squarespace vs ghost
Squarespace vs Ghost — features, pricing, and which to choose for your SEO workflow in 2026.
Quick Verdict
Squarespace and Ghost represent two fundamentally different approaches to building SEO-friendly websites. Squarespace is an all-in-one visual website builder designed for users who want professional-looking sites without touching code, while Ghost is a headless publishing platform built specifically for content creators who prioritize speed and SEO performance above visual customization.
The choice between them typically comes down to priorities: Squarespace excels at creating visually stunning websites with minimal technical knowledge required, while Ghost delivers superior page speeds and publishing-focused features that can significantly impact search rankings.
Feature Comparison
Squarespace offers comprehensive website building features including drag-and-drop design, e-commerce capabilities, built-in analytics, and automatic SSL certificates. Its SEO features include automatic sitemaps, clean URL structures, meta tag editing, and mobile optimization. The platform handles technical SEO fundamentals well while providing extensive design customization through templates and visual editors. Ghost takes a more targeted approach, focusing exclusively on content publishing and SEO performance. It generates exceptionally clean HTML, offers advanced newsletter integration, membership and subscription management, and built-in analytics. Ghost's headless architecture allows for faster loading times and better Core Web Vitals scores, which directly impact search rankings. However, it lacks the visual design flexibility and e-commerce features that Squarespace provides. Both platforms handle technical SEO basics like structured data and mobile responsiveness, but Ghost typically achieves better page speed scores out of the box due to its lightweight, publishing-focused architecture.
Pricing Comparison
Ghost starts at $9/month for the basic plan, making it the more budget-friendly option for content creators. Their pricing scales based on newsletter subscribers rather than website traffic, which can be advantageous for high-traffic sites with smaller email lists. Squarespace begins at $16/month, positioning itself as a premium platform. However, this higher price includes comprehensive website building tools, templates, hosting, and customer support that Ghost doesn't match. For businesses needing e-commerce functionality, Squarespace's commerce plans provide better value than trying to add these features to Ghost through third-party integrations.
Best For
Squarespace is the better choice for businesses prioritizing visual design, e-commerce functionality, or users who need an all-in-one solution without technical complexity. It's ideal for restaurants, creative agencies, small retailers, and service businesses that need beautiful websites with solid SEO performance but don't want to manage technical details. Ghost excels for content-heavy websites, newsletters, membership sites, and users who prioritize page speed and publishing efficiency over visual customization. It's perfect for bloggers, online publications, content marketers, and businesses where fast-loading pages and content distribution are more important than design flexibility.
The Verdict
Choose Ghost if content publishing and page speed are your primary concerns, especially if you're running a blog, newsletter, or membership site. Its superior performance and lower starting price make it the clear winner for content-focused websites. Choose Squarespace if you need a complete business website with e-commerce capabilities, visual design flexibility, and prefer an all-in-one solution that handles everything without technical complexity.