Framer vs Squarespace: Complete Comparison for Business Websites

Framer is the better platform for B2B companies that need a fast, custom-designed website with advanced animations and pixel-perfect control. Squarespace is the better choice for small businesses and individuals who want an all-in-one solution with built-in e-commerce and minimal setup. For growth-stage companies competing on design quality and conversion rates, Framer delivers measurably better performance and creative flexibility.

Choosing between Framer and Squarespace comes down to what kind of business you’re building and what your website needs to accomplish. Both platforms let you build websites without writing code. But they approach website building from fundamentally different angles — and those differences matter when your site is a core growth channel.

This comparison covers every factor that matters for business websites: design flexibility, performance, SEO, pricing, CMS, e-commerce, animations, hosting, templates, and learning curve. No fluff. Just an honest breakdown to help you pick the right platform.

Platform Overview: What Are Framer and Squarespace?

What Is Framer?

Framer is a design-first website builder created by the team behind Framer Motion, the most popular React animation library on the web. It combines a visual editor that feels like Figma with production-grade hosting and publishing. Sites built in Framer are fast, responsive, and animation-rich by default.

Framer has gained rapid adoption among startups, SaaS companies, and design agencies. Its strength is making high-quality interactive websites accessible without custom development — while still producing sites that look and perform like they were hand-coded.

What Is Squarespace?

Squarespace is one of the most established website builders in the market, launched in 2004. It offers an all-in-one platform with hosting, domains, templates, e-commerce, email marketing, and scheduling tools built in. Squarespace has made a name with polished templates and a straightforward editor that requires zero technical knowledge.

Squarespace serves millions of websites across small businesses, creators, restaurants, and online stores. Its strength is convenience — everything you need to run a small business website lives under one roof.

Framer vs Squarespace: Feature-by-Feature Comparison

Here’s how Framer and Squarespace compare across the factors that matter most for business websites:

Feature	Framer	Squarespace	Winner
Design Flexibility	Free-form canvas, pixel-perfect control, Figma-like editor	Template-based with section editing, limited layout control	Framer
Performance	Static-generated, CDN-hosted, sub-second loads	Server-rendered, heavier page weight, slower Core Web Vitals	Framer
SEO Capabilities	Clean code output, fast load times, custom meta, auto sitemap	Built-in SEO tools, meta controls, but slower page speed hurts rankings	Framer
CMS	Modern, flexible collections with custom fields and filtering	Blog and product pages, basic content management	Framer
E-Commerce	Limited (basic product pages, third-party integrations)	Full-featured store with inventory, shipping, subscriptions	Squarespace
Animations & Interactions	Production-grade animations, scroll effects, hover states, transitions	Basic fade/slide animations, limited interaction options	Framer
Hosting	Included (global CDN, SSL, custom domains)	Included (SSL, custom domains, managed hosting)	Tie
Templates	Hundreds of community templates, fully customizable	150+ designer templates, customizable within constraints	Tie
Learning Curve	Moderate — familiar for Figma users, steeper for beginners	Easy — drag-and-drop, minimal technical knowledge needed	Squarespace
Pricing	Free tier + $5-$30/mo paid plans	$16-$72/mo (no free tier)	Framer

Design Flexibility

Design flexibility is where the gap between Framer and Squarespace is widest.

Framer gives you a free-form canvas where every element can be placed, sized, and styled with pixel-perfect precision. The editor works like Figma — drag elements anywhere, create components with variants, build responsive breakpoints visually, and use design tokens for consistency. You’re not constrained by pre-built sections or rigid grid structures.

Squarespace uses a section-based editor where you choose from pre-designed content blocks and customize them within defined parameters. You can change colors, fonts, images, and text, but you can’t break out of the template’s underlying layout structure. Moving elements freely on the canvas isn’t possible.

For B2B companies that need their website to look distinct from competitors, this difference matters. Squarespace sites, while polished, tend to look similar to each other because they share the same structural DNA. Framer sites can be genuinely unique because the design tool doesn’t impose layout constraints.

