When it comes to building a website for your business, a lot of the early decisions can have a huge impact on the final product.
One of the biggest decisions you have to make is choosing which platform to build and host your website on.
When we speak to small, fast-growing businesses, we often hear they’re trying to decide between two main platforms for their websites: WordPress and Squarespace.
So, which one is better for businesses that are seeing consistent growth, WordPress or Squarespace?
In this post, we’ll explore the pros and cons of each platform and help you decide which is better suited for your business and long-term growth goals.
Let’s start with WordPress… 👇
Overview of WordPress
WordPress is one of the most widely used website-building platforms in the world, powering over 40% of all websites on the internet.
Launched initially as a blogging platform, WordPress has evolved into a highly customisable content management system (CMS), suitable for a range of websites—from professional websites and blogs to eCommerce stores.
There are two types of WordPress:
- WordPress.com: A hosted platform with limited customisation, similar to Squarespace.
- WordPress.org: A self-hosted version that offers complete control over your website.
For this comparison, we’ll focus on WordPress.org, as it’s typically the choice for businesses wanting a flexible and scalable website, and we use it here at Damteq when building client websites.
WordPress Pros
Limitless customisation
When comparing WordPress or Squarespace, it’s important to understand how customisable and scalable WordPress can be.
One of the standout features of WordPress is the ability to customise pretty much anything on your website. With over 55,000 plugins available to install, you can add virtually any feature to your site, from advanced SEO tools like RankMath to eCommerce functionality like WooCommerce. Also, if you’ve got a good knowledge of coding, you can build completely custom features for your website.
So, if you want to tailor your website to your business, WordPress is a great option.
Scalability
As your business grows, your website should too. WordPress is an excellent platform for scaling your website. When you need to add new pages, increase functionality, develop custom features, or do a complete redesign, WordPress makes it easy to expand to your site.
WordPress is a great option if you want to grow your business steadily over the next 5 years, as it can handle everything from a small company website to a large-scale enterprise solution.
SEO-friendly
WordPress is a lot more SEO-friendly than other platforms, and control over your SEO is essential if you want to grow your online presence and drive organic website enquiries or sales.
With WordPress allowing you to build custom websites from scratch, you can create them with search engines in mind. Plus, with plugins like RankMath and Yoast SEO, you can add more tools and features to your site that help with SEO work.
Community support
As WordPress is open-source, it has a massive user base and a large, active community of developers and users who can offer advice and support.
Plus, there are countless tutorials, blogs, and forums out there dedicated to troubleshooting and expanding your WordPress knowledge and skills.
Ownership and control
With WordPress, you have complete control and ownership of your website. You choose your hosting provider, manage your domain, and have full access to your website’s files and code in the backend. If you want a flexible, customisable website with long-term stability, WordPress is great for that.
Looking for a tailored, professionally built WordPress website for your business?
At Damteq, we offer bespoke WordPress Web Design & Development services and specialise in creating stunning websites tailored to your growth goals and built with UX and SEO in mind.
Get in touch to learn more and get a tailored quote for your project.
WordPress Cons
Steep learning curve
While WordPress offers flexibility, it can be overwhelming for beginners. Setting up a WordPress site may require some technical knowledge, especially when it comes to hosting, security, and updates. But you can always outsource this to a web design agency to handle all the technical stuff for you.
Maintenance responsibility
WordPress sites require regular updates to the core software, themes, and plugins to keep them secure and running smoothly. If neglected, this could leave your website vulnerable to viruses and hackers. So, maintaining your website and keeping it up-to-date is a big responsibility.
Again, if you’re using a web design agency to manage your website, they should be able to maintain and update it for you. We do that for our clients with our WordPress web support packages.
Initial setup costs
WordPress itself is free, but there are associated costs for hosting, domain registration, premium themes, and plugins. Also, if you’re looking to outsource the design and development of your website to a WordPress agency, this can add to the costs, too.
Overview of Squarespace
Squarespace is another popular website builder known for its user-friendly interface and well-designed templates, and it powers 1.7% of all websites. Unlike WordPress, Squarespace is a fully hosted platform, meaning everything from hosting to design is included in one package.
