Squarespace vs. WordPress: How to Choose the Right Platform (Without Regret)

One of the most common questions we hear at MIGHTYminnow is:

“Should we use Squarespace or WordPress?”

And the honest answer is: it depends.

This is an inflection point where you need to make a decision that takes into account your team, your budget, your tolerance for maintenance, and how your site may need to evolve over time.

We work primarily in WordPress, but we also build Squarespace sites when it’s the right tool for the job. This post lays out how we think about the differences, where each platform shines, and where each can become limiting.

First, a Quick Framing: Open vs. Proprietary

At the highest level, this is the core difference:

• WordPress is open source

• Squarespace is proprietary

That single distinction has ripple effects for everything else.

WordPress (Open Source)

• You can host it anywhere

• You can move it, copy it, or rebuild it without starting from scratch

• You can extend it almost indefinitely

• You are responsible for keeping it updated and secure

Squarespace (Proprietary SaaS)

• Your site lives on Squarespace

• You don’t manage servers, updates, or security

• You trade flexibility for convenience

• If you leave Squarespace, you rebuild elsewhere

Both models are valid, but they serve very different needs.

When Squarespace Is the Right Choice

We often recommend Squarespace for clients who need a reliable, low-maintenance, small brochure-ware website. It is good if you need something simple and inexpensive that “just works”.

Squarespace is usually a great fit if:

• Your site is small (often ~10 pages or fewer)

• You don’t need complex integrations or custom functionality

• You don’t want to pay for ongoing website maintenance

• Your team wants to update content without learning much technical context (though WordPress can fit here as well)

• Your site’s purpose is primarily informational or portfolio-based

Common good fits:

• Solo consultants

• Artists and creatives

• Small salons or studios

• Early-stage organizations

• Projects with very fixed scope and little anticipated growth

Squarespace handles hosting, security, and updates behind the scenes. There’s real value in that simplicity, especially if no one on your team wants to “own” the website long-term.

Squarespace itself positions the platform this way, emphasizing ease of use and all-in-one hosting rather than extensibility.

Where Squarespace Can Become Limiting

The tradeoff for that simplicity is control.

Some common friction points we see over time:

• Limited control over navigation behavior (especially on mobile)

• No true intermediate breakpoint control (especially for tablets or sizes in between standard desktop and phone)

• Rigid layouts that can’t be meaningfully customized

• Difficulty supporting multiple, distinct user audiences

• Limited future growth paths for things like:

  • memberships

  • advanced events

  • directories

  • custom content relationships

  • accessibility fine-tuning beyond defaults

For organizations that start small but later say “now we want the site to also do X,” Squarespace can quietly turn from a time-saver into a constraint.

When WordPress Is the Right Choice

WordPress is best thought of as a platform, not a product.

We typically recommend WordPress when:

• You have multiple audiences (e.g., donors, participants, partners, staff)

• The site needs to grow or change over time

• You want full control over layout, navigation, and accessibility

• You may need integrations (CRM, email, events, memberships, LMS, etc.)

• You don’t want your site locked into a single vendor ecosystem

WordPress powers over 40% of the web, including large nonprofits, universities, publishers, and government sites – precisely because it can scale and adapt over time. That flexibility is its superpower.

The Real Cost of WordPress: Maintenance

Here’s the part we always try to say out loud:

WordPress sites require maintenance.

Because WordPress is open source and plugin-based:

• The core software updates

• Plugins update

• Security patches matter

• Hosting quality matters

For organizations without a maintenance plan, WordPress can feel brittle or stressful over time – not because WordPress is unstable, but because it needs stewardship.

That’s why we rarely recommend WordPress for:

• solo practitioners

• sites with no long-term technical owner

• projects with no budget for upkeep

Putting WordPress in the wrong hands can be like buying a powerful vehicle without planning for oil changes.

“But Can’t I Just Build a Website in 10 Minutes Using AI?”

Tools (including AI-assisted builders) have made it faster than ever to launch something.

But speed and thoughtfulness are not the same thing.

If your site needs to:

• speak to multiple audiences

• support clear navigation and hierarchy

• feel trustworthy to funders or partners

• remain useful for years, not months

• truly reflect your organization and its values

…then the real work isn’t the software. It’s the thinking.

No platform — Squarespace, WordPress, or otherwise — replaces intentionality and thoughtful decision making.

How We Usually Guide the Decision

When we help clients choose, we ask questions like:

1. How many distinct user groups does this site serve?

2. How likely is it that you’ll want new features in the future and what does that look like?

3. Who will update the site, and how often?

4. Is ongoing maintenance realistic for your organization?

5. Do you want flexibility or predictability?

There’s no “right” answer, only an appropriate one for your organization and this point in time, while realizing that the decision has future ramifications.

In Between? That’s Common Too

Many organizations fall somewhere in the middle:

• not technically complex today

• but likely to grow

• already on WordPress

• frustrated with how hard the site is to update

In those cases, the solution is often not changing platforms, but changing how WordPress is implemented — simplifying editing, clarifying structure, and removing unnecessary complexity.

A WordPress site can feel just as approachable as Squarespace when it’s built with real humans in mind.

Final Thoughts

Squarespace and WordPress are both legitimate tools.

The mistake isn’t choosing one over the other, it’s choosing without thinking through what each offers and where you’re going, not just where you are.

If you want help making that decision thoughtfully, we’d love to help.