Primarily, Shopify and Squarespace are alike products, both of them let you create a website/store and sell products. Coding or design skills are not required in either case. They have a very distinct history though and were initiated with different aims. Shopify was specially created to make an online shopping store, whereas Squarespace was formulated to build and maintain content-based websites. With time, these two platforms became almost similar as Squarespace added an E-commerce feature set and Shopify introduced content creation applications. Either of the platforms can now be used to sell products online or build a content-based website.

Shopify now empowers more than 5,00,000 online stores and handles more than $40 billion of merchandise volume. Shopify is growing very quickly and doubling its revenue every year since 2013.

A Website or an Online Store?

Answering this question helps a lot in deciding between Shopify and Squarespace, are you trying to build an online store or just a website? Here the website is referred to as the place where information is conveyed like a news site, blog, magazine, brochure, etc. The online store is intended only for selling products. Before digging into the strengths and weaknesses of the platforms, let’s take a look at what these platforms have in common –

• Both the E-commerce platforms are proficient in security. This is something needed in any online shop for peace of mind and to build trust with the users. Both platforms have SSL certificates with closed systems managed by their own developers.
• Both Squarespace and Shopify are also known for their customer service. The merchant will always have great support for their online business which is easy to reach and timely.
• Neither of the platforms requires you to be a tech expert to make the site run and look good. Only if you are familiar with coding, you can do things with CSS and HTML.

The major difference in the two platforms is in the way they handle E-commerce and how they make the website look. It also depends on how the merchant wants the products on display. Let’s get to the differences and see which platform is most suitable for your online store. Check the comparison table below to see how these platforms match up.

Where Shopify Wins?

Shopify is the appropriate choice if anyone wants a full-fledged and quick-loading shopping website for their business. There are several scalable and flexible E-commerce tools which are excellent for any size of online store specially for stores with big inventories. Many recognizable and big brands in E-commerce are powered by Shopify like Heinz, Lindt, Staples and many more. This shows that Shopify has all the tools for a successful online store, the merchant just needs to stay updated with the features.

The most basic plan of Shopify is also well-equipped to run the online business with success. Shopify also has numerous free and paid apps for the extra E-commerce features. The app store of Shopify has more than 3000 apps to enhance the productivity and functionality of your online store.

Shopify also provides analytical tools encompassing stock monitoring emails and revenue reports to keep a check on inventory demands. The Search Engine Optimization with Shopify is exceptional and pulls visitors from all the search engines. There are also enough applications which enhance the SEO and present the products in front of the people who need to buy them.

Shopify also has complete payment options for the customers inclusive of credit card payments, Apple Pay, PayPal and even sales through the social media platforms. It also has flexible payment gateways and retail POS with paid applications for advance shipping options if required.

Where Squarespace wins?

Squarespace has a very easy-to-use and visual drag-and-drop editor and does not require any coding expertise to create an amazing website. The templates can get you started with a professional and beautiful website to keep your users engaged. The unique features with Squarespace unlike Shopify are the blogging tools with effortless integration and do not need any extension or extra application.

With regards to E-commerce features, the advance plan of Squarespace provides shipping rates calculated by carrier at the time of checkout. In case of Shopify, this comes only with the advance Shopify plan. Overall, the plans with Squarespace are affordable varying from $18 to $40 per month. If budget is the concern, you can go for this option but then the availability of E-commerce tools will not be that wide as compared to Shopify.

Where They Fall Short?

The E-commerce functionality of Shopify is unquestionable but it is also significant for the online store to look great and attract customers. Shopify only has ten free themes to choose from which limits the flexibility. Also, for the blogging functionality, you will need to take a paid app which is unfortunate when you are already paying for a premium plan.

Squarespace has very limited E-commerce tools as compared to Shopify which are suitable only for small and medium-sized stores. With the product pages, Squarespace enables only the product images to be displayed from center and front. The SEO tools with this platform are good but slow to load on mobile devices. It also provides lesser payment options than Shopify.

To conclude

The choice between Shopify and Squarespace depends on the variety and types of products you want to sell. If you are in a creative field with a small section of products, Squarespace may impress your customers. Shopify is your pick if you have a wide range of products and you are serious about expanding your business.

About SynergyTop

Based on Shopify ecommerce platforms, we develop and deploy sophisticated online stores using both Shopify and Shopify Plus. Additionally, SynergyTop is adept at creating custom Shopify applications to accommodate client’s needs. Connect with us today to learn more about our Shopify development and support services, or to further explore Shopify Plus pricing. Write to us on contact@synergytop.com