Key takeaway:

• Choose Framer if you need a custom design that matches your brand exactly
• Choose Squarespace if a clean, professional template is sufficient
• Framer gives designers the same freedom they have in Figma — with live publishing

Performance and Speed

Website performance directly impacts conversion rates, SEO rankings, and user experience. This is where Framer has a significant technical advantage.

Framer generates static HTML at build time and serves pages through a global CDN. This means pages load in milliseconds, Core Web Vitals scores are consistently high, and there’s no server processing on each page request. The result: fast sites even on slow connections.

Squarespace uses server-side rendering, meaning each page request hits a server before the visitor sees content. This adds latency. Squarespace sites also tend to have heavier page weights due to bundled JavaScript and CSS that loads regardless of whether the page uses those features. Core Web Vitals scores on Squarespace sites frequently fall below Google’s recommended thresholds.

For businesses that depend on organic search traffic, this performance gap translates directly to ranking potential. Google uses Core Web Vitals as a ranking signal, and faster sites consistently outrank slower ones in competitive SERPs.

Key takeaway:

• Framer sites typically score 90+ on Google PageSpeed Insights
• Squarespace sites often score 40-70 on mobile without optimization
• Faster load times mean lower bounce rates and higher conversions

SEO Capabilities

Both platforms offer basic SEO tools, but the quality of technical SEO output differs substantially. We covered Framer SEO in depth here — the short version is that Framer’s clean code and fast performance give it a structural SEO advantage.

Framer SEO strengths:

• Clean, semantic HTML output with minimal bloat
• Fast page speed (a confirmed Google ranking signal)
• Auto-generated sitemaps
• Custom meta titles and descriptions per page
• Custom URL slugs
• Open Graph and social meta controls
• 301 redirect management
• Schema markup support via code embeds

Squarespace SEO strengths:

• Built-in SEO checklist and guidance for beginners
• Auto-generated sitemaps
• Custom meta titles, descriptions, and URL slugs
• Open Graph controls
• 301 redirects via URL mapping
• Basic schema markup (auto-generated for some content types)

The SEO tools themselves are comparable. Where Framer wins is in the technical foundation — the clean code, fast load times, and lightweight output that search engines reward. Squarespace’s heavier codebase and slower performance create a ceiling for SEO performance that’s difficult to overcome with on-page optimization alone.

Key takeaway:

• Both platforms cover SEO basics (meta tags, sitemaps, redirects)
• Framer’s performance advantage compounds into better rankings over time
• For competitive keywords, Framer’s technical SEO foundation matters

Pricing Comparison

Pricing is an area where Framer offers more flexibility, especially for early-stage businesses.

Framer pricing (2026):

• Free: 1 site, Framer subdomain, basic features
• Mini: $5/mo — custom domain, basic site
• Basic: $15/mo — CMS, custom domain, 150 pages
• Pro: $30/mo — advanced CMS, analytics, 300 pages

Squarespace pricing (2026):

• Personal: $16/mo — basic website, no e-commerce
• Business: $33/mo — e-commerce (3% transaction fee), custom CSS/JS
• Basic Commerce: $36/mo — no transaction fees, point of sale
• Advanced Commerce: $72/mo — subscriptions, advanced shipping

For a standard B2B marketing website, Framer’s Pro plan at $30/month delivers more design flexibility and better performance than Squarespace’s Business plan at $33/month. Framer also offers a genuine free tier for testing, while Squarespace only offers a 14-day trial.

The real cost difference shows up when you factor in the cost of building a Framer website professionally versus Squarespace. Both platforms can be DIY, but hiring a designer for either platform adds project costs. Framer’s Figma-like workflow often means faster design timelines, which can reduce agency costs.

Key takeaway:

• Framer is more affordable for standard business websites
• Squarespace pricing makes sense primarily for e-commerce businesses
• Framer’s free tier is a genuine advantage for testing and prototyping

CMS and Content Management

Content management is critical for business websites that publish regularly. Both platforms offer CMS functionality, but the implementation differs.

Framer’s CMS uses collections — custom content types with configurable fields (text, images, links, dates, rich text, references). You can create any content structure: blog posts, team members, portfolio items, pricing tables, case studies. Content can be filtered, sorted, and displayed dynamically across pages. The CMS is visual — you design the layout once, and content populates it automatically.

