Squarespace has got a lot better over the years. The templates are polished, the editor is approachable, and you can have something live in a weekend without writing a line of code. So why would anyone pay more for a custom-built site? Here’s an honest answer.
What Squarespace is good at
Squarespace is a strong choice for a specific kind of business: one with straightforward content, a limited budget, and someone willing to put in the time to set it up and maintain it.
It’s particularly good for:
- Creatives and portfolios — photographers, artists, designers. The templates suit image-heavy layouts.
- Simple service businesses — if your site is effectively a digital business card with a contact form, Squarespace can handle it fine.
- People who want control — if you want to update your own content without calling anyone, Squarespace gives you that.
The monthly cost ($23–$65 NZD depending on plan) looks reasonable, and for many businesses it is.
Where Squarespace has limits
It looks like Squarespace. The templates are good, but they’re used by millions of sites. Experienced eyes can spot a Squarespace site quickly, and the customisation ceiling is lower than it appears. You can change colours and fonts; you can’t always change the underlying structure without fighting the template.
Performance is middle-of-the-road. Squarespace sites load more slowly than a well-built custom site. Page speed matters for SEO — Google uses it as a ranking signal. It’s not disqualifying, but it’s a real gap.
You pay forever. The monthly fee never goes away. Over five years, $40/month is $2,400 — not counting your time. A custom site has upfront cost but lower ongoing cost.
It doesn’t do unusual things well. If you need something outside the standard page builder — a custom booking flow, specific integrations, a layout that doesn’t map to a template — you’ll spend a lot of time working around the platform’s constraints.
What a custom-built site gives you
A custom site starts from your business, not from a template. The design reflects who you actually are, not who a template designer imagined you might be.
Practically speaking, you get:
- Better performance — a well-built static site will outperform Squarespace on speed, which matters for both SEO and first impressions
- No platform lock-in — your site and your content are yours
- A design that fits your business — not the other way around
- Someone to call — if something breaks or you need a change, you’re not posting in a Squarespace forum
The tradeoff is upfront cost. A custom brochure site from a small studio in New Zealand typically runs $3,500–$7,000. That’s more than a Squarespace subscription to start, though the gap closes over a few years.
How to decide
Choose Squarespace if:
- Your budget is limited and you have the time to set it up properly
- You want to manage all your own content and don’t mind the constraints
- Your business is straightforward and a template will genuinely serve you
Choose a custom-built site if:
- You want to stand out rather than look like everyone else on the platform
- Page speed and SEO performance matter to your business
- You’d rather pay once and own the result
- You want a direct relationship with the people building and maintaining it
Neither answer is wrong. Squarespace is a real product that works for real businesses. But if you’re wondering why a custom site costs more and whether it’s worth it — the short answer is: for a lot of small businesses, it is.
Virgola builds custom sites for small businesses across Nelson, Tasman, and Marlborough. If you’re weighing up your options, get in touch and we’ll give you a straight answer.