Pixpa vs Squarespace (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Squarespace grades higher than Pixpa: 2.6 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Pixpa grades higher on value for money. Squarespace grades higher on features, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Pixpa
Portfolio sites, client galleries and a store in one plan
Squarespace
Template-based website builder with an online store and invoicing
Which one is for you
Pick Pixpa if
- Fits if you are a photographer who wants a site and client galleries together
- Works for a small portfolio on a low yearly price
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if your site is large: Basic stops at 10 pages and 200 images
- Skip it if you sell much: store products go from 3 on Basic to unlimited on Advanced
- Watch out: the domain is free for the first year through Ionos, with Ionos renewal pricing after
- Pricey if you want a designer to build it: that is a one-time $199 add-on
Pick Squarespace if
- Fits if you want a site from a template and don't want to arrange layouts yourself
- Works for creatives and small businesses that invoice clients and sell a few things from the same site
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan, as there's only a 14-day trial
- Pricey if you sell a lot on Basic, since 2% of every store sale and 7% of paid memberships go to Squarespace
- Tight if more than 2 people edit the site, because Basic allows only 2 contributors
- Watch out: custom JavaScript, code injection, pop-ups and shipping labels all need Core at $29 or higher
- Watch out: the free domain covers the first year of an annual plan, then renews at Squarespace's standard rate
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAPixpaFair | 2.6GPASquarespaceGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BBasic is $5.40 a month billed yearly, inside the cheaper quarter ($7.42), though it caps at 10 pages and 200 images. | CBasic is $19 a month for one site on yearly billing ($25 monthly), and it's the plan a small business would buy, since the store comes with it. That's the ordinary middle of this category ($9 to $22). Core at $29 drops the 2% store fee. |
| Free plan and trial | CA 15-day trial needs no card, and there is no free plan. | CNo free plan. There's a 14-day trial with no card needed, and after that every site needs a paid plan. |
| Features | CPortfolio, galleries, blog and store, but Basic has 3 store products and the store limit rises by plan. | BTemplates, a drag-and-drop editor, a store on every plan, invoicing, memberships, forms, newsletters and SEO tools. That covers the job of a small business site. Custom code and pop-ups wait for Core. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record, and you build pages and galleries yourself. | B4.6 from about 18,800 App Store ratings for its phone app. Templates do most of the design work, so you're mostly swapping in your own words and photos. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, with WHCC (print lab) and Ionos (domains) listed as links. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Google Workspace, Mailchimp, Zapier, Stripe, PayPal and Printful, plus commerce APIs on Core and up. There's no desktop app, which keeps it off an A. |
| Best for | portfolio sites and client galleries in one plan | template sites with a store on every plan |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Pixpa and Squarespace. How we grade
Price against what you get
Pixpa starts at $5.40 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Squarespace starts at $19 a month and scores 3.0.
Squarespace scores higher, and starts $13.60 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other website and landing page builders on the chart, 5 score higher than Pixpa for less, and 2 score higher than Squarespace for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Pixpa also covers file sharing, online store, digital downloads and popups.
- Squarespace also covers forms and invoicing.
At a glance
| Pixpa | Squarespace | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $5.40 per month, billed yearly ($9 billed monthly) | $19 per site / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 15-day free trial, no credit card; 30-day money-back guarantee | 14-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Pixpa | Squarespace, Inc. |
| Price read from | pixpa.com | squarespace.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Pixpa
- Basic stops at 10 pages, 200 images and 3 store products.
- The store product limit rises by plan, from 3 on Basic to unlimited on Advanced.
- A domain is free for the first year through Ionos, with Ionos renewal pricing after that.
- A designer-built site setup is a separate add-on at a one-time $199 fee.
Squarespace
- There is no free plan; after the 14-day trial every site needs a paid plan.
- Basic takes a 2% fee on online store sales and allows only 2 contributors; Core removes both limits.
- Custom JavaScript, code injection, pop-ups and shipping labels all need Core or higher.
- The free domain covers the first year of an annual plan only and then renews at Squarespace's standard rate.
Key features
Pixpa
- Portfolio website builder
- A visual editor with more than 200 premium templates, mobile-optimized sites, a free SSL certificate and hosting on every plan.
