To help you compare, we looked at some of the most commonly cited platforms for personal websites. Below, you’ll find the starting monthly price for an annual subscription, along with a brief description and key features for each platform.

Top website builders for personal websites

Each platform offers its own mix of templates, editing tools, and publishing features. Below, you’ll find a more detailed breakdown of each builder, focusing on what personal website creators often need: polished templates, strong visual design tools, flexible content layouts, blogging features, and integrated options for portfolios, contact forms, audio or video, and newsletters.

1. Squarespace

Pricing starts at: $16 per month

Squarespace combines predesigned templates with easy-to-use editing tools, making it a strong choice for personal websites across many goals. You can use the Blueprint AI website builder to generate a custom site based on your content or choose from templates designed for portfolios, resumes, blogs, or creative projects. No matter how you start, you can use design guidance and pre-made layouts to personalize any site.

Squarespace includes built-in tools you can use as your website needs change, like blogging, custom forms, scheduling, email templates and contact management, invoicing, and portfolio layouts. You can also add digital downloads, members-only pages, or a small online store if you want to showcase or sell your work. The platform includes SEO and AI visibility tools that support discoverability, along with AI-assisted content creation for posts, page content, and SEO copy.

Key features

• Website layouts for personal brands, weddings, and portfolios

• AI-generated custom website creation

• Blogging, galleries, and flexible page layouts

• Built-in contact forms and email marketing

• Scheduling and digital products, if needed

• SEO and AI visibility features

Note: Plans and pricing for each platform can vary. For Squarespace, see our pricing page for the most up-to-date details in your location.

2. Framer

Pricing starts at: $10 per month or limited free plan

Framer is a visual design platform that provides design tools for creating highly customized websites. It’s often used by designers who want pixel-level control without writing code. You can start with templates or design your pages entirely from scratch.

Framer supports smooth animations, interactive components, and custom layouts. It also includes built-in features for CMS content, blogging, and simple forms. However, advanced functionality—such as selling products or managing bookings—typically requires third-party integrations. Depending on your needs and design preferences, you may not need the level of customization Framer offers.

Key features

• Freeform visual editor

• Support for animations and interactive design

• CMS tools for blogs or content collections

• Custom contact forms

See our full Framer vs. Squarespace comparison

3. GoDaddy

Pricing starts at: $9.99 per month or limited free plan

GoDaddy offers a simple drag-and-drop editor with website templates suited for personal and professional websites. It includes basic marketing features, such as email campaigns and social posting, on paid plans.

If you intend to sell digital products, monetize content, or build an advanced portfolio, you’ll likely need to upgrade your plan or use third-party add-ons. GoDaddy might be appealing if you want to publish a basic site quickly, but it may also have more limited design customization than some other platforms on this list.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop editor

• Templates for personal and professional sites

• Professional email included on paid plans

See our full GoDaddy vs. Squarespace comparison

4. Hostinger

Pricing starts at: $3.49 per month ($10.99 on renewal)

Hostinger offers website hosting and an AI website builder for simple personal sites. It’s a budget-friendly option if you want a basic online presence and minimal setup.

The website editor includes simple design tools and the ability to create contact forms, blogs, or landing pages. If your goals grow and you want to add digital products, more complex layouts, or a more advanced portfolio, you may find its features more limited for your needs.

Key features

• AI website builder

• Simple portfolio and blog layouts

• Basic contact forms

See our full Hostinger vs. Squarespace comparison

5. Webflow

Pricing starts at: $14 per month or limited free plan

Webflow is a website design platform that provides advanced control over layout and website interactions. It’s often used by designers and developers who want to build a portfolio or personal website with specific design features or precise detail.

Webflow includes a CMS that supports blogs, case studies, and long-form content. It doesn’t include built-in ecommerce features on lower-tier plans, and adding advanced functionality usually requires custom setup, paid add-ons, or third-party integrations.

Key features

• Advanced visual editor

• Custom animations

• CMS for blogs and structured content

• Plugins and add-ons for more features

See our full Webflow vs. Squarespace comparison

6. Wix

Pricing starts at: $17 per month or limited free plan

Wix is a website building platform that provides templates, drag-and-drop editing, and AI-assisted design tools. It includes layouts for personal websites and portfolios and basic marketing tools.

On lower-tier plans, you can create blog posts, galleries, and simple forms. To paywall content, accept payments, offer appointment booking, or access other advanced features, you’ll need a higher-priced plan.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website editor

• Templates for portfolios, resumes, and blogs

• AI website and content generation

See our full Wix vs. Squarespace comparison

7. WordPress.com

Pricing starts at: $4 per month or limited free plan

WordPress.com is a website builder with WordPress’ CMS platform, and a popular option for bloggers. Its editor supports a mix of templates, content blocks, and customization options for different types of other personal websites.

WordPress doesn’t include extensive built-in features, mainly focusing on simple forms and blogging, so expanding your site often involves additional plugins. This can be appealing if you’re comfortable with WordPress and managing multiple add-ons, but it’ll offer a less all-in-one style experience. You’ll also need to upgrade your plan to access ecommerce tools and certain other features.

Key features

• Plugin library for customization

• Free plan available

• Built-in blogging and contact forms

See our full WordPress vs. Squarespace comparison

How to choose the best personal website builder

The right personal website builder depends on what you want to do with your website—now and in the future—and how much control you want over the design and layout. It’s helpful to try out multiple platforms before choosing one. Compare factors such as:

• Ease of use and how quickly you can publish

• Template quality and customization options

• Blogging tools, portfolio layouts, or resume features

• Pricing and long-term scalability

• Built-in marketing tools, such as forms and email

• SEO features and support resources

• Tools you might need in the future, like invoicing or scheduling

As the way people discover personal projects continues to shift, it also helps to consider whether your platform will support long-term growth. Tools that help you optimize for AI search, streamline content creation, and guide your site structure can make it easier to stay visible online without staying on top of every search change.

If you want a unified platform with strong design templates, built-in publishing tools, and options that support your personal brand as it grows, Squarespace is a strong place to start.

Let’s look at the reasons cause awareness days are crucial to mission-driven organizations and how Squarespace can help you maximize community support with a range of powerful tools. 

Why are charity holidays important for nonprofits?

Cause awareness days are a valuable method for nonprofits to amplify their message, develop their brand, and ultimately, achieve their purpose of making a positive impact. 

• Fundraising potential: While not always the primary goal, awareness days are a great time to double down on fundraising efforts by aligning with the momentum of the day. 

• Increased visibility: Charity holidays can generate buzz on social media and in the press, helping you reach new audiences and expand your visibility. 

• Engagement and action: These days provide opportunities to engage supporters through social media campaigns, events, and fundraising initiatives. 

• Educational opportunities: Use the day to inform the public about the issues your organization addresses, to foster understanding and support. 

• Building community: Connect with like-minded individuals and organizations online or at an event to foster a sense of community and collaboration. 

• Advocacy and change: Use these days to advocate for policy changes and raise awareness about issues that need attention. 

How to leverage cause awareness days on Squarespace

Whether your cause is about health, human rights, the environment, or another movement, mission-driven groups on Squarespace can make the most of awareness days with Donations tools. Add a Donation block to any page of a Squarespace website to collect contributions directly.

1. Connect a payment tool. Navigate to Finance > Payments in your Squarespace account and select Squarespace Payments or another payment option, such as Stripe or PayPal.

2. Add a Donation Block. Edit any page and click Add Block > Donation.

3. Customize your donation settings. Using the editor, set the donation amounts or allow custom donations, add disclaimers, and personalize the style to match your site design. 

4. Start accepting donations. Once your block is set up, visitors can donate directly on your website.

As a bonus step, create a QR code that leads directly to your donations page, so you easily can collect support anywhere. Squarespace automatically sends receipts to donors for their records. You can manage and track donations from the Donations dashboard in your Squarespace account.

Best practices for collecting donations

There are a few best practices around setting up donations on your site. For example, how you ask for contributions can make all the difference in motivating people to participate. 

Storytelling is critical—explain your mission and be transparent and specific about how funds are used. Show the impact donations have on the cause with data, success stories, testimonials, and visuals that illustrate the positive results of your work. Consider conveying a sense of urgency to make visitors pay greater attention to your campaign. 

Here are some other best practices to help you make the most out of cause awareness days:

• Create multiple giving levels so that donating feels accessible for everyone.

• Let community members choose recurring donations to build consistent support for your cause.

• Incentivize visitors to give by offering a small giveaway for donating, like publishing donor names, sending a free sticker, or giving them access to gated content. 

• Allow donors to cover transaction and processing fees, so 100% of the donation goes to your cause. You can enable this option in your donation settings.

• Offer multiple payment options so donors can choose their preferred tool. If you’re using Squarespace Payments, you’ll also have lower fees on ACH payments over $250.

• Engage your community and drive donations with email marketing. Squarespace Email Campaigns includes predesigned templates and AI writing assistance, so you can  quickly create on-brand, high-impact emails for your campaigns.

• Thank donors and update them about progress to make them feel valued and keep them invested in your cause.

• Share links to your donation page across all your online platforms to help your audience find it. Don’t be afraid to share more than once.

Establishing a cause awareness day calendar

It’s a good idea to track all the cause awareness days that can potentially drive donations to your website. You can do that by creating a fundraising calendar for them so you never miss an opportunity to fundraise. Here’s a list of popular awareness days for 2026 to add to your calendar. Remember to double-check dates, as some awareness days and holidays vary by country.

January

• 1: New Year’s Day

• 4: National Trivia Day

• 19: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service (United States)

February

• 2: Groundhog Day

• 14: Valentine’s Day

• 16: President’s Day (U.S.)

• 17: Random Acts of Kindness Day

March

• 1: Share a Smile Day

• 3: World Wildlife Day

• 8: International Women’s Day

• 14: Pi Day

• 18: Global Recycling Day

• 20: International Day of Happiness

• 21: World Forestry Day, World Poetry Day

• 22: World Water Day

April

• 7: World Health Day

• 11: National Pet Day

• 15: World Art Day

• 22: Earth Day

• National Volunteer Month

May

• 10: Mother’s Day (U.S.)

• 15: Endangered Species Day

• 25: Memorial Day (U.S.)

• Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

• Mental Health Awareness Month

June

• 5: World Environment Day

• 8: World Ocean Day

• 21: Father’s Day (U.S.)

• 21: International Day of Yoga

• 22: World Rainforest Day

• 30: World Social Media Day

• LGBTQ+ Pride Month (U.S.)