When choosing between WordPress or Squarespace, businesses prioritising simplicity and aesthetics often find Squarespace a more attractive option. It tends to be the go-to choice for solo entrepreneurs and small businesses needing a quick, professional-looking website without dealing with the technical side.
Squarespace Pros
Ease of use
One of Squarespace’s biggest selling points is its simplicity. You can build a sleek and functional website with no coding knowledge in a matter of hours. Everything is done through an intuitive drag-and-drop interface, making it ideal for small business owners or marketers who don’t have the budget to hire a developer.
All-in-one solution
Squarespace provides hosting, security, and a range of pre-built templates, all within one package. This makes it a good option for businesses looking to get online quickly without worrying about technical upkeep.
High-quality templates
Squarespace is known for its high-quality, designer-crafted templates. Whether you’re showcasing a portfolio or launching an eCommerce site, you can choose whatever template suits your brand, make a few tweaks, and have a pretty good-looking site without the need for custom design work.
Integrated features
With built-in features like eCommerce, blogging, and analytics, Squarespace provides most of what a small business needs to get started. It also has mobile-friendly templates and features by default to ensure your website works well on any device.
Squarespace Cons
Limited customisation
While Squarespace’s ease of use is a plus, it comes at the cost of customisation. You may find Squarespace pretty limiting if you need to add custom features or complex functionality. This lack of flexibility could become a roadblock for businesses with long-term growth goals.
Less control over SEO
Squarespace offers basic SEO functionality but is not as advanced as WordPress. You have limited control over metadata, URL structures, and sitemap customisation. Also, where your website is locked into the Squarespace platform, some hosting-related issues could affect your website speed and Core Web Vitals scores.
For businesses that depend on organic traffic, especially in competitive industries, this could limit your SEO performance and results.
Limited scalability
While Squarespace is an excellent option for small businesses, it’s not ideal for larger companies or business seeing rapid growth. As your business grows, you may find Squarespace’s features and capabilities fall short of what you need, especially if you’re after complex integrations or advanced eCommerce features.
When choosing between WordPress or Squarespace, you need to think about your website’s longevity and how likely you are to outgrow your website in the next few years.
Ownership and control
With Squarespace, you don’t have complete control over your website. You’re locked into their hosting, and while you can export certain types of content, migrating your entire site to another platform can be challenging and require a lot of manual work.
So, if you want to keep and grow your website over the long term, Squarespace might not be the best option.
So which is better, WordPress or Squarespace?
Now that we’ve covered the advantages and disadvantages of both platforms, how do you know whether WordPress or Squarespace is the right option for your business?
The main things you need to consider are customisation, flexibility, scalability and long-term control.
When to choose WordPress
You need flexibility and customisation: If your business needs a highly customised website with specific or complex features, WordPress is the clear winner. It’s an ideal platform if you plan to expand your site’s functionality as your business grows.
You’re focused on SEO: If increasing inbound enquiries is a priority, WordPress provides more advanced SEO capabilities. This is crucial for businesses in competitive industries (e.g., legal or financial services) where SEO can make a big difference.
You value ownership: With WordPress, you own your website and have complete control over its hosting, design, and content. This level of control is particularly important for businesses planning long-term growth and stability.
When to choose Squarespace
You need simplicity and speed: If you’re a small business or a sole trader who needs a professional-looking website up and running quickly without worrying about the technical side, Squarespace is a solid choice.
You have modest growth goals: Squarespace works well for businesses that don’t need advanced customisation or complex integrations. If you’re happy with a more basic online presence, Squarespace offers a cost-effective and user-friendly solution.
Final considerations
When comparing WordPress or Squarespace, it’s clear that both platforms have their strengths. Squarespace excels in simplicity and ease of use, making it a great option for smaller businesses or solo entrepreneurs.
However, for established UK businesses looking to achieve steady growth over the next five years, WordPress is often the better choice.
Its flexibility, scalability, and SEO potential make it the ideal platform for businesses that want a custom, future-proof website. While it may require more investment in setup and maintenance, the long-term benefits far outweigh the initial effort.
So, if your business is serious about growing its online presence and maximising inbound enquiries, WordPress is likely the platform that will give you the edge you need.
