GoDaddy vs Squarespace: Which Site Builder Is the Best?

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4.8

out of 5

4.4

out of 5

When comparing GoDaddy and Squarespace, one website builder consistently comes out on top. With its intuitive drag-and-drop editor, professional templates, and exceptional range of third-party extensions, Squarespace can help you set up high-quality websites without any coding or design experience.

Although Squarespace has plenty to offer, you shouldn’t overlook GoDaddy as another option for your website. Thanks to its speedy set up times and prompt customer support — it has a 24/7 live chat and global phone numbers to call this website builder also could be a suitable fit for you. Even more so if you’re on a strict budget or under time constraints.

Curious to see what builder has the best security features? Need to know who offers the most professional templates? Keep reading to see whether GoDaddy or Squarespace will provide you with everything your website needs to thrive.

Squarespace vs GoDaddy

  1. Squarespace Best for its stylish templates
  2. GoDaddy Best for creating a website quickly

Limited time? Take our three minute quiz featuring even more website builders to choose from.

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GoDaddy Squarespace
Price
GoDaddy is great value for money, boasting a free plan and paid plans starting from $10.99/month – ideal for setting up a business page on a budget. Squarespace plans are more expensive, starting from $16/mo (you can get 10% off at checkout with the code: WBE10).
They’re worth paying for to access a wider range of features, including integrated ecommerce and advanced website analytics on the business plan.
Templates
If time isn’t on your side, GoDaddy’s handy AI tool generates a website template in under 30 seconds. However, these templates can look generic in comparison to Squarespace’s more modern designs.
With its eye-catching templates and endless customization options, like custom color palettes and striking fonts, Squarespace is the best option for a visually stunning website.
Editor
Once you’ve created your template, GoDaddy’s easy-to-use editor lets you reorder sections with ease. Despite this, Squarespace is a better fit if you’d prefer full creative control of your website.
Famed for its Fluid Engine, Squarespace’s editor offers an intuitive way to create your ideal website. You can make stylish designs by dragging and dropping content onto the page.
Features & Tools
GoDaddy has all of the key features you'd need in a website builder, like key analytics and blogging tools, but Squarespace offers more in-depth options.
Squarespace’s app market helps you to add third-party extensions to your website, while its built-in scheduling tools are great for business owners or creatives who need to organize consultations.

Best Price Plans: GoDaddy

Not sure which platform offers the best price range for your needs? When setting up a website for the first time, we understand how overwhelming the variety of plans on offer can be – that’s why we’ve made things simple. Although our research shows that both website builders score highly for their value for money, each platform has something different to offer its users.

If you’re a small business working with a limited budget, then GoDaddy’s website builder is the best value for money. Not only do GoDaddy offer a free plan so you can test the waters before dipping into any recurring payments, but its paid plans start from as little as $9.99 per month.

A screenshot of GoDaddy's main price plans.
After finding GoDaddy’s plans and pricing, I was impressed by how affordable the three main plans were.

Alternatively, Squarespace’s pricing plans range from $16 to $49 per month, when billed annually, and are better for users in need of advanced, professional features (but keep in mind that Squarespace doesn’t offer a free plan like GoDaddy).

As an example, Squarespace’s Business plan is only $23 per month when paid annually and includes the Digital Products Add On. This feature lets users create and sell digital content like video courses or community pages, an effective way for creatives or business owners to share their expertise in a given topic.

For 10% off your Squarespace plan, don’t forget to use the offer code WBE10 at checkout.

Screenshot of Squarespace pricing page.
I was wowed by the number of features Squarespace offered, from advanced website analytics to fully integrated ecommerce.

If the quality of features is your top priority, Squarespace offers an extensive range of features from even their lowest price point. This includes its extensions, AI tools, website metrics, video hosting, and over features helping you make the most out of your website.

GoDaddy logo black swirl
The Winner

GoDaddy’s price plans are the cheapest overall

To help you save money, GoDaddy’s main plans are the most affordable and a great starting point for any new business. It’ll provide you with all of the essential features you need to get started with your website on a budget.

Best Templates: Squarespace

Let’s face it, looks do matter when creating a professional website. If you want to design a website that’ll turn heads, Squarespace is undoubtedly the best choice. Though GoDaddy does offer hundreds of designs that are pleasing to the eye, Squarespace’s world-class templates and endless customization options are tough to beat.