July

• 4: Independence Day (U.S.)

• 11: World Population Day

• 20: National Friendship Day

August 

• 9: International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples

• 12: International Youth Day 

• 17: National Nonprofit Day

• 19: World Humanitarian Day

September

• 5: International Day of Charity

• 7: Labor Day (U.S.)

• 8: International Literacy Day

• 10: World Suicide Prevention Day

• 15: International Day of Democracy 

• 21: International Day of Peace

• 21: World Alzheimer’s Day

• 27: World Tourism Day

• 28: World Rivers Day

• 29: National Coffee Day

• National Suicide Prevention Month

• National Hispanic Heritage Month

October

• 4: World Animal Day

• 5: World Habitat Day

• 5: National Do Something Nice Day

• 5: World Teachers Day

• 10: World Homeless Day

• 10: World Mental Health Day

• 17: International Day for the Eradication of Poverty

• 24: Make a Difference Day

• Breast Cancer Awareness Month

• Domestic Violence Awareness Month

November

• 13: World Kindness Day

• 20: World Children’s Day

• 25: International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women

• Military Family Appreciation Month

• Native American Heritage Month

• National Homelessness & Homeless Youth Awareness Month 

December

• 1: World AIDS Day

• 1: Giving Tuesday

• 3: International Day of People with Disabilities

• 5: International Volunteer Day

• 10: International Human Rights Day

This year, Squarespace partnered with longtime Squarespace pro and Circle partner, Puno of ilovecreatives, to identify growing web design trends for the coming year. The biggest trends of 2026 bring a tactile element to the digital sphere, embracing texture, movement, and a human touch. 

Read on to learn about and see examples of each trend and see how you can apply them with Squarespace’s accessible design features.

1. Archival Index

The Archival Index trend marries clean design with a moodboard-like feel to bring a magazine editorial look to the minimalist trend. It’s an ideal style for creators or consultants who want to convey thoughtfulness and depth. This aesthetic pairs especially well with case studies, longform content, or product libraries where hierarchy and clarity matter. The Revel template is a perfect example of this design style, with its gridded structure, clean typography, and gallery-style layout. 

To apply it to your website, think about instilling order without sacrificing personality. Lean into this design with sharp angles, grid-style layouts, and clear type hierarchies that put the most important copy front and center. Consider pinning blocks to hold key headings in place while visitors scroll or using mobile editing to preserve your grids across screen sizes.

Read the full breakdown of the Archival Index trend

2. Glassmorphism

Glassmorphism is all about applying a glass panel effect and strategic negative space to give websites a futuristic look without losing approachability and warmth. If you’re looking to add design elements that communicate a future-looking tone, try experimenting with these soft layers and animations.

The Amal template applies this effect with a subtle animation. As you view the site, a soft blur of color flows across the screen, drawing attention without being overly distracting. To apply more elements of Glassmorphism to your own site, try using animations to create a floating effect or layer translucent blocks over areas to apply a fogged-glass effect.

Read the full breakdown of the Glassmorphism trend

3. Creative Process

Like 2025’s Sketchbook trend, Creative Process focuses on tangible, scrapbook-like elements to add personality. This can show up as hand-drawn graphic elements, layered type and images, and textured visuals.

The Oranssi template is a great example of how you can subtly apply this design trend. While its layout is carefully gridded, it incorporates custom icons to interpret the services they offer, adding a personal touch that subtly connects with visitors.

You can keep it subtle on your own website, or go bolder with the trend by stacking image and text blocks and angling or offsetting them to mimic a scrapbook page design.

Read the full breakdown of the Creative Process trend

4. Motion Narrative

As the name implies, the Motion Narrative trend uses animation, video, and bold design to tell a story. Use animated moments to draw attention to key details or show your personality with energetic typography. If you tackle this trend, it’s important to be strategic about how you apply motion or other eye-catching details. Think about the message you want to send or where you want to draw attention, and keep motion focused in ways that support your story rather than distract visitors.

The Jotterpress template offers a great example, using a looped animation to tease the interior design of one of its publications and draw attention to the product. It balances motion with legibility, keeping the experience smooth and dynamic. 

To try it out on your website, start with simple animations that scale, fade, or rotate text or images as visitors scroll.

Read the full breakdown of the Motion Narrative trend

5. Card Play

Card Play takes the standard grid layout and adds a touch of playfulness and friendliness, trading hard edges for rounded corners that keep your layouts organized without feeling too buttoned-up.

The Adri template’s design includes modular, responsive blocks that give you the flexibility to showcase services, packages, or content in digestible pieces, with subtle animated transitions that feel organic.

Create rounded cards on your website by applying image masks and adjusting card borders or adding simple animations that transition with visitors as they scroll.

Read the full breakdown of the Card Play trend

These templates reflect 2026 design trends, but they also translate them into practical starting points or inspirations for your site. Whether you're mapping out a complex new business, telling a personal story, or launching something entirely new, these designs give you the structure and flexibility to communicate clearly, stand out in a crowded market, and connect with visitors in a way that feels intentional and personalized.

Understanding those priorities can guide your final choice. To help you compare, we gathered details on several commonly used platforms for nonprofits and charitable organizations. Below, you’ll find the starting monthly price for an annual subscription and a brief description of each one.

Top website builders for nonprofit and charity organizations

Each of these platforms offers some website building tools and functionality for nonprofits, but the exact tooling and depth vary. Below, you’ll find a more detailed description of each, weighing features that matter most to nonprofit teams, like donation processing, volunteer and event management, email marketing, and storytelling tools.

Depending on your goals and workflows, an ideal platform will give you access to most or all of this functionality at an affordable price.

1. Squarespace

Pricing starts at: $16 per month, discount on first payment with code NONPROFIT

Squarespace offers professionally designed templates made for mission-driven organizations and built-in fundraising and marketing tools, making it a great choice for nonprofits that want to build trust and inspire action. You can customize a template built for nonprofits or use AI-powered site creation tools to generate a website based on your mission and goals.

Beyond design, Squarespace includes features nonprofits rely on: custom donation blocks, event hosting tools, branded newsletters, and custom forms for volunteer interest, membership applications, or general inquiries. Donation blocks can be set with suggested amounts and pay-what-you-wish options, and you can give donors the option to set up a recurring donation or cover card fees, so you keep more for your cause. Once someone donates, you can use donor management tools to track giving and contact information, so you can more easily build a community of dedicated supporters.

With native ecommerce and service tools, your supporters can register for events, purchase tickets, donate, or access member-only resources to stay up-to-date on your accomplishments. AI tools help streamline content creation, from drafting blog posts to generating SEO titles and descriptions, so your organization is more discoverable and engaging to visitors.

Key features

• Website designs made for nonprofits

• Built-in donations with recurring giving and cover-the-fees

• Donor management tools

• Customizable forms for volunteer sign-ups

• Email marketing automations and newsletters

• SEO and AI visibility support

• Ecommerce for merch and ticket sales

Note: Plans and pricing for each platform can vary. For Squarespace, see our pricing page for the most up-to-date details in your location.

2. Webflow

Pricing starts at: $14 per month or limited free plan

Webflow is a website builder that offers detailed design control. This flexibility can help nonprofits create custom web page experiences and project showcases. On its lowest-priced plan, Webflow supports basic website hosting and custom forms for supporter inquiries.

To collect donations, run events, or manage volunteers, you’ll need to integrate third-party tools. Webflow doesn’t offer built-in payment processing or native fundraising features, so you may need to combine several platforms to cover everything you need. If you already use external software for donations or volunteer management and need highly detailed design control, Webflow can handle your website needs.

Key features

• Precise design customization

• CMS tools for managing stories, blog posts, or impact updates

• Third-party plugins for donations, events, and supporter management

• Client collaboration tools for teams working with agencies

See our full Webflow vs. Squarespace comparison

3. Weebly

Pricing starts at: $10 per month or limited free plan

Weebly offers a simple drag-and-drop website editor with basic ecommerce tools. This can make it approachable for small nonprofits or volunteer-run organizations. Weebly offers features charities need, like email marketing, basic analytics, and options to set up small storefronts for branded merchandise. 

However, Weebly doesn’t include its own donation system. But, you can embed forms or use third-party apps to collect contributions. You can also use the ecommerce tools as a workaround, adding products for specific donation amounts to your store.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website editor

• Email marketing

• Basic ecommerce functionality

• Donation integrations through third-party apps

See our full Weebly vs. Squarespace comparison

4. Wix

Pricing starts at: $17 per month or limited free plan

Wix is a website building platform with customizable templates, an AI website generator, and built-in marketing features. You can use Wix’s free or lowest-priced plan to build a site for your organization, but most fundraising activity will require a paid plan or additional apps if you want to integrate with your website.

Wix supports lead capture forms, blogging, and simple event management. You can also add apps for donations and donating management. For more advanced workflows—like automated donor emails or recurring giving—you may need higher-tier subscriptions.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website editor

• Donation and fundraising apps available

• Events, ticketing, and ecommerce on higher-tier plans

• AI content generation 

See our full Wix vs. Squarespace comparison

5. WordPress.com

Pricing starts at: $4 per month or limited free plan

WordPress.com is a flexible website builder with a large plugin library, which includes fundraising, recurring donations, and CRM tools for nonprofits. While WordPress doesn’t include native nonprofit functionality, plugins can cover most needs if you’re comfortable managing multiple integrations.

Higher-tier plans can give you access to additional support for SEO, analytics, ecommerce, and design customization. If your nonprofit has technical help or previous experience using WordPress, it’s an option to consider.

Key features

• Plugin library for fundraising and volunteer management

• Built-in contact forms

• Upgrade options for ecommerce and advanced customization

See our full WordPress vs. Squarespace comparison

6. Zeffy

Pricing starts at: Free

Zeffy is a donation and fundraising platform designed specifically for nonprofits. It offers fee-free donations, which means all of supporters’ contributions go directly to your mission. Zeffy isn’t a full website builder, but you can pair it with an existing website to create donation pages, ticketing, and fundraising campaigns if your website platform doesn’t offer them.

While Zeffy doesn’t replace the design and branding flexibility offered by the website builders above, it can be a helpful tool for organizations that need low-cost fundraising tools and simple supporter workflows.