- Client galleries
- Unlimited private albums on every plan for proofing, favorites, comments and secure file delivery, plus standalone gallery links of up to 250 images.
- Store with zero commission
- Sell products, services and digital files with checkout on your own domain. Selling photos as prints or downloads is not capped by the product limit.
- Print lab fulfillment
- Print orders can be fulfilled automatically through WHCC or a custom lab, or fulfilled by you.
- Blog and marketing tools
- Built-in blogging, forms, marketing popups, an announcement bar and SEO tools are included, without adding plugins.
Squarespace
- Templates and drag-and-drop editing
- Sites start from a designer template and are laid out in the Fluid Engine drag-and-drop editor. Every site is adjusted for phones automatically.
- AI site builder and AI credits
- Blueprint builds a starting site from a few answers, and built-in AI writes content. Credits run from 10 one-time on Basic to 120 a month on Advanced.
- Online store on every plan
- Sell unlimited physical products, services, digital goods, gift cards and subscriptions, with abandoned-cart emails on all plans. Basic adds a 2% fee on store sales.
- Invoicing, memberships and paid content
- Branded invoices and pay links are free on every plan. Courses, memberships and paywalled content carry a fee of 7% on Basic, falling to 0% on Advanced.
- Hosting, SSL and unlimited bandwidth
- Managed hosting, free SSL certificates and uncapped bandwidth and storage come with every plan. Video hosting runs from 30 minutes on Basic to unlimited on Advanced.
- Forms, newsletters and SEO tools
- Form and newsletter blocks feed a contacts panel, and SEO guidance and keyword reports come built in. Pop-ups and the announcement bar need Core or higher.
Plans
Pixpa
Basic$5.40
per month, billed yearly ($9 billed monthly)
10 pages, 200 images, 1 blog, up to 3 store products and 3 GB of client-gallery storage.
Creator$9
per month, billed yearly ($15 billed monthly)
Unlimited pages and images, up to 10 store products and 5 GB of storage for original files.
Professional$12
per month, billed yearly ($20 billed monthly)
Marked most popular. Up to 100 store products and 25 GB of storage; adds advanced forms and coupon rules.
Advanced$15
per month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly)
Unlimited store products and 100 GB of storage for original files.
Squarespace
Basic$19
per site / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly)
A full website and store with up to 2 contributors, 30 minutes of video, a 2% fee on online sales and 7% on paid memberships.
Core$29
per site / month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly)
Unlimited contributors, no fee on store sales, custom CSS and JavaScript, shipping labels, commerce APIs and 20 AI credits a month.
Plus$49
per site / month, billed annually ($65 billed monthly)
Lower card rates (2.7% + $0.30), a 1% fee on paid memberships, 50 hours of video and 40 AI credits a month.
Advanced$99
per site / month, billed annually ($139 billed monthly)
The lowest card rates (2.5% + $0.30), no fee on memberships, unlimited video and 120 AI credits a month.
Ways to pay less
Pixpa
- Annual discount
40% off on yearly billing
The pricing page shows yearly plans at 40% off the monthly rates, and 2-yearly plans at 55% off (Basic at $4.05 a month).
- Education
Up to 55% off for students and educators
Pixpa's menu says Edu discounts give up to 55% off all plans to students and educators.
Squarespace
- Annual discount
Pay yearly to save about 24% to 29%
Basic costs $19 a month billed yearly against $25 billed monthly, and Advanced $99 against $139. Squarespace's page advertises savings of up to 36%.
- Other savings
Free domain for a year with an annual plan
Annual website plans include one year of free registration for one domain on Squarespace's cheapest pricing tier; it then renews at the standard rate.
- Education
Students get 50% off the first year
Students who verify their status through Student Beans get 50% off their first full year on a new annual website plan.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Pixpa or Squarespace?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Pixpa is cheaper to start with: $5.40 a month, against $19 a month for Squarespace. Pixpa starts at $5.40 per month, billed yearly ($9 billed monthly), and Squarespace starts at $19 per site / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Pixpa or Squarespace?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Pixpa nor Squarespace has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do Pixpa and Squarespace run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Squarespace lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.