Squarespace’s CMS is more traditional. It handles blog posts and product pages well, with a clean writing interface and built-in categories and tags. But custom content types are limited. If you need something beyond blogs, products, and events, you’ll hit constraints quickly. Squarespace doesn’t offer the same flexibility to create arbitrary content structures.

For B2B companies that need case studies, resource libraries, team directories, or custom landing page templates, Framer’s CMS is significantly more capable. For businesses that only need a blog and product catalog, Squarespace’s CMS is simpler and adequate.

Key takeaway:

• Framer CMS: flexible, visual, supports custom content structures
• Squarespace CMS: simple, polished, best for blogs and basic content
• Choose Framer if you need custom content types beyond blog posts

E-Commerce

E-commerce is Squarespace’s clear strength in this comparison.

Squarespace offers a complete e-commerce platform: product management, inventory tracking, shipping calculations, tax handling, subscription products, digital downloads, gift cards, point-of-sale integration, and abandoned cart recovery. It’s a genuine competitor to Shopify for small-to-medium online stores.

Framer doesn’t have native e-commerce. You can build product showcase pages and connect to third-party tools like Stripe, Gumroad, or Shopify Buy Buttons, but there’s no built-in cart, checkout, or inventory management. For businesses where e-commerce is a primary revenue channel, this is a significant limitation.

If you’re a B2B SaaS company, healthcare provider, or non-profit, the lack of e-commerce in Framer is irrelevant — these businesses need lead generation, not shopping carts. But if you sell physical products online, Squarespace is the more practical choice between these two platforms.

Key takeaway:

• Squarespace wins for online stores — full e-commerce suite built in
• Framer requires third-party tools for any e-commerce functionality
• For B2B companies focused on lead generation, this category is irrelevant

Animations and Interactions

Animations are where Framer absolutely dominates the comparison — and it’s not close.

Framer was built by the team that created Framer Motion, the animation library used by companies like Airbnb, Netflix, and Stripe. That heritage shows in the platform’s animation capabilities:

• Scroll-triggered animations with precise control
• Page transitions between routes
• Hover, tap, and drag interactions on any element
• Spring physics and custom easing curves
• Component state transitions with variants
• Parallax effects and reveal animations
• Lottie animation support

Squarespace offers basic animations: fade in, slide in, and scale effects on sections as they enter the viewport. That’s roughly the extent of it. There are no scroll-based interactions, no custom easing, no component-level animations, and no page transitions. The animations that Squarespace does offer look the same across every Squarespace site.

For businesses that need their website to feel dynamic and modern, Framer’s animation capabilities are a primary differentiator. A well-animated Framer site feels like a custom-built product, while a Squarespace site feels like a template — because the interaction layer is where templates break down.

This matters for the Framer website design process. Designers can prototype and ship production-quality animations in the same tool, without handing off to developers.

Key takeaway:

• Framer’s animations are production-grade — comparable to hand-coded React sites
• Squarespace animations are basic and limited to section-level effects
• For B2B SaaS sites that need to impress, this alone can justify choosing Framer

Hosting and Infrastructure

Both platforms include managed hosting, but the underlying infrastructure differs.

Framer hosts all sites on a global CDN with automatic SSL, custom domains, and edge caching. Since sites are statically generated, there’s no server to manage, no database to worry about, and virtually no downtime risk. Framer handles all infrastructure, scaling, and security automatically.

Squarespace also includes managed hosting with SSL and custom domains. Infrastructure is handled entirely by Squarespace, with 99.98% uptime as their stated target. However, because Squarespace uses server-rendered pages, performance depends more heavily on server proximity and load.

For most business websites, hosting is a non-differentiator — both platforms handle it well. The performance difference comes from the underlying architecture (static vs. server-rendered), which we covered in the performance section.

Key takeaway:

• Both platforms include reliable managed hosting
• Framer’s static architecture provides inherent performance and reliability advantages
• Neither platform requires you to manage servers or infrastructure

Templates and Starting Points

Templates determine how quickly you can go from zero to a published website.