Key features

• Fee-free donations

• Ticketing and event tools

• Online storefront for merch sales

• Forms for volunteer interest and general support

Compare more brands and website builders

How to choose the best nonprofit website builder

The best website builder for your nonprofit or charity organization depends on how you plan to use it to share your mission and engage your supporters. If you just want a website to share updates and educate on your cause, a simple option might do. But if you want to unify donations, online presence, and marketing to streamline your work, you may want a more full-featured platform.

Compare several options before committing. Consider the basics: included functionality, pricing vs. your budget, your team’s experience, design aesthetic, and the availability of help resources.

Think about long-term needs that may come up as you grow. For example, a platform with integrated donation tools, built-in email marketing and ecommerce, and AI content support can save time and help you stay connected with supporters. As AI search and discovery evolve, using a platform with strong SEO guidance and AI visibility tools can help your mission reach a wider audience.

If you want a unified website and fundraising platform with professional design and built-in marketing support, Squarespace is a great option for nonprofits looking to grow their impact while keeping tools centralized.

I’m Henry Purchase, founder of SEOSpace, the SEO extension for Squarespace. In this article, I’ll cover seven key SEO and AI search trends for 2026, along with challenges and tips to stay ahead. If you’re new to SEO, start with our introductory guide.

1. AI-first search

AI assistants like ChatGPT are transforming how people search, with AI expected to handle 25% of global queries by 2026. This shifts search results away from the traditional “10 blue links” model and toward direct answers that are personalized to a user’s search history, preferences, and past behavior.

Once you try this yourself, it becomes clear why some people prefer AI-powered results. They can get the information they need instantly, instead of clicking through multiple websites. AI search also offers more straightforward responses—right now, users don’t have to navigate past ads, sidebars, or carousels to reach details or page links. Search engines like Google are also continuing to roll out more AI overviews in results to create a similar search experience, pushing individual website results further down the page.

AI overviews

AI overviews are becoming mainstream in search results. These are summaries that directly answer a user’s question at the top of the search engine results page (SERP), reducing the need to scroll through individual results. While the aim is to improve user experience, this trend is not without its drawbacks.

Test it out yourself: Go to Google or another major search engine and search for “website builder” or “Squarespace SEO.”

AI overviews currently appear above organic results, thereby taking the spotlight on SERPs. This leads to more zero-click searches, where users find the information they need without clicking through to a website.

To ensure your website benefits from this new SEO trend:

• Concentrate on producing unique and informative content that stands out from what AI and Google already know. As Google and other search engines begin linking sources to their AI-generated summaries, having distinctive content gives you an edge.

• Build an enduring online brand presence and reputation. When your business is recognized and frequently searched for, it enhances your credibility and increases the likelihood of being referenced in these summaries and AI search results.

• Create clickworthy content. Not every topic is easily summarized. You can still attract traffic by covering topics that require depth and expertise. Or, introduce a unique angle or perspective that offers something a summary can’t.

Read our beginner’s guide to AI SEO

2. AI optimization and agentic AI

Traditional SEO remains essential, but AI optimization is fast emerging as its next frontier. 

By 2026, AI optimization—sometimes referred to as AEO, GEO, or AIO—will be as critical as SEO, driven by growing adoption of AI search and the rise of agentic AI. These are autonomous systems capable of exploring, interpreting, and acting on content without human direction. Imagine having your own AI helpers acting as digital detectives, scanning the web to identify the best businesses and content for any search; that’s agentic AI. 

To stay competitive for AI-first buyers, it’s important to optimize your site so these AI helpers find and recommend your site to target customers.

The principles of AIO

AIO builds on SEO’s foundations, but the focus is on optimizing for how AI understands and interacts with your website. The core principles include:

• Structured data and metadata: Use schema markup in your website code to label sections like FAQs and reviews, use defined headings, and write comprehensive SEO titles and descriptions to help AI agents interpret your site’s purpose and content.

• Content depth and clarity: Create content that answers questions fully, with helpful context, ensuring AI can extract why your response is unique and should be recommended.

• Speed and accessibility: Maintain fast page load times, mobile readiness, and clean site navigation so both users and algorithms can explore your website effortlessly. 

• Brand building: AI engines rely on “entities” to understand what a business is, what it does, and whether it’s worth recommending in results. You can build a recognizable entity and brand by creating a social media presence, getting reviews, and listing your site in business directories.

Adapting for AIO isn’t about replacing SEO; it’s about future-proofing it. As agentic AI and search systems continue to shape discovery and decision-making, the goal is to make your content instantly understandable to both humans and intelligent machines. Applying these tactics early will help you stay visible and relevant as search changes.

Read more about AI-first shopping

3. Building brand reputation through user-generated content (UGC)

Brand reputation influences not only traditional SEO, but also AI-driven search outcomes. As artificial intelligence technologies evolve, they’re relying on what others are saying about your brand to become more contextually aware.

They assess your reputation and entity by collecting data from reviews, UGC, and social media mentions, considering both sentiment and star ratings. This all informs search and AI’s knowledge about your brand and influences whether your pages appear in results.

Leverage proven SEO tactics to improve brand reputation

To enhance your online brand reputation, particularly in local searches, consider collecting user reviews and testimonials on platforms like Google Business Profile and social media.

• Collect reviews. You can use an extension like SEOSpace Local to ask customers to leave authentic reviews that describe their experience with your business. This helps AI and search engines to better understand your business.

• Maintain a visible and active social media presence. You can ask your followers questions to get discussions going about your brand. Positive comments you receive from users will inform AI crawlers.

• Embed user reviews on your website. This strategy goes beyond making AI context-aware; it helps potential customers see how your business is impacting others’ lives, which can drive their decision-making process.

4. An increasing focus on EEAT

The importance of Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (EEAT) is expected to increase in 2026, putting a stronger emphasis on showcasing first-hand knowledge in your website content. These are signals search engines use to evaluate the quality and trustworthiness of your content.  

You can demonstrate these qualities on your website and web pages by including author bios, citations, and professional qualifications. They indicate to search algorithms that your site is more likely to provide helpful, accurate information and therefore deserves a higher ranking.

An effective SEO strategy focused on EEAT involves several key elements to ensure web page quality, including:

• Clarity: Ensure your content is easy to read and understand, effectively communicating your message without ambiguity.

• Accuracy: Provide factual, well-researched information that is supported by evidence or credible sources.

• Human effort: Highlight the unique perspectives and insights that only human expertise can offer. This differentiates your content from AI-generated or less informed material.

• Information gain: Offer valuable insights that contribute something new to the topic. The goal is to ensure readers find your content both engaging and helpful.

• Matching intent: When creating content, align it with the user’s search intent. This means understanding what someone is really looking for when they type in a search term. Are they seeking information, looking to make a purchase, or trying to navigate to a specific page?

• Freshness: Keep your content up to date with the latest information to maintain relevance and helpfulness. To let search engines know the content is recent, consider adding a visible “Last Updated” tag to your content.

The goal of EEAT is to ensure your page offers higher quality information and value than competitors. By providing unique and helpful insights that go beyond generic content, you’ll engage users more effectively.

This approach is no different from what the most impactful SEO has always been about: creating valuable content that meets user needs.

5. Growing relevance of video content

As AI-generated content becomes more prevalent, the demand for genuine, human-produced content is growing. Videos, in particular, are set to play a big role in search engine optimization strategies.

Unlike articles and blog posts, AI has yet to convincingly replicate the authenticity and relatability of humans speaking directly to a camera. And with AI now indexing video transcripts for search, video content is an invaluable tool for connecting with a wider audience.

As more people consume video on search engines and social media platforms, creating authentic, human-centric videos can significantly boost your search rankings and visibility. Consider how you can weave video into your content strategy, whether that’s on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, or video-only platforms like YouTube.

Short-form video content, such as YouTube Shorts, TikTok, and Instagram Reels, are also a factor for search visibility. If you have the technical ability, you can also consider optimizing your videos with VideoObject schema and captions to help AI understand the video content better.

Embrace authentic storytelling on TikTok

TikTok can be a powerful tool for building brand trust and reach. It was once seen as a platform mainly used by Gen Z, but 26% of TikTok users are now over 35, so it can be highly effective no matter the audience you want to attract.

Its algorithm favors genuine, relatable content over polished ads, making it ideal for service providers and educators who want to connect directly with audiences.

To effectively leverage TikTok for storytelling:

• Share behind-the-scenes clips, quick educational insights, or customer stories.

• Engage with community trends, but tie them back to your brand’s values.

• Experiment with TikTok’s longer video formats and interactive features to deepen engagement.

Remember, every brand and audience is unique. It’s worth experimenting with TikTok, but set your own goals for the time you’ll invest in the platform versus other marketing efforts.

Improve brand visibility with YouTube

YouTube is a powerhouse for growing SEO and AI search citations. As the second-largest search engine after Google, creating targeted YouTube video content can increase your reach.

To improve discoverability, optimize your video titles, snippets, descriptions, and tags with relevant keywords. Examples of content you can create for your business include tutorials, product demonstrations, or explainer videos that align with your audience’s search intent. You can use these videos to direct viewers towards your website or encourage them to take action.

For example, most blogs on the SEOSpace website have a corresponding YouTube video. This boosts SEOSpace’s discoverability and gives readers more engaging ways to consume our content. Engagement has been key in 2025, and I expect it to remain so in 2026.

6. A shift toward local SEO

As mobile devices, AI searches, and voice assistants rise in popularity, local search optimization is a priority for local businesses. This helps people discover your services and products in your local area.

AI search tools cross-check information from trusted directories, such as Yelp, Better Business Bureau (BBB), and Yellow Pages, to confirm a brand’s legitimacy. They also summarize those local results to provide recommendations and information in AI results or overviews. Keep your NAP data (name, address, phone) consistent across all listings to ensure accuracy and enhance credibility, and increase your chances of being referenced in AI search results.

The importance of Google Business Profile (GBP)

One of the most effective ways to boost your local SEO is to claim and optimize your Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business).

Whether you connect to your GBP from SEOSpace Local or manage it separately, update your profile regularly with:

• Accurate business information

• Relevant categories

• Up-to-date hours

• High-quality photos

• Detailed service listings

This not only improves your visibility in local search results but also enhances your credibility with potential customers and ensures they have the right information when they visit.

Build local authority to dominate your niche

To further strengthen your local SEO in 2026, focus on building your local authority. Gather positive customer reviews, create location-specific content, and engage with your local community. Getting your site linked by local publications or partnerships with other local brands can also boost your authority, as AI assesses these when evaluating local credibility.

