Shopify vs Squarespace UK 2026: Which Platform Is Right for Your Small Business?

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Introduction

If you’re a UK small business owner deciding how to build your website — and especially if you’re planning to sell online — you’ve probably narrowed it down to Shopify and Squarespace. They’re both excellent, both widely used, and both very good at what they do. But they’re built for genuinely different purposes, and choosing the wrong one can cost you money and frustration down the line.

The short version: Shopify is an eCommerce specialist built for selling; Squarespace is a design-led website builder that happens to sell well too. This guide gives you a current, honest comparison for 2026 — real UK pricing, transaction fees, eCommerce depth, and design — so you can choose the right one for your business. No fluff.

Quick Verdict

• Choose Shopify if selling online is the core of your business, or you plan to scale, sell internationally, or manage a large catalogue.
• Choose Squarespace if design matters most and selling is part of a wider brand site — or if you want a beautiful store at a lower cost and modest volume.

Now let’s dig in.

Pricing: Shopify vs Squarespace in the UK (2026)

Both platforms show pricing in pounds. Here are the current plans on annual billing (both cost more monthly). Note that Shopify renamed its plans in 2024 — the mid-tier plan once called “Shopify” is now “Grow” — and Squarespace renamed its plans in 2026 (the old Personal/Business/Commerce tiers are now Basic/Core/Plus/Advanced).

Shopify	Price/mo	Squarespace	Price/mo
Starter	£5 (social selling only)	Basic	£12
Basic	£19	Core	£17
Grow	£49	Plus	£29
Advanced	£259	Advanced	£79
Plus	from £1,800	—	—

Neither has a free plan — Shopify offers a 3-day trial (often with a £1/month promo for the first three months), and Squarespace a 14-day trial.

A few things stand out:

• Squarespace is cheaper for a small store. Its Basic plan (£12) lets you sell with a 2% fee, and Core (£17) removes that fee — both cheaper than Shopify’s Basic (£19).
• Squarespace is far cheaper at the top. Its Advanced plan (£79) costs a fraction of Shopify’s Advanced (£259). But Shopify’s higher tiers are built for high-volume stores where lower transaction fees pay for themselves.
• Shopify’s £5 Starter isn’t a real store — it’s for social selling (buy buttons on Instagram, TikTok, and link-in-bio pages), not a standalone website.

Transaction fees: the important detail

Both charge fees, but they work differently:

• Squarespace: A 2% Squarespace transaction fee applies on the Basic plan; from Core upwards it’s 0% on physical products. Card-processing fees apply on all plans (2% + 25p, dropping to 1.5% + 25p on Advanced).
• Shopify: If you use an outside gateway like Stripe or PayPal, Shopify adds a third-party transaction fee (2% on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced). Use Shopify Payments and that fee disappears — you just pay the card rate (2% + 25p on Basic, down to 1.5% + 25p on Advanced).

For a low-volume store, the platform fee and subscription matter most. For a high-volume store, transaction fees dominate — which is exactly where Shopify’s higher tiers (with their lower fees) start to justify their cost.

eCommerce: Shopify’s Home Turf

This is where the two genuinely diverge, and where Shopify pulls decisively ahead.

Shopify is purpose-built for selling. It has the best inventory management, the smoothest checkout (Shop Pay converts noticeably better than standard checkouts), true multi-currency and multi-market selling, advanced shipping, and by far the largest app ecosystem of any platform — whatever selling feature you need, there’s almost certainly an app for it. If your business is fundamentally a shop, Shopify gives you room to grow for years.

Squarespace has capable eCommerce, and its store pages look beautiful, but it’s more limited: payment options are restricted (Squarespace Payments, Stripe, PayPal), there’s no true multi-currency checkout, and product-management and app options are far more basic. It’s genuinely good for a small, domestic catalogue — but it’s not built to scale the way Shopify is.

Winner: Shopify, comfortably, for anything beyond a small store.

Design: Squarespace’s Home Turf

Here the tables turn completely.