Framer has a growing marketplace of hundreds of community-created templates spanning SaaS, agency, portfolio, and business categories. Every template is fully customizable — you can modify every element, restructure layouts, and use the template as a true starting point rather than a constraint. Many Framer templates are also designed by professional agencies and sold as premium offerings.

Squarespace is famous for its template quality. With 150+ designer-crafted templates organized by industry, Squarespace templates are polished and well-structured out of the box. However, customization is limited to what the template’s structure allows. Changing fundamental layouts or moving away from the template’s design language is difficult.

Both platforms offer strong starting points. Squarespace templates look more polished out of the box, while Framer templates offer more room for customization. The right choice depends on whether you plan to customize extensively (Framer) or work within an existing design (Squarespace).

Key takeaway:

• Squarespace templates look more polished immediately
• Framer templates offer more customization freedom
• If you plan to hire a designer, Framer templates are better starting points

Learning Curve

Ease of use matters, especially if non-technical team members need to manage the website.

Squarespace is designed for people with zero technical background. The editor is intuitive — click to edit text, drag to rearrange sections, toggle to change styles. The learning curve is minimal. Most people can build a basic Squarespace site in a few hours.

Framer has a steeper learning curve, particularly for people who haven’t used design tools before. If you’re familiar with Figma, Sketch, or similar tools, Framer will feel natural. If you’re coming from a tool like Wix or Squarespace, the free-form canvas and layer-based editing will take time to learn.

For teams where a marketing manager or operations lead will maintain the website, Squarespace’s simplicity is a genuine advantage. For teams that have a designer — or plan to hire a Framer design agency — the learning curve is irrelevant because the professional handles the complex work and the CMS provides a simple editing interface for day-to-day content updates.

Key takeaway:

• Squarespace is easier for absolute beginners
• Framer is intuitive for anyone with design tool experience
• Both offer simple editing interfaces for day-to-day content management

When to Choose Framer Over Squarespace

Framer is the right choice when:

• You’re a B2B company competing on website quality and conversion rates
• Design differentiation matters — you need a site that doesn’t look like every other template site
• Performance is a priority — especially if organic search is a growth channel
• You need advanced animations to showcase products or create engaging user experiences
• Your team includes designers or you’re working with a design agency
• You need a flexible CMS for case studies, resources, team pages, or custom content types
• You’re in SaaS, healthcare, or non-profit where lead generation matters more than e-commerce

Framer or Squarespace is often framed as a binary choice, but the real question is what your website needs to accomplish. If your site is a growth engine that needs to outperform competitors, Framer gives you the tools to make that happen.

When to Choose Squarespace Over Framer

Squarespace is the right choice when:

• You sell physical products and need a full e-commerce platform
• You want an all-in-one solution with email marketing, scheduling, and analytics built in
• Nobody on your team has design experience and you’re not hiring an agency
• Budget is tight and you need a professional-looking site with minimal investment
• Speed to launch matters more than long-term design flexibility
• You’re a local business, restaurant, or creator who needs a simple online presence

Squarespace has earned its reputation for a reason. It makes professional websites accessible to anyone, and its e-commerce capabilities are genuinely strong. For the use cases it’s designed for, it’s excellent.

Framer vs Squarespace for Specific Business Types

B2B SaaS Companies

Winner: Framer. SaaS companies need fast sites with strong SEO, advanced animations for product demos, and flexible CMS for case studies and resources. Framer delivers all of this. Squarespace’s template constraints and slower performance create a ceiling for SaaS marketing sites. If you’re comparing Framer vs Squarespace for a SaaS website, Framer is the clear choice.

Healthcare and Medical Practices

Winner: Framer. Healthcare websites need to build trust through professional design, load quickly on mobile devices, and rank well for local search terms. Framer’s performance and design flexibility serve these needs better than Squarespace’s templates. See how Framer compares to Webflow for another common healthcare website platform comparison.

Non-Profits and Social Impact Organizations

Winner: Framer (with a caveat). Non-profits benefit from Framer’s design quality and performance for donor-facing pages. However, if the non-profit sells merchandise or needs donation processing with complex tiers, Squarespace’s integrated e-commerce could be more practical.