Location-based keywords are equally essential. These are the terms people use when searching for services in your area. Use SEOSpace or another keyword research method to identify these keywords, then naturally incorporate them into your website content, SEO titles, and descriptions.

It can take some time to see results from SEO, but search and AI algorithms reward brands that adapt quickly. Not every strategy will work the same for every brand or business, but take the time to make some adjustments, observe results, and lean in on what works best for you.

This post was updated on December 2, 2025.

Whether you host retreats or workshops, run a restaurant or performance space, or operate a summer camp or travel agency, finding the best event website builder is essential for designing, launching, and managing successful experiences that keep people coming back. 

Here, we’ve gathered the basic details on the best website builders for event planners and other experience hosts, so you can review your options, all in one place.

Top website builders for events and experiences businesses

Each of these platforms offers tools for event planners and businesses rooted in delivering great gathering experiences, whether that’s a concert, dinner party, art class, retreat, or something else. Below, you’ll find a more detailed description of each, weighing features that are especially important for event planners, such as ticketing, booking and invoicing, analytics and tracking, and marketing tools. Depending on your workflow and preferences, the best event website builders will give you access to most or all of this functionality.

Compare more brands and website builders

1. Squarespace

Pricing starts at: $16 per month

Squarespace offers a comprehensive slate of tools and features that brings together two decades of design expertise with powerful tools for packaging, promoting, selling, hosting, and managing events and experiences, making it a great choice as an event website builder. 

To showcase upcoming events and promote your offerings, choose from website templates for events—including options for courses, scheduling, entertainment, and restaurants. Or, use the Blueprint AI website builder to generate a custom website tailored to the unique needs of your business. 

Features for managing and promoting your events and experiences include scheduling tools for streamlining registrations for group and appointment bookings, custom forms for collecting sign-up and attendee information, and built-in marketing support. Branded invoices, marketing emails, and mailing lists make it simple to charge for private events, stay in touch with attendees, attract new participants, and grow your audience. With official integrations, you can add adaptable blocks for tour date listings, restaurant bookings, event reservations, and ticketing.

Note: Squarespace plans and pricing for each platform can vary. See our pricing page for the most up-to-date details in your location. 

Key features

• Website designs made for event organizers

• Custom bookings with Acuity Scheduling

• Secure payments and branded invoices

• Customizable contact forms

• Email marketing automations and newsletters

• AI website building tools

• Built-in marketing and SEO tools

2. Eventbrite

Pricing starts at: 3.7% + $1.79 service fee per ticket, plus 2.9% payment processing fee per order, or free for free events

Eventbrite is a self-service ticketing platform and a platform for discovering local events. It offers advanced tools for selling tickets, collecting payments, managing event capacity and check-in, planning seat maps for seat reservations, sending updates and reminders to registrants, and tracking analytics. You can use an optional app for organizers for check-in and selling last-minute tickets at the door. 

There’s no cost if your event is free. Otherwise, your costs are based on ticket cost. You can choose to cover the ticketing fees for paid events or pass on the cost to buyers. 

Using Eventbrite also comes with potential opportunities for organic discovery, since eventgoers can browse the site for events.

Though Eventbrite isn’t an event website builder, it can complement a website. Depending on your business needs, pairing Eventbrite’s ticketing tools with your event website could be a good solution. 

Key features

• Advanced ticketing tools

• Payment processing

• Data tracking and analytics

• Marketing tools and onsite ads

• An app for organizers

See how to use Eventbrite with Squarespace

3. Webflow

Pricing starts at: $14 per month, or limited free plan 

Webflow is a visual editor with drag-and-drop website building and editing tools. Their no-code approach makes it possible to build a highly personalized website. Whether this is the best event website builder for your business will depend on if you have web design chops, a desire to learn Webflow’s interface, or plan to work with a designer or developer to handle the building. Webflow also offers pre-designed event planning website templates for purchase.

For ticketing, ecommerce, or scheduling features, you’ll need to use Webflow’s third-party integrations. These options are available on higher-priced plans.

Key features

• Advanced website customization with granular control

• Drag-and-drop editing and design tools

• Website design templates made for event planners

• Built-in marketing and SEO tools

• AI website building tools

• Third-party plugins and integrations (including for ecommerce and ticketing)

See our full Webflow vs. Squarespace comparison

4. Wix

Pricing starts at: $17 per month, or limited free plan

Wix is a website-building platform that aims to make website building more straightforward and accessible to everyday users. The company offers a library of customizable event website templates, as well as Wix Events, a suite of tools and features for managing events, ticketing, and RSVPs from your website.

Tools and features for managing events and experiences include scheduling, selling tickets, seat maps, collecting payments, managing event capacity, waiting lists, and hosting online events via your choice of video conferencing platform. 

Payment processing, scheduling, and other features are available only on higher-tier plans. Using Wix’s ticketing platform comes with an additional 2.5% ticket service fee, which you may opt to pass on to ticket purchasers.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website builder

• Event management tools

• Built-in marketing and SEO tools

• AI website building tools

• Payments processing and ticketing on higher-tier paid plans

See our full Wix vs. Squarespace comparison

5. WordPress.com 

Pricing starts at: $4 per month, or limited free plan

WordPress.com is a hosted version of WordPress, an open-source software and content management system (CMS). It includes a system of adaptable design themes, website building blocks, and templates (called “patterns”) that you can mix and match to customize your own website and events pages. 

To use WordPress.com as an event website builder, you need to start with a suitable design theme, such as one made for restaurants, ecommerce, or education and coaching. Then, choose an event template to make pages to promote your upcoming events, tour dates, classes, and more. You can then use the block editor and third-party events plugins to add tools, such as calendars, registration forms, and events management platforms.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website builder

• Design templates and blocks

• AI website building tools

• Third-party plugins and integrations (including for ticketing and payments)

• Advanced SEO tools on higher-tier paid plans

See our full WordPress.com vs. Squarespace comparison 

Choosing the right business platform for events and experiences businesses

The best event website builder for event planners depends on a constellation of factors, including your personal preferences and skills, as well as your business needs and budget. The type of events you offer will also be a major consideration, since this will inform the types of tools and features you’ll need for registration, ticketing, and payments processing.

As you compare event website builders, give the trials a test drive to get a feel for how the tools work. Check out examples of websites from other businesses in your industry for inspiration and to observe their sites in action. 

Here’s a checklist of what to look for as you evaluate the best option for your business:

• Events tools and features: Determine which events tools will most effectively support your offerings and customers. This could include ticketing tools, sign-up forms, scheduling tools, secure payments, mailing lists, invoicing, SEO and analytics, built-in marketing features, third-party plugin options, and more.

• Aesthetic: Consider whether the website builder has options that match your business’ design aesthetic, as well as the look and feel of your events and experiences. Ideally your brand identity seamlessly weaves through your live events and your website.

• Ease of use: Does it feel straightforward to set up, update, and maintain? Will you be able to do so yourself, or might you need to hire help? Once set up, will the platform help you work efficiently and simplify your current workflow? Look at the customer support and knowledge base offerings to get a sense of what your options will be if you ever need help.

• Scalability: Factor in your long-term business plans. Will this website builder be able to grow and scale with your business?

• Reputation: Talk to peers and comb through reviews, ratings, and testimonials to get a sense of how reliable and reputable the platform is.

• Pricing: Compare the subscription price, ticketing fees, and any other expenses, such as credit card processing fees and the cost of hiring a web designer or developer for set-up help, if needed. Make projections over the coming months and years. How do these expenses compare to your budget?

If you’re looking for a comprehensive business and website building platform, Squarespace is a great option with helpful tools for event planners, including built-in marketing tools, plugins for event ticketing platforms, branded invoices, and booking features, as well as professional-level website templates and AI tools to help you get started and grow.

A great website template can help you get there faster. Here are five Squarespace templates that work especially well for agencies, to help you start with a solid foundation that you can customize to your needs.

1. Agaro: For marketing and branding agencies

If your agency specializes in creative and editorial strategies, like brand strategy, content marketing, or communications, Agaro gives you room to show what you do best. Its refined, text-led design balances copy, whitespace, and hierarchy to help visitors understand your approach before you ever get on a call.

Why it works:

• Modular layouts support longform and scannable content to cover more information

• Bold styling with a premium feel shows professionalism and branding

• Built-in flexibility to display different service tiers, industries, or case studies

To get the most out of the template, treat each service you offer like a product with a landing page. Combine short testimonials with client logos or results to reinforce your credibility as visitors scroll.

Explore the Agaro template

2. Radian: For visual and architectural design

Radian’s minimal design, subtle animations, and bold imagery are made for agencies that want to signal creativity, innovation, and a premium offering. If your work involves experiential design, minimalist digital design, or architecture and interior design, this template helps to communicate a modern aesthetic and show the details of your favorite projects.

Why it works:

• Scroll effects and animation that create visual movement

• Designed for showcasing a few high-impact projects

• Flexible color palettes to match your brand aesthetics

To work with this template, try to limit your text and use short, benefits-focused headlines throughout. Let the design communicate your style and expertise while your copy steers action.

Explore the Radian template

3. Adri: For multi-service offerings and consultants

Adri’s homepage functions like a visual tour of your agency, guiding visitors through what you do, how you do it, and how to get in touch. It’s especially effective for multidisciplinary agencies or teams with defined verticals, like custom code, copywriting, and brand design.

Why it works:

• Built-in flow takes visitors through services, portfolio, and contact options

• Clean visual hierarchy makes it easy to scan

• Strong use of contrast and layout for spotlighting information

Try alternating section styles to help visitors compare service options or walk through your client process visually. This helps potential clients understand where they fit into your offerings.

Explore the Adri template

4. Cedar: For business, financial, or editorial services

Cedar’s bold typefaces and ample whitespace help you lead with your work and offerings. This template is ideal for agencies where authority and clarity is key to closing new clients, like financial or business consulting. You’ll find flexible section layouts that make it easy to highlight your services, experience, and results without extra design work.

Why it works:

• Blog pages to highlight past projects, expert advice, or success stories

• Sleek navigation and immersive homepage sections to command focus

• High-impact layout without visual clutter

Consider using the full-screen sections on the homepage to surface standout projects, your team, or your top services, then link to deeper case studies for visitors who want the details.

Explore the Cedar template

5. Selene: For visual and interior design 

Selene is a minimalist website template that’s easy to adapt to your agency. It’s great for agencies in early growth stages who want to look established without overcomplicating their site. Clean layouts, intuitive navigation, and ample negative space make it ideal for solo consultants or small collectives. But the ability to add pages and functionality allow the template to expand as your business does.

