Squarespace vs Format (2024 Comparison)
Squarespace offers a versatile platform with a wide range of templates and robust e-commerce features, making it an excellent choice for businesses and creatives looking to build a professional online presence.
- Wide range of templates available.
- Robust e-commerce features included.
- Excellent SEO tools provided.
- Limited client proofing options.
- Slightly higher learning curve.
Free plan?
YesStarting price
$16 per month
Format is tailored for photographers and creatives, providing specialized tools and sleek templates to showcase visual portfolios and streamline the client proofing process.
- Specialized for photographers and creatives.
- Intuitive client proofing tools.
- Sleek and modern templates.
- Limited e-commerce capabilities.
- Fewer template options for other industries.
Free plan?
YesStarting price
$8 per monthWhat is Squarespace?
Squarespace is a versatile website builder that empowers users to create stunning websites with ease. It offers a wide range of customizable templates, making it ideal for creatives and businesses alike. With its intuitive drag-and-drop interface, you can effortlessly design and manage your site without any coding knowledge. Squarespace also provides robust e-commerce features, allowing you to set up an online store and sell products seamlessly. Whether you're a photographer, artist, or entrepreneur, Squarespace helps you showcase your work and connect with your audience effectively.
What is Format?
Format is a specialized website builder designed for photographers and creatives. It offers a range of sleek and modern templates tailored to showcase visual portfolios. With Format, you can easily create a professional online presence to display your work and attract potential clients. The platform provides tools for managing client galleries, selling prints, and even offering client proofing. Format's user-friendly interface ensures that you can focus on your creative projects while maintaining a polished and visually appealing website.
Pros and Cons of Squarespace vs Format
Pros & Cons of Squarespace
- Squarespace offers an extensive collection of templates that cater to various industries, allowing you to create a unique and professional website that aligns with your brand's identity.
- With Squarespace, you can easily set up an online store, manage products, and process payments, making it an excellent choice for businesses looking to expand their online presence.
- Squarespace provides advanced SEO tools that help you optimize your site for search engines, ensuring your content reaches a wider audience and improves your online visibility.
- While Squarespace offers basic client proofing features, it lacks the specialized tools that photographers and creatives may require for sharing and receiving feedback on their work.
- Squarespace's extensive features and customization options may require a bit of a learning curve for beginners, but the platform's comprehensive support resources can help ease the process.
Pros & Cons of Format
- Format is designed specifically for photographers and creatives, offering tools and templates that cater to visual portfolios, making it an ideal choice for showcasing your work.
- Format provides user-friendly client proofing tools that allow photographers to share their work with clients and receive feedback, streamlining the creative process.
- Format offers a selection of sleek and modern templates that are perfect for creating a visually appealing online presence, helping you stand out in the creative industry.
- While Format offers basic e-commerce features, it may not be suitable for businesses looking to build a comprehensive online store with advanced functionalities.
- Format's focus on visual portfolios means there are fewer template options for industries outside of photography and creative fields, limiting its versatility.
Squarespace vs Format: At A Glance
Squarespace vs Format: A Detailed Breakdown of Key Features
Template Variety
Squarespace offers a wide range of beautifully designed templates that cater to various industries, making it easy for you to find the perfect fit for your brand. Format, while offering sleek templates, focuses more on visual portfolios, which may limit options for other industries. If you need a diverse selection of templates, Squarespace is the better choice.
E-commerce Capabilities
Squarespace excels in e-commerce capabilities, providing tools for product management, payment processing, and inventory tracking. Format, while offering basic e-commerce features, is more suited for selling prints and digital downloads. If you're looking to build a comprehensive online store, Squarespace is the superior option.
SEO Tools
Squarespace provides robust SEO tools to help you optimize your site for search engines, including customizable meta tags and URL structures. Format offers basic SEO features, but Squarespace's advanced tools give you more control over your site's visibility. If SEO is a priority, Squarespace is the better choice.
