True cost comparison — not just what the pricing page says
Quick Verdict
Wix saves you 20%
Best for Wix
Non-technical users wanting maximum design flexibility, a free tier to start, and extensive app marketplace
Best for Squarespace
Design-focused businesses wanting polished, professional templates and built-in blogging with minimal setup
Drag-and-drop website builder for non-technical users. Free plan is ad-supported...
Advertised
$0
/month
True Cost
$74
/month (typical)
Wix Branding on Free
Free plan displays 'Wix.com' ads and uses a wix.com subdomain. Removing branding requires Light plan...
App Market Cost Accumulation
Most functional sites need 3-8 Wix Apps (booking $0-10/mo, events $0-10/mo, chat $0-30/mo, SEO tools...
Heavy Sites Performance Degradation
Sites with 50+ pages, many apps, or large media galleries experience significant load time increases...
Per-Site Pricing
Each Wix plan covers ONE site only. Running 3 business sites = 3× the subscription cost. No multi-si...
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Design-forward website builder with beautiful templates. Plans from $16-$49/mo b...
Advertised
$16
/month
True Cost
$133
/month (typical)
E-Commerce Transaction Fee
Business plan charges 3% transaction fee on all sales on top of payment processor fees. Only Commerc...
Scheduling Add-On (Acuity)
Squarespace Scheduling (Acuity) is a separate product: Emerging free (limited), Growing $16/mo, Powe...
Email Campaigns Add-On
Squarespace Email Campaigns is a separate product starting at $7/mo (500 subscribers) up to $48/mo (...
Contributor Limits
Personal plan allows only 2 contributors. Business allows unlimited contributors but costs $23/mo. T...
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Wix has a free plan (with ads). Squarespace has no free plan — Personal starts at $16/mo
Squarespace charges 3% e-commerce transaction fees on Business plan. Wix has no platform transaction fees on Business
Wix offers more design flexibility with 900+ templates and drag-and-drop. Squarespace has stricter template structures but more polished designs
Squarespace includes scheduling (Acuity) and email campaigns as paid add-ons ($14-49/mo each). Wix bundles more in base plans
| Metric | Wix | Squarespace | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advertised Price | $0/mo | $16/mo | Wix |
| True Monthly Cost | $74/mo | $133/mo | Wix |
| Hidden Fee Total | +$74/mo | +$117/mo | Wix |
| # Hidden Fees | 4 | 4 | Wix |
| Confidence Score | 78% | 79% | Squarespace |
| Pricing Tiers | 4 | 4 | — |
| Affiliate Program | $100 per premium referral | $100-$200 per referral (varies by plan) | — |
Try the tool that fits your needs. Both offer free trials or free tiers.
Wix advertises $0/mo and Squarespace advertises $16/mo. However, when you include hidden fees, Wix has 4 documented hidden fees adding +$74/mo, while Squarespace has 4 hidden fees adding +$117/mo. Based on true cost, Wix is typically 20% cheaper.
Wix has 4 documented hidden fees: Wix Branding on Free, App Market Cost Accumulation, Heavy Sites Performance Degradation, Per-Site Pricing. These add approximately +$74/mo on top of the $0/mo advertised price.
Squarespace has 4 documented hidden fees: E-Commerce Transaction Fee, Scheduling Add-On (Acuity), Email Campaigns Add-On, Contributor Limits. These add approximately +$117/mo on top of the $16/mo advertised price.
Choose Wix if: Non-technical users wanting maximum design flexibility, a free tier to start, and extensive app marketplace. Choose Squarespace if: Design-focused businesses wanting polished, professional templates and built-in blogging with minimal setup. The right choice depends on your team size, usage volume, and which features you need most.
This comparison is based on manual research of official pricing pages, terms of service, and user reports. Wix data has a 78% confidence score and Squarespace has 79%. Prices were last verified in April 2026. For the most accurate estimate, enter your specific usage in our calculator.
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