Why it works:

• Easy-to-read page layouts ideal for highlighting your brand, team, or services

• Adaptable design that works for one-page sites or multipage websites

• Simple, clear navigation keeps the user journey focused

If you’re short on time, you could start with a one-page site that highlights your experience, projects, and services, then expand into dedicated team or case study pages over time. The design’s large text blocks are a good place to share results or testimonials without losing the site’s minimal feel.

Explore the Selene template

Choosing a website template for your agency

The best website template is ultimately the one that best highlights your agency’s strengths. The right template will help you to save time without sacrificing quality, so you can quickly launch a website that gets potential clients to say, “I want that.” 

Every Squarespace website is fully customizable, so you don’t need to bend your brand to fit the layout. Instead, pick the structure that supports your message, whether that’s showcasing award-winning visuals, walking through your methodology, or offering easy next steps, and adapt from there.

If you’re just getting started, it can be easy to confuse the three. Read on for a simplifier on what these are, and information on how mastering this can help your brand.

Understanding web hosting vs. domains vs. email hosting

Email hosting, web hosting, and domain hosting all work similarly, but aren’t the same thing. Each element plays a distinct role in setting up your online presence. Put simply, web hosting helps you share your website, a domain gives your site a URL, and email hosting helps you communicate, ideally under a branded email address.

What is web hosting? 

Web hosting makes your website available to visitors online. A web host is a company that stores the information, data, and files that make up your website, uploading that information to servers to keep it live and accessible to the public.

Web hosting is usually done via an organization called a web host, such as Squarespace. If your website isn’t hosted, visitors can’t access it. A good web host is secure and reliable. Web servers respond to millions of requests a day, so it’s important to choose one that’s powerful enough to ensure your site loads quickly and won’t go down during high-traffic periods. You can usually get a sense of this by researching a website platform or host’s uptime.

Web hosting and domain hosting are complementary parts of a functioning website. When a visitor enters your site URL into a browser, the browser looks up the IP address for your domain through a domain name system (DNS) search. Once that IP address is found, the web host connects the files, information, and data that make up your website to a web server, and brings that person to your site. 

Read our full web hosting explainer

What is domain hosting?

A domain is the URL that helps visitors reach your website. Think of your domain name like an address that sends visitors to your website pages. Domains are typically hosted by a domain registrar, an organization or company that sells and manages domain names.

Your domain name connects your page’s IP address, which is a string of numbers, to something simple and memorable for users. A good domain name will connect to your branding and usually references your business name or identity, like squarespace.com. 

As a user, you pay a fee to register your domain and tie it to your website, and renew that registration at regular intervals to keep your domain connected.

Read the beginner’s guide to website domains

What is email hosting?

Email hosting is where your emails and messaging files are stored on a server. This is usually done through an email service. Email hosts handle message filtering and security, and store and deliver incoming and outgoing messages, typically in the cloud, so you can access and send mail from multiple devices.

Domain, web, and email hosting often go hand-in-hand. Having a professional email address tied to your domain name can appear more polished, which helps you to build trust and credibility with clients, customers, or partners. It also confirms that your messages are coming from an official source tied to your brand, encourages email opens, and reinforces your branding.

How do domain hosting, web hosting, and email hosting work together?

If your domain is your street address, web hosting is your home, and email hosting is your mailbox. Your domain connects to your web hosting platform, both may connect to your email, and the three work together to build your online presence. 

Customers will likely interact with all three in some way. Someone will use your domain to visit your site, where they might buy products or use your services. If they have any queries, they might use your email to get in touch with you.

Understanding how these three things work together can help you solve issues. Say your email server is down, or your website is struggling to load properly. Knowing key differences between the elements ensures you know where to go to address any hiccups.

How these factors impact branding and business

Your domain, website, and email are all part of your brand. Consistency in branding can help your business look unique and professional. 

Uniform hosting also helps increase trust from visitors, which aids SEO and AI appearances and can help increase traffic to your site. When these elements are uniform, customers immediately recognize what’s linked to your brand and avoid confusion.

Choosing hosting providers 

When building a website, you have the option to have each type of hosting managed by different companies, or purchased and handled in one place. The different options affect the levels of customization and control you’ll have with your platforms. 

Think about what you need at this stage. Need for simplicity may lead you to bundled service options. Businesses with complex needs may want to mix and match if one hosting provider offers something that a bundled provider doesn’t. Consider the level of support, ease of use, and your familiarity with hosting before choosing your providers.

Bundling hosting services offers convenience and straightforward support. It can make linking your domain, web, and email hosting easier. And it can make customer service simpler if each hosting method is on one platform. However, bundling could make it trickier if you want to switch hosting providers in the future.

Using separate hosting services gives you flexibility to pick individual services based on your needs. For example, if you run a business that needs more support for email communication, you may want to pick a more powerful email server rather than one that comes provided by a web host. That said, managing multiple hosts can be complicated. Using separate platforms may require more advanced knowledge to configure and integrate all of your servers online. 

Managing your domain, web and, email hosting on Squarespace

If you're looking to set your hosting up in one place, Squarespace provides domain, web hosting, and professional email through Google Workspace, so your hosting is smoothly integrated from the start.

• Web hosting: All Squarespace website plans come with web hosting. Squarespace handles all site security requirements, optimizations, and necessary updates.

• Domains: Squarespace Domains is one of the largest domain registrars. You can search, buy, and manage your domain and connect it to your site from the same Squarespace login. 

• Email hosting: You can get a custom email address for your Squarespace domain through Google Workspace to easily and professionally handle brand communication. 

You can start with any of these hosting options and add to or adapt your hosting to your needs over time. If you start with an annual Squarespace website plan, you’re eligible for a free domain for one year and a free year of Google Workspace.

What is a payment solution?

As an online business owner, accepting non-cash payments is vital to your business. A payment solution is how you take payments and keep track of your transactions. The payment solution you choose impacts how easily you can do business. 

With Squarespace Payments, you can charge customers, issue refunds, handle chargeback disputes, manage transactions, and see your payouts, all on a single platform. This makes it more convenient to keep track of your finances and stay on top of customer service.

What is a payment processor? 

A payment processor is a company or service that handles the operational aspects of transactions, such as requesting authorization from banks or financial institutions to accept payments via credit card, debit card, digital wallet, and other payment methods. This involves transferring the customers’ payment method information  from where customers enter their details, such as an online store checkout page, to the different banks or financial institutions involved in the transaction. Your payment solution will connect with a payment processor service.

How to connect to Squarespace Payments 

You can start using Squarespace Payments to accept payments on your site in just a few steps and start getting paid the next day.

To sign up for Squarespace Payments:

1. Open the Payments panel.

2. Under Squarespace Payments, click Turn on Squarespace Payments.

3. Follow the prompts and enter all required information.

4. Click Agree & Submit.

After you submit your information, you'll be automatically returned to the Store Payments panel. Here, you can review the connection status of your Squarespace Payments account.

If you already use Stripe to take payments, it takes just a few steps to start using Squarespace Payments. Using Squarespace Payments should simplify your workflows, making it easier to view and manage your transactions from one account and platform.

1. Open the Payments panel.

2. A Squarespace Payments banner will appear. Click Get Started.

3. Review information on what you should know before you make the switch, then click Accept and Continue.

4. Click Start Import.

5. After your information is imported, click Connect Checking Account and follow the prompts.

Learn more about Squarespace Payments, eligibility, and verification

Other payment tools on Squarespace

You can connect a payment solution, like Squarespace Payments, or a third-party payment solution such as Stripe, PayPal, or Square. Choosing which tool to use for your online store depends on a few factors, like where you're located and which payment methods you want to offer. 

You can also use Square as a payment processor for Squarespace point of sale in the Squarespace app. With Squarespace Payments, you can also enable buy-now-pay-later services like Klarna, Afterpay, or Clearpay for customers.

Payment methods on Squarespace

No matter which payment solution you choose, Squarespace supports multiple payment methods for customers or clients to ensure maximum flexibility.

With Squarespace, you can accept both traditional and alternative payment methods. Traditional payment methods include debit and credit cards. Clients or customers can enter their card information while checking out online or paying for an invoice, or tap to pay in person if you have the Squarespace app.

Alternative payment methods

Increasingly, shoppers are looking for convenient ways to pay that don’t include cash or debit/credit cards. Alternative payment methods (APMs) allow you to provide your customers with more payment choices, covering options like digital wallets, bank transfers, and buy now, pay later. 

• Digital wallets: Securely stored card details for quick, card-free payments via tap or scan, like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal.

• Bank transfers: Direct transfers from a customer’s bank account to your business for safe, global payments, like ACH, iDeal, and SEPA.

• Buy now, pay later (BNPL): You’re paid in full but customers split payment into smaller installments, often with no interest. Examples include Afterpay and Klarna.

When you offer APMs, your business can reach more customers, including those without traditional banking, which can improve sales and appeal to international shoppers. 

Ways to collect payments 

On top of a standard in-person or online checkout experience, there are more ways you can collect payments with a Squarespace plan. Pay links and invoicing both offer flexibility to adapt to different product types, like custom work, or selling environments, like in-person markets.

Pay links

With pay links, you can send customers or clients a link to pay you, even if you don’t have an online store. You can accept payments from anywhere, at any time, and your customers can check out from wherever they are.

Squarespace offers multiple types of pay links:

• Requested: Create a new pay link to request payment for a specific product, service, or custom item.

• Flexible: This allows the recipient to choose what they pay for a service or tip.

For example, say you’re a facepainter at a farmers market, and you need to charge your customers at the end of each service. You can set up a printed QR code at your booth that customers can scan to open a custom pay link that includes the exact amount they owe after the service.

You can use flexible pay links to collect tips, donations, or pay-what-you-wish payments. For example, for personal care service providers like hair stylists or massage therapists, this type of pay link allows for a quick, efficient, and professional tipping process. 

From a customer’s perspective, pay links offer a simple, straightforward checkout experience.

1. Click the link. Customers get a link via email, text, button on your site, etc. and tap or click it.

2. Go straight to checkout. Instead of browsing a full store, they land on a clean checkout page showing the specific product, service, or invoice amount.

3. Enter payment details. They securely enter their payment method.

4. Confirm purchase. Once they confirm, customers see an order confirmation page. They’ll also get a confirmation email automatically.