Online Stores and E-Commerce

Winner: Squarespace. For businesses where online sales are the primary revenue channel, Squarespace’s built-in e-commerce tools, inventory management, and shipping calculations provide immediate functionality that Framer simply doesn’t match.

Restaurants and Local Businesses

Winner: Squarespace. Squarespace’s templates for restaurants and local businesses are polished, the scheduling integrations work well, and the simplicity of the platform means the owner can manage the site without technical help.

The Verdict: Framer vs Squarespace

The Squarespace vs Framer decision ultimately depends on your business type and growth ambitions.

Choose Framer if you need a fast, custom-designed website that stands out. Framer wins on design flexibility, performance, animations, SEO technical foundation, and pricing for standard business sites. It’s the better platform for B2B SaaS, healthcare, and non-profit organizations that treat their website as a competitive advantage.

Choose Squarespace if you need a simple, all-in-one solution with built-in e-commerce. Squarespace wins on ease of use, e-commerce features, and speed to launch for non-technical users. It’s the better platform for online stores, restaurants, and individuals who need a professional web presence without complexity.

For growth-stage B2B companies, the framer vs squarespace comparison usually points clearly to Framer. The performance advantages alone — faster load times, better Core Web Vitals, cleaner code — compound into measurable business results over time through better SEO rankings and higher conversion rates.

Ready to Build on Framer?

If you’ve decided Framer is the right platform for your business, the next step matters as much as the platform choice. A well-designed Framer site converts. A poorly designed one doesn’t — regardless of the platform’s capabilities.

Read our Framer website design guide to understand what goes into a high-converting Framer site. Or, if you’re ready to move forward, book a strategy call with our team. We’ll review your current site, discuss your goals, and map out what a Framer build looks like for your business.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Framer better than Squarespace for business websites?

For B2B businesses focused on design quality, performance, and SEO, yes — Framer is the better platform. Framer produces faster sites with more design flexibility and better Core Web Vitals scores. Squarespace is better for small businesses that need built-in e-commerce and an all-in-one platform with minimal technical requirements.

Can I move my Squarespace site to Framer?

Yes, but it’s a rebuild rather than a migration. Squarespace and Framer use completely different architectures, so there’s no one-click migration path. Your content (text, images) transfers manually, and the design gets rebuilt from scratch in Framer. Many businesses use the migration as an opportunity to redesign and improve their site’s conversion performance.

Is Squarespace easier to use than Framer?

For complete beginners with no design experience, Squarespace is easier to get started with. Its section-based editor and guided setup make it possible to launch a basic site in hours. Framer’s free-form canvas offers more power but requires familiarity with design tools like Figma. That said, Framer’s CMS editing interface — where most day-to-day content work happens — is straightforward for anyone.

Does Framer or Squarespace have better SEO?

Both platforms offer core SEO features like meta tags, sitemaps, and URL customization. Where Framer pulls ahead is technical SEO: faster page load times, cleaner code output, and better Core Web Vitals scores. Since Google uses page speed as a ranking factor, Framer sites have a structural advantage in search rankings. For a detailed breakdown, see our guide on Framer SEO.

Can Framer handle e-commerce?

Framer doesn’t have native e-commerce features. You can integrate third-party payment tools like Stripe or embed Shopify Buy Buttons, but there’s no built-in cart, inventory management, or checkout flow. If e-commerce is central to your business, Squarespace or Shopify are better choices. If you primarily need lead generation with occasional product sales, Framer with a third-party integration works fine.

How much does it cost to build a Framer website vs Squarespace?

Platform costs are comparable: Framer Pro is $30/month and Squarespace Business is $33/month. The real cost difference is in design and development. DIY on Squarespace is cheaper because templates require less customization. A professionally designed Framer site typically costs $3,000-$15,000 depending on scope — but delivers a significantly more polished and higher-performing result.

Which platform is better for a startup website?

Framer is the better choice for most startups, especially B2B SaaS. Framer’s free tier lets you prototype and test before committing. The design flexibility means your site can evolve with your brand without a full redesign. And the performance advantages support SEO-driven growth from day one. Squarespace only makes sense for startups that need e-commerce functionality immediately.