Selection of templates from Squarespace
Squarespace’s designs are striking, modern, and fully customizable.

With a selection of high-quality designs to choose from, you’ll be able to customize Squarespace’s templates to your heart’s content. Be prepared to drag and drop different content sections, customize your own color palettes, and look through Google and Typekit fonts until you have your desired look. Thanks to this design-centric approach to websites, Squarespace meshes well with the needs of creatives aiming to showcase their talents online.

If you’re stuck for time, GoDaddy’s useful AI tool will help you create your website in only a few steps. All you have to do is answer a few questions about the contents of your website, then watch your template appear in under 30 seconds. This is the quickest way to design an appealing website tailored to your needs. However, do keep in mind that AI-created templates can make your website look more generic. If you need elevated designs, pick Squarespace instead.

Screenshot of GoDaddy's AI website generator
It didn’t take long at all for me to generate this template through GoDaddy’s AI tool.
squarespace logo
The Winner

Squarespace’s professional designs are most attractive for users

To ensure your business makes a great first impression, we recommend Squarespace’s beautiful templates. Its designs are modern, professional, and completely customizable.

Best Editor: Squarespace

Aptly named Fluid Engine because of its adaptability, Squarespace’s famed editor is a few steps above GoDaddy’s offering. You won’t need to worry about having any design or coding experience, because its drag-and-drop editor is a tool that anyone can use.

When dragging elements like photos, videos, or submission forms onto your webpage, you’ll be greeted by a handy grid overlay. This feature helps you organize your elements across the website, leaving you with attractive and professional looking pages to scroll through. There’s also no room for error since the grid will keep everything in place while you move each element around.

Squarespace grid layout in editor
The grid overlay was useful when I was trying to add photos to a section of my website.

Still not convinced? Based on our user-centric testing, individuals had an easier time using Squarespace’s editor over GoDaddy’s. When tasked with creating a website using each platform, users were more likely to make mistakes with GoDaddy’s editor.

To keep your website user friendly, you’ll also need to take your mobile users into account. Squarespace’s Fluid Engine offers an easy way to optimize your website for mobile, allowing you to edit your mobile formatting independently from your desktop layout. GoDaddy’s mobile layouts can’t be changed via the editor, so opt for Squarespace if you need more creative control over this aspect of your website.

squarespace logo
The Winner

Squarespace’s editor offers users a seamless experience

That’s right, Squarespace’s editor takes the edge over GoDaddy because of its intuitive drag-and-drop interface. It’s easy to drag elements onto the page and rearrange different blocks, leaving you with full creative control over your website.

Best Features: Squarespace

Although both Squarespace and GoDaddy offer useful features like analytics tracking and marketing tools, Squarespace has the upper hand due to the depth and breadth of its offerings. From its popular app market to its scheduling capabilities, Squarespace scores 4 out of 5 for its impressive features. With that said, let’s take a look at some of the different features in more detail and see exactly what they offer.

Third Party Apps

The biggest difference between GoDaddy and Squarespace is that only Squarespace has an app market. With this useful feature, you’re able to enhance your website through third-party extensions covering ecommerce, marketing, social media, SEO, and even chatbots.

Here’s a few examples of Squarespace plugins that you might find useful:

  • Weglot Translate. Used to translate websites into multiple languages.
  • Easyship. Allows users to save up to 91% on shipping costs in over 550 courier services.
  • Mailchimp. Helps you drive traffic to your webpage through personalized email marketing tools.
  • TinyIMG. An extension speeding up your site through image optimization.
  • Printify. A useful way for creative businesses to make, sell, and ship their products globally.

The downside of these extensions is that they typically aren’t free to use, but many do provide free plans, trial periods, monthly and per-use fees that can accommodate a variety of budgets. Some of these plans are worth looking into if there’s certain tasks you want to streamline.

Screenshot of Squarespace's LiveChat extension
It was easy to link a third-party extension to my website. Here I set up a free trial with LiveChat that put a chatbox plugin onto my Squarespace page.

Online Scheduling Tool

Squarespace’s Scheduling Tool from Acuity allows you to manage appointments via your website. A stress-free way for small businesses owners and creatives to take the strain out of planning meetings, you can use the tool to set up different appointments, showcase availability, and also accept payments from clients.