Learn more about creating pay links

Invoicing

With Squarespace, you can create customized invoices that match your brand and send them directly to clients for quick online payments. You can track invoices from your Squarespace account and set up automation features like recurring invoicing.

Squarespace Invoicing streamlines billing so you don’t need extra tools to show up professionally.

• Branding: Design invoices that match your site and brand.

• Client experience: Offer flexible payment methods like cards, Apple Pay, ACH, and Afterpay.

• Cost-effectiveness: Invoicing is included with all website plans at no extra cost.

• Convenience: Send, track, and schedule invoices directly in your account.

You can also link invoices to projects, keeping contracts and milestones together and organized.

Using Squarespace Payments as your payment solution

You can use Squarespace Payments as a payment solution for orders placed in your store and through digital product blocks. Squarespace Payments is only available for Commerce and Digital Products, which includes:

• One-time purchases

• Subscriptions

• Online course pages

• Videos pages

• Member sites

• Donations

With Squarespace Payments, customers can pay with a wide variety of payment methods, including digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay, and buy now pay later solutions like Klarna and Afterpay. You won’t need to connect to third-party services, and all of your payment and payout information is located in your Squarespace dashboard.

Squarespace Payments also offers additional features to help you grow and invest in your business. Instant Payouts offer immediate access to your earnings so you can mitigate wait times for payouts and use your earnings instantly. Squarespace Capital allows you to apply for financing through the Squarespace Capital program, creating a pathway to get flexible financing without all the typical hoops to jump through and wait times associated with the conventional process.

Squarespace Payments isn’t currently available for Squarespace point of sale transactions or Acuity Scheduling.

To be eligible for Squarespace Payments, you need to:

• Be located in an eligible country.

• Have a Squarespace trial site or a paid Squarespace site with a Business plan or higher.

• Have Site Owner or Administrator permissions on the Squarespace site. 

Squarespace Payments is rolling out to more users over the coming months. Keep an eye out for your invitation to Squarespace Payments soon. 

Pay Links

A fast and flexible way to get paid

Introducing Pay Links. Use a single on‑brand link to accept payments—either for a fixed amount or one your customer can enter. 

• Share Pay Links via email, text, social media, or even QR code. Try it today to make every transaction faster, easier, and more seamless. 

• Create Pay Links in the new Pay Links dashboard.

Black Friday Templates

Now available for Squarespace Email Campaigns

Capture maximum attention with a Black Friday email campaign.

• Start with templates designed to drive website visits in Squarespace Email Campaigns, then customize them to your content or services.

• Every Squarespace website subscription comes with three free email campaigns.

Learn more about these new products and more on the Squarespace Forum.

Whether you offer personal training, manage a yoga studio or fitness center, or run a sports league, the right fitness website builder will give your business a polished, professional design while offering features that support your growth. To help you compare options, we’ve gathered details on popular sports and fitness website builders so you can review your options in one place.

Top website builders for sports & fitness businesses

Each of these platforms offers website creation tools for fitness and sports businesses, with some offering basic capabilities and others providing a full suite of booking, membership, and client management tools.

Below, you’ll find a fuller description of each with a focus on the features that matter most for fitness businesses: scheduling, class management, membership capabilities, email and text notifications, and professional design tools.

Compare more brands and website builders

1. Squarespace

Pricing starts at: $16 per month

Squarespace is an all-in-one platform that combines professional, user-friendly website design with built-in booking and membership tools, making it perfect for sports and fitness businesses. Personal trainers, fitness studios, and sports centers can get started with one of Squarespace’s prebuilt sports and fitness templates. You can also use AI templates or the Blueprint AI website builder to quickly generate your own custom site.

Custom intake forms, appointment scheduling, and group class bookings all happen seamlessly with Squarespace’s scheduling tools. You can also automate email and text reminders, sell gift certificates, charge no-show fees, set capacity limits for group classes, offer bundles of classes or appointments, and automate recurring billing.

Squarespace also offers membership sites, making it easy for businesses to offer subscription-based access to courses, pre-recorded classes, fitness programs, and other paywalled content. You can also design and sell custom fitness merchandise for your gym or studio using Squarespace’s Custom Merch integration.

Key features

• Built-in booking with Acuity Scheduling

• Group class management with text and email reminders

• Membership sites, online classes and courses, digital downloads

• Templates designed for sports and fitness businesses

• Business financing through Squarespace Capital

• Email marketing and social integrations

• POS for in-person sales

Note: Plans and pricing for each platform can vary by location. For Squarespace, see our pricing page for the most up-to-date details in your location.

2. Fitune

Pricing starts at: $59 per month or limited free plan

Fitune is a fitness and wellness-focused platform that helps studio owners and personal trainers manage their business through automated scheduling, payment processing, and client management tools.

Class schedules, events, appointments, courses, and videos are automatically integrated into Fitune’s auto-generated websites. Clients can pay for classes and buy memberships directly from the website. Design flexibility may be more limited than with other website builders on this list, with customization focused on website elements like colors, logo, photos, and typography. Fitune also includes staff management, a client CRM, and a branded mobile app.

Key features

• Auto-generated website including fitness studio essentials

• Scheduling and payment for 1-on-1 and group classes

• Membership and event management options

• Client CRM with progress tracking

• On-demand video library

• Branded mobile app

3. Hostinger

Pricing starts at: $2.95 per month ($10.99 on renewal)

Hostinger offers personal trainers and small studios a quick website creation option through its templates and AI website builder. Like other website builders on the list, all designs adapt responsively to mobile devices, and you can customize your website through Hostinger’s drag-and-drop builder.

By upgrading to a higher-tier business plan, you can also set availability for appointments and accept 1-on-1 bookings. Booking features for groups and classes are more limited, and currently don’t offer capacity limits or waitlists, CRM, or staff management features. Hostinger also doesn’t currently offer native functionality for a membership management system or on-demand video content.

Key features

• AI website builder and mobile-responsive templates

• Appointment booking for 1-on-1 classes

• Email marketing integration

• Basic invoicing capabilities

See our full Hostinger vs. Squarespace comparison

4. JerseyWatch

Pricing starts at: $29 per month

JerseyWatch is a sports team management platform built for the needs of youth athletic programs, volunteer-run sports leagues, and sports tournaments and camps. It includes a sports team website builder, registration system, payment processing, messaging platform, and background check tool.

Sports organizations can use JerseyWatch’s registration system to offer automatic family discounts, payment plans, document uploads for waivers and verification, and the option to collect donations during registration. A built-in messaging system allows administrators to send bulk text and email notifications to certain teams or entire leagues. Users can also generate league schedules based on facility availability. However, website customization and options to sell online fitness content or downloads may be more limited than with other platforms on this list.

Key features

• Website builder built for youth sports leagues

• Player registration with payment and donation options

• Background checks for coaches and volunteers

• Tournament and event management tools

• Built-in text and email notifications

• Event and game scheduling

5. Shopify

Pricing starts at: $29 per month 

Shopify is an ecommerce platform with tools for managing product catalogs, payments, membership, shipping, and analytics. Sports and fitness businesses that focus on selling physical products—like a yoga studio offering wellness apparel—can use Shopify’s website and point-of-sale system to manage product sales and memberships.

Shopify’s website templates focus on ecommerce businesses, not fitness studios or personal training businesses. While Shopify can be adapted to support scheduling personal training sessions and group fitness classes, you’ll likely need to rely on third-party extensions instead of built-in tools.

Key features

• Ecommerce platform for physical product sales

• Integrated shipping, logistics, and inventory tools

• Payment processing for sales and memberships

• Third-party extensions for scheduling appointments and classes

See our full Shopify vs. Squarespace comparison

6. Wix

Pricing starts at: $17 per month or limited free plan

Wix is a website building platform offering accessible design, business, and marketing tools. Sports and fitness businesses can choose from prebuilt templates or use Wix’s AI website builder to create a custom site.

Wix’s entry-level plan offers a drag-and-drop builder, lead capture forms, and basic marketing tools. You’ll need to upgrade to a higher-priced plan to accept payments, book client appointments, and sell products. Clients can use the Fit by Wix mobile app to view your schedule, book classes, join online programs, and buy products.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website editor

• Templates for fitness studios and personal trainers

• Payments, membership, and booking features on higher-tier plans

• Mobile app for clients

• Staff management with calendar syncing

See our full Wix vs. Squarespace comparison

7. WordPress.com

Pricing starts at: $4 per month or limited free plan

WordPress.com is a hosting and website building platform powered by the open source WordPress CMS. You can find prebuilt themes for personal trainers, yoga studios, and other sports and fitness businesses. WordPress.com’s block editor allows for site customization and drag-and-drop editing.

You won’t find built-in features for payments, memberships, scheduling, email notifications, or class schedules, but you can add those capabilities by installing third-party plugins designed for fitness businesses. To access analytics, upload videos, and sell products, you’ll need to upgrade to one of WordPress.com’s higher-tier website plans.

Key features

• Large plugin library for additional functionality

• Payment processing and memberships via WooCommerce

• Booking plugins for appointments and group classes

• Prebuilt themes for sports and fitness businesses

See our full Wordpress.com vs. Squarespace comparison

How to find the right fitness & sports website builder

Every fitness business is different. A budget-conscious personal trainer has different needs than a multi-location fitness center. Choosing the best fitness website builder depends on the sort of business you have, the features you need, and the level of design flexibility you prefer.

Every website project has non-negotiable requirements. Most sports and fitness websites need to display schedules, offer bookings, and accept payments. Define what your non-negotiables are and make sure any platform you’re considering offers them.

It’s also worth thinking about features you may need in the future. Even if you don’t currently send email marketing campaigns or offer a membership portal, by choosing a web design platform that offers those features you’ll have room to expand your business later.

If you want a single platform that can help you grow your fitness business, from design to booking and membership features, Squarespace offers everything you need. With sports and fitness design templates, built-in booking and payment options, marketing features, and AI tools, Squarespace makes it easy to present yourself professionally to clients and grow your business from one place.

Get started

Benefits of Tap to Pay on iPhone

Expand where you do business

With Tap to Pay on iPhone, anyone can do business in more places simply by accepting contactless payments right on iPhone. The checkout experience makes it easy to reach new customers, take payments on the go, and explore new setups, like line busting. All you need is an iPhone and the Squarespace app.

No additional hardware

There’s no need to invest in and manage card readers and terminals. Tap to Pay on iPhone makes it simple to start a new business or expand current one. With just an iPhone and the Squarespace app, anyone can accept contactless payments. It’s that simple.

