Readymag vs Squarespace (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Squarespace grades higher than Readymag: 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
Squarespace grades higher on features and ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Readymag
Design tool for building editorial and portfolio websites
Squarespace
Template-based website builder with an online store and invoicing
Which one is for you
Pick Readymag if
- Fits if you are a designer who wants layout freedom for a portfolio
- Works for a single free site to try the tool
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: 1 site, 10 pages and Readymag branding
- Watch out: paid plans cap views at 10,000, 25,000 or 75,000 a month
- Pricey if you want code export, since it is only on Advanced at $58.50 a month
- Skip it if you want many custom-domain sites cheaply: they are capped at 1, 3 or 10 by plan
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
| 2.2GPAReadymagFair | 2.6GPASquarespaceGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$14 a month billed yearly for Personal, between the middle ($12.80) and the dearer quarter ($20.83), capped at 10,000 views a month. | 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 free plan with 1 website and 10 pages on a Readymag domain, with Readymag branding, forms and custom code as preview only. | CNo free plan. There's a 14-day trial with no card needed, and after that every site needs a paid plan. |
| Features | CDesign-led building with widgets, but views are capped on every paid plan and code export is Advanced only. | 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 design each page from scratch. | 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 | BWeb only, with Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Unsplash and Noun Project. | 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 | editorial and portfolio sites designed by hand | 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: Readymag and Squarespace. How we grade
Price against what you get
Readymag starts at $14 a month and scores 2.3 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 $5 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, 4 score higher than Readymag 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
- Squarespace also covers invoicing.
At a glance
| Readymag | Squarespace | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $14 per month, billed yearly ($19 billed monthly) | $19 per site / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | 1 website with up to 10 pages on a Readymag domain and access to all widgets, with Readymag branding. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 14-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Readymag | Squarespace, Inc. |
| Price read from | readymag.com | squarespace.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Readymag
- Free sites keep Readymag branding and stop at 10 pages on a Readymag address.
- Each paid plan caps monthly views, from 10,000 on Personal to 75,000 on Advanced.
- Code export is limited to the Advanced plan.
- Custom-domain sites are capped per plan: 1, 3 or 10, and extra domains, collaborators and views cost more.
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
Readymag
- Layouts for desktop, tablet and mobile
- Each project can have separate desktop, tablet and mobile layouts, with global styles, colors and saved presets shared across it.
- Widgets and animations
- All widgets are open on the Free plan, with animations, free Adobe and type.today fonts, Unsplash photos and Noun Project icons in the editor.
- Forms and custom code
- Forms, Lottie animations, shots and custom code are preview only on Free and become usable when a paid plan is active.
- Custom domains and hosting
- Readymag hosts the sites. Paid plans connect custom domains, and a promo code gives a free .xyz domain for the first year.
- Collaboration and versions
- Paid plans add collaborators, from 1 on Personal to 10 on Advanced, and version history snapshots of each project.
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
Readymag
Free$0
1 website with up to 10 pages on a Readymag domain. Forms, custom code and some other features are preview only.
Personal$14
per month, billed yearly ($19 billed monthly)
No branding, 1 published site on a custom domain, 10,000 views a month, unlimited pages and 1 collaborator.
Freelancer$29
per month, billed yearly ($38 billed monthly)
3 custom-domain sites, 5 published sites, 25,000 views a month across them, 2 collaborators and site transfer.
Advanced$58.50
per month, billed yearly ($65 billed monthly)
Unlimited published sites, 10 custom-domain sites, 75,000 views a month, code export, iframe embeds and 10 collaborators.
ExtraCustom
For studios and companies: custom domains, views and collaborators, SSO, an uptime SLA and a personal manager.
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
Readymag
- Education
50% off any plan for students
Students get 50% off any plan, and teachers 50% off for individual use or a classroom plan for $432.
- Nonprofit
50% off for registered nonprofits
Registered nonprofit organizations get 50% off any plan, renewed annually.
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, Readymag or Squarespace?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Readymag is cheaper to start with: $14 a month, against $19 a month for Squarespace. Readymag starts at $14 per month, billed yearly ($19 billed monthly), and Squarespace starts at $19 per site / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Readymag or Squarespace?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Readymag has a free plan. Squarespace does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Readymag 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.