Listed below are other interesting features from Squarespace’s scheduling tool:

  • Calendar coordination syncing external calendars you already use.
  • Prompt payments before or after appointments.
  • Invoicing.
  • Video conferencing through Zoom and JoinMe.
  • Automated appointment reminders.
  • Analytical tools.

Just like Squarespace’s third-party extensions, this handy scheduling tool comes at a price. Once the 14-day free trial has ended, pricing starts from $16 per month when paying annually. If arranging meetings with potential clients will be a necessity for you, then you may want to consider investing in this feature.

GoDaddy has a free Online Appointment section you can add to your website, but it doesn’t have as many features as Squarespace. You can only add one appointments section to your entire website, while you can’t automate appointment reminders either. Despite these limitations, it’s still a sound option for straightforward appointment scheduling, calendar syncing, and payments it’ll get the job done!

squarespace logo
The Winner

Squarespace’s key features and tools are more powerful than GoDaddy’s

With their third-party extensions and powerful, online scheduling tool, Squarespace’s features come out on top. While GoDaddy’s features cover the essentials, and at a cheaper price, Squarespace’s tools will allow you to scale over time.

Best Marketing Tools: Squarespace

Once you’ve decided on the design and main features of your website, it’s time to start thinking about how you’re going to grow your online presence. After all, who’s going to enjoy your creative portfolio or online brand if no one is able to find it?

This is why it’s so important to pick a website builder that comes with marketing tools assisting you with email marketing campaigns, social media, blogging, and SEO. Let’s see what Squarespace and GoDaddy have to offer.

Email Marketing

Squarespace offers sophisticated email marketing templates for campaigns. In fact, they look just as professional as their website designs, meaning you’ll be able to grow your presence through its eye-catching emails your readers will be drawn to.

You can pick from a series of designs and use Squarespace’s straightforward editing tool to make them your own, or even transfer design elements from your pre-existing website. Additionally, you can schedule your emails and see what they look like on both mobile and desktop to make sure they’re formatted well.

Screenshot of Squarespace's Email template page
I found stylish email marketing templates fit for a variety of uses, be it promoting products and services or sharing an important business update.

More suitable for users with limited knowledge or experience, GoDaddy will clearly guide you through each stage of the email marketing process, from creating your designs to sending them to your email list.

However, we still recommend Squarespace over GoDaddy for their email marketing features. This comes down to its stylish templates that can be edited to reflect your own brand, alongside its optimized designs for desktop and mobile.

Social Media Integration

Every small business dreams of creating a viral post. But how do Squarespace and GoDaddy’s social media features weigh up? Well, pretty evenly based on our user experience research. Both offering social media integration, each platform allows you to connect your website to your external accounts, create stylish posts for your feeds, and track your performance all in one place.

Before moving on, we can’t ignore GoDaddy’s Marketing Planner. This handy tool is a convenient way to find inspiration for your next social media post and keep track of upcoming content. Not only does it offer a list of over 200 events that could lead to great content ideas, but it also allows you to generate and schedule your latest posts.

Screenshot of GoDaddy's Marketing Calendar
I wasn’t sure what my next social post should be about, so I hopped onto GoDaddy’s Marketing Planner and checked out their upcoming holiday dates for inspiration.

Blogging

One of the best ways to grow your presence online is through blogging. By creating well-written posts that showcase your knowledge, you can start cementing your place as an authority in your respective niche. If you’re a small business or creative looking to share your findings with a wider audience, we recommend Squarespace over GoDaddy.

It goes without saying that Squarespace will provide you with a stylish blog that’ll wow your readers. Alongside that, you’ll even be able to track how your posts are doing through detailed analytics. This means you can make sure that your content is gaining traffic online.

Screenshot of a blog post on Squarespace's editor.
I found Squarespace’s blog editor just as easy to use as its email marketing editor. The font, color, and animation options were ideal.

If you need to build a blog fast, GoDaddy is your friend. However, here’s a few pointers you’ll need to keep in mind. GoDaddy still hasn’t made room for additional features like search for easy site navigation, commenting for further engagement with readers, or writer bios to bring a more personable side to your website. You’ll get all of these blog features with Squarespace.

SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Every great website needs strong SEO if you want your pages to show up on Google and Bing. As far as both Squarespace and GoDaddy are concerned, both website builder’s SEO features will provide you with everything you need to appear in search results.

