Showit vs. Squarespace: How to Choose What’s Right for You

Picture this:

You’ve decided to take your hobby to the next level. Maybe you’ve had a few word-of-mouth clients, some portfolio pieces completed, and you’re feeling confident and ready.

The next step is building your website and making your hobby an official business. (I’m so excited for you, by the way.)

Now you’re stuck in the ultimate debate: Showit vs. Squarespace.

How do you decide?

Well, I’m here to help with that.

Hi! I’m Emily from Blue House Creative Co., and I’m a Showit website designer. So while I’m writing this from a clearly biased position, I’m going to do my best to break down the Showit vs. Squarespace debate honestly, because I’m a fellow female business owner first and a Showit designer second.

The point of this blog post is to actually help. Not to give you the same recycled information that’s a lot of words and not much context. I’m going to break the debate down into three main sections: what are Showit and Squarespace, how do you know which one is the best choice for you, and once you decide, do you have to stick with it forever?

Ready? Let’s dive in.

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What is Showit and Squarespace?

Showit and Squarespace are both website builders. They are platforms that allow you to edit, design, and customize a website to reflect your business’s needs. They each offer blogging and e-commerce capabilities, and both can be DIY’d or built with a designer. They both offer a wide variety of website templates, and there is plenty of information out there about how to do just about anything on either platform.

In the simplest terms: you design your website on the builder, connect your domain, and you have a live website that can be updated whenever you want or need to, with zero coding required.

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How Do I Know What’s Best for Me?

The biggest differences between Showit and Squarespace, especially when you’re just starting out, come down to the design interface and the built-in capabilities of each platform.

Squarespace uses a block-based system. You drag and drop content blocks (think text, images, buttons, forms, etc.) to design your layout. It feels similar to Flodesk or even HoneyBook. It can be a helpful guide if you’re not sure where to start, but it can also feel restrictive if you already have a vision in your head.

Showit is more like a blank canvas. If you can design in Canva, you can design a website in Showit. Instead of blocks determining your content layout, you add content to a canvas and move it wherever you want. Each web page is made up of canvases, and you decide how many you need and what goes on each one.

Showit also offers complete freedom when designing your mobile view. This can feel overwhelming because you essentially have to re-design each canvas for mobile separately. But it also gives you a lot of creative control over how your site looks on a phone.

Squarespace predetermines your mobile view. This makes it easier to get started but limits how creative or distinctive your mobile experience can be.

A few questions to ask yourself before deciding:

• How much guidance do I need when designing or editing my website?
• Do I enjoy designing in Canva, or would I rather skip it entirely?
• Do I get frustrated when I can’t place an image or text exactly where I want it?
• Does starting with a blank canvas feel exciting or overwhelming?

It’s also worth noting that for either platform, you can hire a designer to build a custom website for you or customize a template to fit your brand. This takes most of the DIY pressure off while still giving you the ability to go in and make edits on your own.

And good news: both builders let you try before you commit. You can use my Showit referral link to get your first month free and download my free templates to get started. Squarespace also offers a free trial, so you can get a feel for it before you pay for anything.

If you’re planning to DIY your site, I’d really recommend signing up for both and seeing which one clicks for you.

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Is My Website Builder Choice Forever?

The great news is that if you’re a year down the road (or six months, or three weeks, or three years) and you’re ready to upgrade, you can absolutely switch platforms. Yes, you can just switch.

Is it hard to switch?

It depends. If you have a small website and few or no blog posts, switching can be as simple as designing a new site, adding your content, and connecting your domain.

It gets more complex the larger your website is and the more blog posts you have. Both Showit and Squarespace have blog migration capabilities, but if you have hundreds of posts, the process can be time-consuming.

My advice? Start where you feel most comfortable and give yourself six to twelve months. Then check in with yourself and ask:

• Do I like my website?
• Is it easy to update?
• Do I like working in the design interface?
• What do I feel is missing?

Once you’ve answered those questions honestly, take some time to figure out if it’s a platform issue or a user knowledge issue. Sometimes spending a little more time learning your builder will give you the clarity you need. Other times, it might be worth hiring a professional to get you on the right track. And if you genuinely dread editing even the smallest thing on your website, it might just be time to switch.

So there you have it: a straightforward breakdown of Showit vs. Squarespace and how to make the right call for where you are right now. I hope this helps!

Start your Showit trial with this discount code, any these free launching soon templates and see how it feels.