Privacy and security built in

Tap to Pay on iPhone uses the built-in security and privacy features of iPhone to help protect your business and customers’ data. When a payment is processed, Apple doesn’t store card numbers on iPhone or on Apple servers. So merchants and customers can rest assured that their data stays theirs.*

No recording

When a payment is processed, Tap to Pay on iPhone is designed to prevent all photo, video, screenshot, and screen-recording features from capturing a customer’s card number.

Easily enable Tap to Pay on iPhone in your app

Using Tap to Pay on iPhone with Squarespace removes the complexities of developing and maintaining a custom payment product. It provides a fully certified solution that you can easily enable in your app.

How to use Tap to Pay on iPhone with Squarespace

Accepting contactless card or digital wallet payments with Tap to Pay on iPhone only takes a few simple steps.

1. Open the Squarespace app on your iPhone, and enter the purchase amount or select the appropriate product within the app.

2. Present your iPhone to the customer.

3. Ask your customer to hold their card horizontally or their device at the top of your iPhone, over the contactless symbol, for a few seconds.

4. When you see the Done checkmark, the card read is complete and the transaction is being processed.

Download the app to get started

You can differentiate yourself by having a professional website and smooth client experience that builds connection and trust. The right platform will have the design and business tools to help you create both. No matter if you’re just starting out or a seasoned self-care professional, your website builder can help you launch your health and wellness business quickly and efficiently, with the tools you need to grow. 

Top website builders for health and wellness providers

There are a number of different builders for a health and wellness business website. Below we’ve rounded up some of the popular options for wellness providers. 

1. Squarespace

Paid pricing starts at: $16 per month

Squarespace is an all-in-one website builder with ecommerce and appointment management tools, making it a great choice for health and wellness businesses who want to attract clients, book and bill customers, or sell products. 

You can choose from website templates made for health and wellness businesses or a set of AI templates filled with curated content. Or tailor your website to your goals with a custom website built with Squarespace’s Blueprint AI website builder. With each option, you can update and customize your website with an intuitive drag-and-drop editor and guided design tools to make a strong impression.

With Squarespace, you can also manage your clients online booking and reminders with an embedded Acuity Scheduling calendar. You can also create branded invoices and proposals for custom work, promote events and retreats, or sell courses and materials to complement your classes or appointments. 

Key features

• Scheduling and client intake forms

• Payment processing and invoicing

• Email marketing and brand tools

• Social sharing tools

• AI tools for copywriting and SEO

2. Hostinger

Paid pricing starts at: $3.49 per month

Hostinger is a website hosting platform that also offers an AI website builder. It also offers other AI functionality useful for health and wellness businesses, including AI copywriting and SEO. 

While you can sell products on a Hostinger website, you’ll need to subscribe to its higher-tier website building plan to do so. Hostinger does have a calendar for clients to book online from its Store section, but you’ll need to connect a separate tool or work off the platform for custom invoices. 

Key features

• AI writer for blogs and SEO

• Calendar and scheduler

• Ecommerce functionality on some plans

See our full Hostinger vs. Squarespace comparison

3. Shopify

Paid pricing starts at: $29 per month

Shopify is primarily an ecommerce platform, with a number of other built-in tools for blogging, marketing, shipping, payments, and sales analytics. There is a simple invoicing feature, but to access appointment scheduling, you’ll need to connect to a third-party app.

For health and wellness businesses that have physical products, you can use Shopify to set-up a recurring subscription, such as boxes or wellness packages. Shopify also offers AI website assistance for content generation and administrative tasks.

Key features

• Ecommerce tools for physical product sales

• Native marketing tools

• AI content generation 

• Simple invoicing

See our full Shopify vs. Squarespace comparison

4. Showit

Paid pricing starts at: $19 per month

Showit is a drag-and-drop website builder, offering customizable templates with elements users can control, including design, typography, and layout. This could be well-suited for practitioners or studios primarily focused on having a website. 

Like some other website builders, Showit integrates with existing plugins to add necessary business functionality, like a third-party ecommerce integration for selling goods or services, rather than having its own. Showit has built-in SEO tools that can help health and wellness businesses target their customers more efficiently in search. 

Key features

• Image, text, and video customization

• SEO plugin and integration

• Ecommerce tool integrations

5. Snapps.ai

Paid pricing starts at: $19 per month

Snapps.ai is an AI-driven website builder with a drag-and-drop interface, which allows users to create websites quickly. Another benefit is that you get the same features on the lowest-priced plan as on higher-tier subscriptions, which allow you to launch more websites. 

While Snapps.ai includes features to support marketing, like AI-powered SEO, and keyword research, it doesn’t currently offer native functionality to manage a health and wellness business, like some of the other platforms on this list. You’ll need plugins for ecommerce, payments, and scheduling. 

Key features

• AI website builder

• AI tools for image generation, copywriting, SEO 

• Some built-in marketing tools

6. Wix

Paid pricing starts at: $17 per month or limited free plan

Wix is a website building platform that offers approachable web design tools and templates. Basic subscriptions include blogging and marketing tools to help build your community. 

 Wix also offers AI content generation tools, basic invoices, and marketing support through email campaigns and social media features to help you promote your business. However, for more of the features you need to run your business, like more targeted marketing tools, native appointment booking, ecommerce, or payment processing, you’d need an upgraded subscription. 

Key features

• Website templates for health and wellness providers

• AI website builder and drag-and-drop editor

• Payments, booking, and branded invoices on higher-tier plans

See our full Wix vs. Squarespace comparison

7. WordPress.com

Paid pricing starts at: $4 per month or limited free plan

WordPress.com is a website platform with more customization options for those with some technical expertise. While more setup may be required than some other builders, it offers straightforward website building and plugin options that can make it easier to add functionality to your site as you grow. With the right plugins, it can support ecommerce, marketing, SEO, and AI tools, making it worth considering if you’re comfortable with a more hands-on site management experience.

However, some  plugins for selling functionality are only available at a higher subscription tier, so be mindful that the features you need may come with additional costs.

Key features

• Variety of themes and customization options

• Blogging and content capabilities 

• Booking and appointment scheduling with plugins

See our full WordPress.com vs. Squarespace comparison

How to choose the right website builder for your health and wellness business

So much of choosing the right website builder depends on your needs as a practitioner, professional, or coach. When weighing options, it’s helpful to focus on your goals, such as design or built-in business functionality, and how quickly you want to launch a website. 

Below are a few factors to consider when comparing your top choices. 

• Design: How much control do you want over your design? For instance, some website builders offer AI generation, which saves time but could limit your design flexibility.

• Scheduling and payment: Depending on the website builder you select, you may need to subscribe to a more expensive plan or add plugins to access scheduling and invoicing or payment tools.

• Pricing: Compare pricing tiers for any of the website builders mentioned above. Many website builders offer basic plans that allow you to get started right away, but some may offer more of what you need at a better price than a competitor.

• Scalability: Is your website going to grow with you? If you take on more clients and expand, your website will need to as well. Think about which website builder is equipped to handle your business’ growth.

• SEO, AI, and social media: Reaching your audience is critical. Specialized marketing, automation, and optimization efforts will help your website show up where your ideal clients are. 

The right website builder will make every part of running your business smoother. It should offer an intuitive design experience so you can build a trustworthy brand, accessible scheduling and invoicing tools, and built-in marketing and SEO support to help you get discovered.

To help you compare options, we reviewed some of the most widely cited website platforms for home services professionals. Read on for starting monthly prices for annual plans and a summary of key features for each one.

Top website builders for home service businesses

Each of these platforms supports some combination of website building and business management features. Below, you’ll find more details about each, with a focus on tools that matter most for home service professionals, like appointment booking, invoicing, client communication, and marketing.

Compare more brands and website builders

1. Squarespace

Pricing starts at: $16 per month

Squarespace brings professional design, simple client booking, and built-in business management together within one platform. For home service providers who want a professional online presence that also helps manage their day-to-day operations, it’s a strong all-around choice.

You can start with one of Squarespace’s home service business templates, choose from curated AI templates, or use the Blueprint AI website builder to generate a custom design with suggested copy and images. Once your site is live, you can add appointment booking through Acuity Scheduling, create custom invoices and client proposals, and track your client projects directly from your account.

Marketing features are built in, too. Use automated email campaigns to follow up with clients, publish blog content to boost SEO, or promote seasonal services like spring cleanups or winter maintenance with AI-powered discount suggestions. Squarespace also includes AI-powered SEO and content tools to help your site stand out in search and AI results.

Key features

• Customizable templates for service professionals

• Appointment booking with Acuity Scheduling

• Built-in invoicing, proposals, and estimates

• Email marketing and automations

• AI tools for site design and SEO

Note: Plans and pricing for each platform can vary by location. For Squarespace, see our pricing page for the most up-to-date details in your location. 

2. GoDaddy

Pricing starts at: $9.99 per month or limited free plan

GoDaddy’s website builder offers a simple setup process and additional business features, depending on which plan you choose.

GoDaddy’s paid plans include email marketing, appointment booking, and basic invoicing. You can also embed service request forms or connect your website to third-party apps for expanded functionality. However, advanced features like branded invoices, proposals, and digital contracts may require plan upgrades or external integrations.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website editor

• Appointment scheduling

• Email marketing and invoicing tools

See our full GoDaddy vs. Squarespace comparison

3. Hostinger

Pricing starts at: $3.49 per month, $10.99 per month on renewal

Hostinger combines website hosting with an AI-powered site builder that can generate a simple home services website quickly. It’s a cost-effective option, but has less built-in functionality than some of the other platforms on this list.

Hostinger’s website builder offers basic invoice creation, appointment scheduling, and email marketing, though more advanced tools like recurring invoices or service packages may require third-party software.

Key features

• AI website builder 

• Basic invoicing and scheduling tools

• Email and marketing integrations

See our full Hostinger vs. Squarespace comparison

4. Square Online

Pricing starts at: $49 per month or limited free plan

Square Online is built with businesses using Square point of sale in mind. It integrates directly with Square’s payment and invoicing system, which makes it convenient if you already use Square to collect payments.

You can add booking and appointment features, send branded invoices and estimates, and manage on-site and online payments from Square. However, website customization is more limited than some design-focused platforms, which could limit how you present your brand to clients.