Both make it easy for users to add SEO to their website to improve website visibility. This includes the ability to add meta titles, meta descriptions, custom URLs, alternative text, and other essentials that’ll improve your visibility.

However, Squarespace’s app market also features extensions specifically for SEO, giving it the slight edge over GoDaddy. This key feature will enable you to add third-party plugins to your website like SEOspace, another way to give your search engine rankings an extra boost.

A screenshot of Squarespace's SEO tools via the blog editor.
It didn’t take long to add SEO to my Squarespace blog post. I now have an optimized meta title and description for search engines.
squarespace logo
The Winner

Squarespace’s marketing tools are more advanced

Although both platforms cover areas like content creation and email marketing, Squarespace has much more to offer its users. This is apparent with its third-party extensions allowing users to add plugins that support their marketing efforts.

Best Customer Support: GoDaddy

There’s no shame in asking for help when you need it. If you’re new to website builders, you’ll be happy to hear that GoDaddy offers a global phone call service alongside 24/7 live chat support. In our user experience tests, the live chat option generated speedy responses in under 10 seconds. So, if you’re ever in need, you can rest easy knowing that GoDaddy’s prompt customer service can lend a helping hand.

Screenshot of GoDaddy's 24/7 live chat.
It was easy to access GoDaddy’s live chat. I had a response within seconds!

Besides its speedy customer service, GoDaddy also offers useful resources. This includes its Help Center that is packed with tutorials, guides, and interactive courses on every topic under the sun, from online marketing to website security. Of course, you can also head to its Community Forums where you’ll find guidance from fellow website creators.

Just be aware that GoDaddy doesn’t offer email support, but Squarespace does. It’s something to keep in mind if that’s your preferred form of communication.

GoDaddy logo black swirl
The Winner

GoDaddy is great at providing customers with 24/7 help and support

Its prompt customer service and additional learning resources make it easy to create your own page with GoDaddy. If you’re new to website building, you’ll have support at every step of the way.

Best Security: Both

Before you let your polished professional website go live, you’ll need to make sure your data is safe and sound especially if you’re considering selling a few products or services down the line. But which website builder will give you the highest level of security? Well, according to our user experience research, GoDaddy and Squarespace’s offerings are neck and neck, with both platforms scoring 4 out of 5 for security.

As you can see, both Squarespace and GoDaddy offer all of the standard security features you’ll need to keep your website safe. These are the key features that we found during our user experience testing:

  • In-built SSL certificates to make sure your website runs on HTTPS (that will keep sensitive information like credit card details secure).
  • 2-step verification to make it more difficult for hackers to steal your information.
  • PCI compliance so both platforms store credit card information in a secure environment.
  • Customer log in areas that create a secure zone for any website members.

The downside to Squarespace and GoDaddy, however, is that neither of them offer in-built fraud protection for online transactions. Squarespace relies on payment processing platforms (like Square and Stripe) to pick up on any fraudulent activity, while GoDaddy leaves it to the good faith of its users to report fraud and trigger an investigation. Be sure to take both of these methods into account if you’re thinking of selling products or services on one of these platforms.

The Winner

It’s a draw between Squarespace and GoDaddy’s security features

Since both website builders provide users with key security features, like SSL Certificates and 2-step verification, we can’t pick out a clear winner. However, there could definitely be improvements in how both platforms keep track of fraudulent activity.

Buying Guide: What To Look For in a Website Builder

No website builder is one size fits all. Whether you pick GoDaddy or Squarespace as your desired platform, you’ll need to take certain factors into account before making your choice.

Will I be able to create a professional design for my business?

  • Strong choice of templates
  • Easy-to-use editor
  • Customization
  • Images & video integration
  • Avoid outdated designs that don’t suit modern audiences

Will it help me grow my website over time?

  • Social media integration
  • SEO tools
  • Email campaign set up
  • Blogging
  • Avoid limited marketing tools that won’t help you scale over time

Will it fit into my budget?

  • Variety of price plans
  • A good amount of features per plan
  • Affordable website add-ons
  • Number of free features
  • Avoid paying extra if you’re mainly receiving features you won’t use

How To Choose Your Website Builder

Still on the fence about GoDaddy or Squarespace? If you’re wondering which website builder to choose, you need to consider which website builder aligns with your personal needs. Below, we’ve recommended the best platforms based on unique user requirements.

