIGNER / DEVELOPER → $350 - 1250 (ONE TIME)
After creating your Squarespace account, you can select any layout/template to start. We handle all setup & customization for your eCommerce site, including backend configuration (payment processing, shipping, product setup, SEO) and ensuring your site is
THIRD-PARTY APPS → $5 - 40 (PER MONTH/APP)
Third-party extensions are rarely needed with Squarespace due to its robust platform. The most commonly used features for eCommerce are shipping and fulfillment, followed by Acuity Scheduling and Squarespace Email Campaigns.
WEBSITE MAINTENANCE → $175 - 475 (PER MONTH / AS NEEDED)
After your site launches, you may need ongoing support for content updates, performance, and functionality. We offer monthly maintenance plans to assist with all post-launch needs.
*all costs are approximates/estimates and subject to change
A SIDE BY SIDE COMPARISON
Products + Variants
Shopify
PRODUCT LIMITS — Technically unlimited products, though performance may degrade with very large catalogs (over 50,000 products).
VARIANTS — Each product can have up to 3 options and up to 100 variant combinations. More options and combinations are available through third-party apps.
PRODUCT TYPES — Supports physical, digital, and subscription products. Other types such as memberships or additional custom products typically require third-party apps.
DROPSHOPPING — Extensive network for dropshipping integrations
Squarespace
PRODUCT LIMITS — You can have up to 10,000 products per store, and you can use multiple pages if needed.
VARIANTS — Each product can have up to 6 options and up to 250 variant combinations.
PRODUCT TYPES — Supports physical, digital, service, subscription products, memberships, events, and classes. All without needing third-party apps.
Shipping + Fulfillment
Shopify
CARRIER CALCULATED RATES — Available for DHL, UPS, USPS (US), and Canada Post (Canada) via Shopify Shipping. FedEx rates require a separate FedEx account.
SHIPPING ZONES — Create shipping zones based on countries. Zip/postal code-based zones are possible with third-party apps.
SHIPPING LABELS —Print and pay for labels through Shopify Shipping or third-party extensions.
FULFILLMENT — Custom third-party fulfillment and Fulfillment by Amazon are available with an Amazon Seller Central account.
MULTI-ORIGIN SHIPPING — Available for tracking inventory across multiple locations.
PRINT ON DEMAND — Available through various third-party apps.
Squarespace
SHIPPING METHOD — Offers free, flat rate, or weight-based shipping options with any carrier.
CARRIER CALCULATED RATES —Available for FedEx, UPS, and USPS (US only).
SHIPPING ZONES —Allows creation of shipping zones based on country, state/province, and zip/postal code (US & Canada).
SHIPPING LABELS — Print and pay for labels directly through Squarespace or via shipping extensions.
FULFILLMENT —Third-party fulfillment is supported through Shipwire or Fulfillment by Amazon via ShipStation.
MULTI-ORIGIN SHIPPING — Possible through shipping extensions.
PRINT ON DEMAND — Available through Printful or Printique.
Content + Design
Shopify
HOMEPAGE CONTENT — Depends on the theme purchased. Themes vary in customization options for home page content.
INTERIOR PAGES — Created within Shopify admin, with customization via custom CSS/HTML. Limited compared to Squarespace.
URLs — Pages have standard URLs (e.g., “example.com/pages/about”).
STYLE CAPABILITIES — Limited compared to Squarespace; heavily reliant on theme.
BLOGGING — Basic blogging capabilities; more advanced features depend on the theme.
SEO FEATURES — Basic SEO features included; more advanced tasks may require code access or third-party apps.
Squarespace
DESIGN FLEXIBILITY — All design layouts and features are available for all pages.
CUSTOMIZATION — Customize any page using various product blocks. Create galleries, forms, event calendars, and portfolios without third-party plugins.
URLs — Tidy URLs for all pages (e.g., “example.com/about”).
STYLE CAPABILITIES —Extensive style options for page elements.
BLOGGING / PODCASTING — Rich capabilities are built-in.
SEO FEATURES — Includes easy-to-use SEO features.
We hope this gives you a clearer picture of Shopify & Squarespace and their unique eCommerce strengths. Remember, the best platform for your online store depends on your product types, feature requirements, and how comfortable you are with each platform. Choose what feels right for you and your business.
IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN HAVING THEMUDDSHOP SETUP, CUSTOMIZE, AND LAUNCH YOUR ONLINE STORE, PLEASE FILL OUT THE INTAKE FORM ON OUR WEBSITE. WE'LL GET YOU IN THE QUEUE AND HELP BRING YOUR STORE TO LIFE!
Image: Astrolabium, Johannes Angelus (Author), Erhard Ratdolt (Printer). Woodcuts, 1488. The Walters Art Museum