Mobile Optimization
Both Squarespace and Format offer mobile optimization, ensuring your site looks great on any device. Squarespace's responsive design and mobile editing capabilities make it easy to create a seamless mobile experience. Format also provides mobile-friendly templates, but Squarespace's advanced mobile features give it an edge.
Client Proofing
Format shines in client proofing, offering tools for photographers to share and receive feedback on their work. Squarespace, while providing basic client proofing options, doesn't match Format's specialized features. If client proofing is essential, Format is the better choice for photographers.
Blogging Features
Squarespace offers a comprehensive blogging platform with features like scheduling, tagging, and commenting. Format, while providing basic blogging tools, is more focused on visual content. If you're looking to create a robust blog, Squarespace is the superior option.
Pricing Comparison of Squarespace and Format
To assist you in making an informed choice, we’ve outlined the pricing plans and essential features of Squarespace and Format. This comparison will highlight the best option for creating your website.
Squarespace Pricing Plans
- Access to beautiful templates and powerful tools for any website.
- Free custom domain for the first year with annual purchase.
- Accept payments with credit card rates starting at 2.9% + 30¢.
- Sell products and services with a 2% transaction fee.
- Unlimited contributors for collaborative website management.
- Advanced website analytics to track performance.
- Complete customization with CSS and Javascript.
- Professional email from Google Workspace.
- API integrations for advanced sales functionality.
- Professional shipping and tax services.
- Sales funnel analytics to optimize conversions.
- Digital Content and Memberships transaction fee of 1%.
- Most advanced commerce tools for online sales.
- API integrations for advanced sales functionality.
- Digital Content and Memberships transaction fee of 0%.
- Advanced website analytics and sales funnel analytics.
Format Pricing Plans
- 70 high-resolution images for optimal display.
- Mobile-optimized website for seamless viewing on devices.
- Free mobile app for easy management on the go.
- Lightroom integration for streamlined photo editing.
- 1500 high-resolution images for comprehensive portfolios.
- 100GB image storage for ample creative work.
- 15 hosted video minutes for multimedia content.
- Custom fonts to personalize your website's appearance.
- 1TB image storage for vast creative collections.
- 120 hosted video minutes for rich multimedia content.
- 1000 commission-free online store products for sales.
- Priority 24/7 customer support for quick assistance.
Our Rating Methodology
We thoroughly evaluate each website builder, focusing on key aspects like functionality, ease of use, and scalability. By analyzing user reviews and testing features, we ensure our recommendations align with your needs. Each factor is weighted to provide an accurate final rating, helping you make informed decisions.
Squarespace or Format: Which One Matches Your Business Needs?
Choose Squarespace If You Need ...
- Versatile website builder
If you are a **business owner or creative looking for a versatile website builder** with a wide range of templates and robust e-commerce features, Squarespace is the ideal choice for you.
- Advanced e-commerce features
If you need a **platform with advanced e-commerce capabilities** to manage products, process payments, and track inventory, Squarespace is the superior option for building a comprehensive online store.
Choose Format If You Need ...
- Specialized for photographers
If you are a **photographer or creative looking for a platform tailored to visual portfolios**, Format offers specialized tools and sleek templates to showcase your work effectively.
- Intuitive client proofing
If you require **intuitive client proofing tools** to share your work and receive feedback, Format provides user-friendly features that streamline the creative process for photographers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which platform is better for e-commerce, Squarespace or Format?
Is Format suitable for industries other than photography?
How does Squarespace's SEO tools compare to Format's?
Which platform offers better customer support, Squarespace or Format?
Can I use Format for blogging?
Which platform is more secure, Squarespace or Format?
Martin Lunendonk
Martin Lunendonk is a senior tech writer specializing in website builders, web hosting, and ecommerce platforms. With a background in finance, accounting, and philosophy, he has founded multiple tech startups and worked in medium to large tech companies and investment banking, bringing deep expertise and reliable insights to his software reviews.