Squarespace is the industry leader on design. Its templates are polished, modern, and professional straight out of the box — for any business where visual presentation matters (photographers, restaurants, boutiques, brand-led sites), Squarespace produces a more beautiful result with far less effort.

Shopify’s free themes are functional but limited, and most growing brands end up buying a premium theme (£150–£350 as a one-off) for more design flexibility. Shopify sites can look excellent, but you typically have to invest more — in a theme, or in a designer — to match what Squarespace gives you by default.

Winner: Squarespace, comfortably, on design quality and value.

Ease of Use

Both are approachable, but in different ways:

• Squarespace guides you towards a clean, professional design with minimal fiddling. It’s the easier experience if your priority is a good-looking site.
• Shopify is straightforward for setting up a store — products, inventory, payments, shipping — with guided onboarding. It’s the easier experience if your priority is selling.

Neither requires coding. For a non-technical owner, both are manageable; the “easier” one depends on whether you’re building a brand site or running a shop.

Which Should UK Small Businesses Choose?

Choose Shopify if:

• Selling online is the core of your business
• You plan to scale, sell internationally, or handle a large product range
• You want the widest range of eCommerce apps and integrations
• You value the smoothest possible checkout for conversions

Choose Squarespace if:

• Design and presentation are central to your brand
• Selling is part of a wider brochure or portfolio site rather than the whole business
• You want a beautiful online store at a lower cost and modest volume
• You’d rather not pay extra for a premium theme to get a great-looking site

If you’re a service business that doesn’t sell products at all, it’s also worth considering Wix alongside Squarespace — both are cheaper and better suited to non-eCommerce sites than Shopify.

Neither Handles Your Tax

Whichever you choose, remember that these are website and eCommerce platforms, not accounting software. Neither Shopify nor Squarespace connects to HMRC or handles VAT returns and Making Tax Digital. Even running a store on either, you’ll need separate accounting software — such as QuickBooks, Xero, or FreeAgent — to stay MTD-compliant. Both can export your sales data into your bookkeeping software, but the tax side happens elsewhere.

FAQ

Is Shopify or Squarespace cheaper?

For a small store, Squarespace is cheaper — its Basic plan (£12/month, with a 2% fee) and Core plan (£17/month, 0% fee) both undercut Shopify’s Basic (£19/month). Squarespace is also far cheaper at the top (Advanced £79 vs Shopify Advanced £259). Shopify’s higher tiers make sense only once your sales volume is high enough that its lower transaction fees pay for the bigger subscription.

Which is better for selling online?

Shopify, without much doubt, for anything beyond a small store. It has better inventory management, a smoother checkout, true multi-currency selling, and a vastly larger app ecosystem. Squarespace’s eCommerce is capable and beautifully designed but more limited — great for a small, domestic catalogue, but not built to scale like Shopify.

Which has better designs?

Squarespace. Its templates are widely regarded as the best of any website platform, producing professional sites with minimal effort. Shopify sites can look great too, but you usually need to buy a premium theme (£150–£350) or hire a designer to match Squarespace’s out-of-the-box quality.

Do either connect to Making Tax Digital?

No. Both are website/eCommerce platforms, not accounting software, so neither connects to HMRC or handles VAT and Making Tax Digital. You’ll need dedicated accounting software such as QuickBooks, Xero, or FreeAgent, though you can export your sales data into it.

Conclusion

Shopify and Squarespace are both excellent — the right choice simply depends on what your business is.

If you’re fundamentally a shop — selling online is the point, and you want room to grow — Shopify is the specialist and the better long-term choice, even though it costs more and needs a bit more investment in design. If you’re a brand-led or design-first business where the site needs to look beautiful and selling is part of the picture rather than the whole of it, Squarespace gives you a more professional result at a lower cost.

Our advice: both offer free trials, so build a quick test store on each. Within an hour you’ll know whether you’re happier in a purpose-built commerce platform or a design-led builder. And whichever you choose, pair it with proper accounting software to keep HMRC happy.

Pricing and features correct at time of writing. Plans and capabilities are subject to change — always confirm current details on the provider’s website before purchasing.