{"id":10201,"date":"2018-09-13T15:07:23","date_gmt":"2018-09-13T15:07:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solutionbuilt.com\/2018\/09\/13\/squarespace-vs-wordpress\/"},"modified":"2023-07-27T18:31:57","modified_gmt":"2023-07-27T18:31:57","slug":"squarespace-vs-wordpress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solutionbuilt.com\/blog\/squarespace-vs-wordpress\/","title":{"rendered":"The Ultimate Battle Royale: Squarespace vs WordPress"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Should I Choose Squarespace or WordPress?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Here, we break down the difference between using a Squarespace vs WordPress custom model for the design and development of your website. Plus, learn the difference it makes of having the right tools and team behind your custom website.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ve seen the ads. Keanu Reeves blowing through the desert on his chopper, asking himself existential questions, muttering about his online motorcycle business. Squarespace logos abounding. <\/span>\u201cMAKE IT SQUARESPACE!\u201d<\/b>.. they say. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Squarespace has cornered the market for template-based, plug & play website design, and they make a very compelling and tempting argument: <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cWhy spend thousands of dollars on your business\u2019s website when you can pay almost nothing per month using a template?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The answer: <\/b>Plug & play websites may work for a quick informational website, but they lack solutions in every best practice category there is. Custom websites continue to be the standard for online business, eCommerce, and search engine recognition.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Squarespace vs WordPress<\/strong> Round #1: SEO<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"Wordpress<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Squarespace<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Do Squarespace Sites Rank in Search Results?<\/b><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Squarespace prides itself on its easy-to-use interface, but it majorly is lacking the most crucial website aspect: SEO<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If SEO is important for your site\u2019s traffic, it\u2019s not recommended to use a template-based website like Squarespace. Template-based websites are not set up or designed for SEO best practices. This alone should deter you from using a website builder, as SEO is the backbone of your website\u2019s visibility and company\u2019s success.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jennifer Villa<\/span><\/a> from Impulse Creative adds some insight to the \u2018<\/span>Is Squarespace good for SEO?\u2019<\/b> discussion by stating, \u201cNot all Squarespace templates are made equal\u201d. In fact, there are Squarespace templates that malfunction and accidentally add your metadata over your header images. See below.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Squarespace<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This glitch is extremely problematic as users are not able to create metadata t<\/span>hat Google bots <\/span>read. Google search results and your website\u2019s ranking relies heavily on metadata.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meta Data and Squarespace Blogs<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

How can you add metadata to blog posts in Squarespace? The short answer: You can’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We recently ran into this issue with a client’s Squarespace blog. During an SEO audit, over 65 pages returned with a duplicate meta data error. This was a huge problem. But why would you copy and paste your meta description to multiple individual pages? Using Squarespace, you can only create 1 meta description for your ENTIRE blog, meaning, every blog post will essentially use the same meta description. Every. Single. Time<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why is duplicate metadata bad?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Duplicate metadata is a huge no-no for Google. In fact, according to Google, it’s better to have missing metadata than duplicate metadata. The main issue with using duplicate metadata is that is the only page of content that Google is referencing. All of the duplicate data is confusing Google, so it pushes your site’s rankings down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In summary, it’s important for SEO and your site’s search result placement to have unique metadata for every page on your website. To chat with an SEO specialist regarding your Squarespace site’s metadata, contact us online<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WordPress<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You may have heard how SEO-friendly WordPress is, and it\u2019s true! WordPress sites allow for the most optimized and detailed SEO for your business\u2019s specific needs. From originality to proper metadata and page optimization, WordPress makes SEO work and function to give your business its best results. Moreover, you have the opportunity to choose from powerful SEO plugins from WordPress, like <\/span>Yoast<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>All In One SEO Pack<\/span><\/a>. <\/span>With these tools, you can fully optimize your WordPress blog <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Round 1 Winner: <\/b><\/span>WordPress<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

WordPress<\/strong> vs Squarespace Round #2: Is it Customizable?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

\"Squarespace<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Squarespace<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Squarespace uses predesigned templates for the structure, design, and layout of your website. While this makes for a leisurely process, this process is not necessarily a solution. Instead, it\u2019s actually a problem. Why? Squarespace\u2019s framework provides pre-built website templates, meaning they are p<\/span>redesigned. Ho<\/span>wever, this framework presents problems because it\u2019s extremely restrictive.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even with a custom CSS tool, t<\/span>he abilities for editing are extremely limited. When we tried to add custom CSS to a Squarespace theme, here’s what it said:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Squarespace<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

There are drop-and-drag widget tools to add content blocks and images to a page, but the layout is extremely restrictive in the placement and design.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Predesigned templates are not customizable, restrict changes, and are limited in their look and feel. Moreover, anyone using Squarespace can be using that same template, making your site not stand out and unoriginal.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

WordPress<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

WordPress sites are fully customizable, allowing you<\/span> to completely actualize your own vision and aesthetic. Custom technologies, plugins, and new additions as your site changes and grows are all very attainable and easily implemented with WordPress.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check out our picks for the top 2018 WordPress plugins:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n