  • If you live and breathe design, try Squarespace…

Whether you’re into photography or illustration, you’re probably aware of how important beautiful aesthetics are. If that’s the case, look no further than Squarespace, which is renowned for its professional templates (also created by designers). Pick this builder for total creative control over an eye-catching website that reflects your unique style.

  • If time is of the essence, try GoDaddy

Short on time? GoDaddy is your best bet. With its AI website generator, you’re able to generate a professional page in under 30 seconds. Just fill in what you need in your new website, and GoDaddy does all of the hard work for you. It’s ideal for small business owners who already have a lot on their plate.

  • If you want to grow your online presence, try Squarespace

You’ll need a professional website to build your presence online. That’s where Squarespace comes in. With their range of professional templates and a number of marketing features designed to help expand your brand’s awareness and reach, this website builder will help you make a name for yourself.

  • If you’re new to website builders, try GoDaddy 

Making your very own website may seem like a daunting process, but it doesn’t need to be. Consider GoDaddy for its help and support. Its 24/7 customer service is there to help you solve any issues. It was even ranked the most user-friendly platform by participants during testing!

How We Tested GoDaddy and Squarespace

To maintain the accuracy of this comparison, we put GoDaddy and Squarespace to the test through our rigorous website builder research that includes hands-on experience.

When comparing both website builders, we examined key criteria such as value for money, design functionalities, and ease of use to decide which platform performed the best in each area. This all led to the final results you can see on this page. It’s all carried out to make sure you pick the right website builder fit for your unique needs.

GoDaddy vs Squarespace Summary

After comparing both website builders, our top choice is Squarespace. Its eye-catching templates and flexible editor combined with its marketing features and bustling app market, makes it a suitable website builder for small businesses and creatives alike. This conclusion is also backed up by our research. Squarespace scores 4.8 out of 5 overall in comparison to GoDaddy’s 4.4 out of 5.

But depending on your unique needs, here’s a quick summary of what GoDaddy and Squarespace can offer you based on everything we’ve looked at.

  • Squarespace is the best for designing a modern website, an easy way for creatives or small businesses to reflect their identity through editor tools and customizable, high-quality templates. Also, since it has more advanced features overall, it’s a suitable platform to switch to if you want more creative control of your website.
  • GoDaddy is ideal for quick and easy website creation. Users on a tight schedule or budget can create a website that suits them thanks to GoDaddy’s generated templates, free plan, and more affordable prices. There’s also strong customer support for new users.

If you still need more information, read through our in-depth Squarespace review or GoDaddy review to learn even more.

FAQs

Both platforms offer hosting included in their website builder plans, so you don’t have to source it yourself. However, GoDaddy is primarily known as a website hosting service, providing users with optimized servers from $6.99 per month. If you’re interested in this, check out our GoDaddy Hosting Review.
Squarespace and GoDaddy do offer AI tools, but they vary. Both platforms use AI to help you generate website pages and copy, while only Squarespace has an additional spelling and grammar checker to make sure your website copy is free from errors.
To sell a large inventory of products or services online, we recommend an ecommerce platform like Shopify instead, mainly because its features are optimized for online stores. Take a look at our list of the best ecommerce website builders to find the right fit for you.
Written by:
Holly Choules is a Writer at Website Builder Expert with a background in researching and crafting engaging content for digital platforms. In previous roles, she has demonstrated her wordsmith skills by writing for public facing brands in a range of industries. After gaining hands-on experience using leading website builders, like Wix and WordPress, she is now keen to share her findings through informative, easy-to-follow articles that help small business owners get online and grow their presence. Since joining the team in 2024 and transitioning into the tech sphere, Holly is passionate about applying her three years of content writing experience and upholding Website Builder Expert’s position as an authoritative source on website builders, ecommerce, and digital marketing.
Researched by:
natasha_willett
I love to understand human behavior and the cognitive biases that drive us to do what we do. For over nine years I have worked as a mixed method researcher – research using a mix of numerical data and personal experiences – across a range of sectors, from insurance and policy development to finally arriving at Website Builder Expert five years ago. Fascinated by consumer decision-making, I meticulously built our leading ranking methodology to explore where providers like Wix sit within a competitive industry and what value they truly bring to our audience.
As a member of the Market Research Society, I’m an advocate for high ethical, commercial, and methodological best practices. All of this combines to give you the most ethical recommendations based on real data.

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