Key features

• Built-in payment processing and invoicing

• Appointment booking integration

• Syncs with Square POS for in-person payments

See our full Square Online vs. Squarespace comparison

5. Webflow

Pricing starts at: $14 per month or limited free plan

Webflow is known for its advanced design capabilities, which can help service businesses create a customized online presence. It’s well-suited for those with some design experience or who work with a professional designer.

However, Webflow doesn’t offer built-in booking or invoicing. You can connect third-party tools to manage client scheduling and payments, but it will require you to manage more platforms across each project. 

Key features

• Advanced design and animation tools

• Third-party integrations for scheduling and payments

• Client collaboration tools for agencies

See our full Webflow vs. Squarespace comparison

6. Wix

Pricing starts at: $17 per month or limited free plan

Wix is a website builder that offers design flexibility and business tools. Websites include lead capture forms for client contact and you can use plugins to add functionality.

You can use Wix AI to create a professional design more quickly. For more advanced tools, like client booking, payments, and client management features, you’ll need a higher-tier website plan.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website editor

• AI site creation and content generation

• App Market for add-ons

See our full Wix vs. Squarespace comparison

7. WordPress.com

Pricing starts at: $4 per month or limited free plan

WordPress.com offers flexible website creation and a large library of plugins to add functionality to your website. With plugins, you can add online booking, invoicing, email marketing, and SEO optimization tools.

Because most of the business tools are plugin-based, WordPress.com requires more setup than other platforms. If you’re familiar with WordPress and comfortable managing different plugins and tools for your project workflow, it’s an adaptable option. 

Key features

• Plugin library for customization

• SEO and analytics tools

• Free plan available

See our full WordPress.com vs. Squarespace comparison

How to choose the best home services website builder

Your website is your reputation-builder, your services storefront, and your scheduling hub. The best platform for your business depends on what will help you manage your clients and run your business most efficiently.

Before you commit, compare factors like built-in booking tools, invoicing capabilities, ease of use, customer support, and how well the platform can represent and grow with your business.

If you want an all-in-one solution with professional design, booking, invoicing, and marketing tools in one place, Squarespace offers a powerful option for home service professionals ready to simplify their online operations and focus on what they do best: serving clients.

Understanding how tariffs work, where they show up in your supply chain, and how to respond to rising costs can help you protect your business and plan ahead. Whether you sell products online, run a creative studio, or manage client-based work that depends on imported materials, this guide will outline the specific ways tariffs can affect your business and share actionable tips for navigating cost increases, including how to talk to your customers about price changes.

What is a tariff and how does it work?

In simple terms, a tariff is a government-imposed tax on goods entering a country from abroad. It’s typically applied at the border and paid by the importer, the business or entity bringing the product into the country. For example, if there’s a 30% tariff on goods imported from China, and you’re importing those goods, then you’re responsible for covering the added cost.

If you’re selling your product to a customer in another country, tariffs can also apply. In that case, it’s up to you whether you’d cover the cost of an import tariff yourself, or expect your customer to cover those fees.

Understanding how tariffs are applied and how those costs move through the supply chain can help you make better decisions around sourcing, pricing, accounting, and planning.

Tariffs serve several purposes from a government perspective:

• Raising government revenues: Tariffs can generate income for the government by collecting fees on imported goods.

• Protecting domestic industries: If it’s more expensive to import something, businesses have an incentive to produce it using domestic companies and labor. 

• Influencing trade relationships: Tariffs can be used as a negotiating tool and a method for responding to various policies from other countries.

There are two main types of tariffs: ad valorem and specific.

1. Ad valorem tariffs 

These are calculated as a percentage of the imported item’s declared value. For example, if a 10% tariff is applied to a shipment of imported furniture valued at $5,000, the importer would pay $500 in tariff charges.

This type of tariff scales with the cost of the item, so higher-end goods carry a higher tariff, while lower-cost goods are taxed less. If you rely on premium or high-margin goods from overseas, ad valorem tariffs can significantly raise your total costs, especially when prices fluctuate due to market demand or exchange rates.

2. Specific tariffs 

These are charged as a fixed amount per unit, regardless of the item’s price. For instance, a $1 tariff on each imported lightbulb means that whether you’re importing a $2 bulb or a $20 bulb, the fee is the same: $1 per unit.

Specific tariffs tend to hit low-cost, high-volume items the hardest. They can also narrow your profit margin on budget-friendly products, whether by adding to your product costs or adding import fees when you ship. This can make it more challenging to stay competitive at lower price points, as you need to raise your prices to stay profitable.

To help you manage recent tariff changes, like the removal of the de minimus exemption on goods shipped to the U.S., Squarespace has introduced Handling Fees. This feature adds a percentage-based fee per item to your shipping options, so you can cover tariffs or other costs, like insurance, upfront at checkout. Customers see a single shipping cost that includes this handling fee, and you can use these funds to cover the cost of shipping Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) international orders. This helps you reduce delivery delays and avoid unexpected costs for your customers after purchase.

You can learn how to set up Handling Fees in the Help Center.

How tariffs can impact small businesses

Tariffs are one of many external forces that can affect your pricing and profit margins, even if your business operates entirely within the U.S. The better you understand how tariffs work, the more effectively you can prepare for and respond to changes when they arise. For a small business, even a modest change in material or vendor costs can have an outsized impact on cash flow and customer pricing. As a business owner, it’s important to understand the different ways tariffs might affect your day-to-day operations.

1. Increased material costs: If your products rely on imported materials like textiles, wood, metal, or packaging, tariffs can make those materials more expensive, even if you buy them from a U.S. distributor.

2. Vendor price hikes: Suppliers who import goods may pass their increased costs on to you. If you rely on vendors for products or components, you could see price changes that are outside of your control.

3. Supply chain disruptions: Tariffs can lead to delays or changes in sourcing. A material you’ve used for years might become temporarily unavailable if your supplier is adjusting to new import restrictions, shortages, or new partners.

4. Competitive pressure: If competitors source from domestic or tariff-free suppliers, they may be able to keep prices lower, leaving you at a disadvantage if you can’t do the same.

5. Budget challenges: If you’ve already set your prices or quoted a client project, sudden cost increases from tariffs can eat into your margins unexpectedly or surprise clients.

The effects of tariffs aren’t always immediate or obvious. Sometimes they show up gradually. Stay aware of these patterns and how your business could be impacted. You’ll be better prepared to spot changes early and respond strategically.

Read the Help Center guide to tariffs on Squarespace

How to handle the impact of tariffs

Tariffs may be outside of your control, but your response to them isn’t. The good news: Small businesses tend to be adaptable by nature because your smaller size can give you more control over operations and make you more nimble. Below are steps you can take to reduce the impact of rising costs. The goal isn’t just to absorb price increases, it’s to make informed decisions that help you stay competitive.

• Use Handling Fees on Squarespace: Add a percentage fee to your shipping options for a specific country, like the U.S. This helps cover tariffs upfront and reduces delivery delays and confusion.

• Diversify your supply chain. Look for alternative suppliers, either domestically or from regions not currently impacted by tariffs. Even if prices are similar, reducing volatility can help protect your bottom line.

• Negotiate where you can. Talk to your current vendors about bulk pricing or longer-term rate agreements. Remember, they may be losing customers, so negotiating could work to your advantage. They may offer discounts or workarounds to keep your business.

• Adjust pricing carefully. If your costs are rising, some price increases may be necessary. Look at your product mix and raise prices incrementally where it makes the most sense. Communicate clearly and proactively to your customers why your prices are going up.

• Streamline internal costs. Evaluate your business and look for places to reduce waste, consolidate shipments, or cut underperforming products. Small operational changes can offset increases elsewhere.

• Explore alternative materials or products. If a key part of your offering becomes too expensive, consider redesigning your product or offering a lower-cost version. Temporary adjustments can keep things running smoothly while you explore long-term solutions. 

Temporary shifts don’t have to compromise quality. When communicated well, they can also create opportunities to engage customers around flexibility, values, and transparency. Not every strategy will apply to every business, but taking a closer look at your pricing structure and vendor relationships can help you make smarter choices. 

How to communicate tariff-related changes to customers

When your costs go up, it’s natural to consider raising prices. How you explain those changes to customers matters just as much as the changes themselves. Clear, respectful communication helps build trust and keeps your relationships strong, even when you’re delivering less-than-ideal news. 

No matter your industry, keep these tips in mind:

• Keep the tone factual and focused on quality.

• Avoid alarm or blame. Stick to clear, simple explanations.

• Communicate proactively when you can so customers don’t feel surprised.

• Offer options or alternatives whenever possible.

Here are a few ways to approach these conversations with clarity and confidence. Adapt any messaging to your tone of voice and offer to answer questions if customers have them.

If you sell physical products:

“Due to rising supplier costs tied to import tariffs, we’ve made a small pricing adjustment. We remain committed to offering quality goods and appreciate your continued support.”

If you work on commission or by project:

“Some materials used in our work are now subject to new tariffs, which may affect overall costs. We’re happy to explore alternative options to help stay within budget.”

If you run a design, construction, or service-based business:

“A few fixtures and finishes are currently impacted by import tariffs. We’ll guide you through choices that fit your project and your price point.”

You don’t need to go into every detail. Focus on what’s changing, why it matters, and how you’re continuing to deliver quality and value. Most customers will appreciate your honesty, especially if they feel included in the conversation. With the right tone, even pricing changes can become moments that strengthen your relationships.

Tariffs may not be part of your day-to-day planning, but they can have a real impact on your costs and customer relationships. Staying informed, flexible, and transparent can help you navigate changes with confidence. And now, with Squarespace’s Handling Fees, you have an additional tool to manage those costs directly at checkout.

Being proactive today helps you stay competitive tomorrow, no matter how trade conditions continue to change.

To help you compare, we gathered details on several of the most popular website builders and booking platforms for beauty salons and professionals. Below, you’ll find the starting monthly price for an annual subscription and a brief overview of what each one offers.

Top website builders for beauty professionals

Each of these platforms offers a mix of website building, scheduling, and client management features tailored for beauty professionals. Below, you’ll find a more detailed look at each one, with emphasis on design flexibility, client booking, invoicing, ecommerce, and marketing functionality.

Compare more brands and website builders

1. Squarespace

Pricing starts at: $16 per month

Squarespace combines professional design with built-in business tools, making it a strong choice for salons, barbers, and beauty professionals who want to run their business from one place. You can create a custom website using templates made for beauty businesses, choose from curated AI templates, or use the Blueprint AI website builder to generate a custom site. If you have a website already, you can import existing content to Squarespace.

Beyond the website builder, Squarespace includes business features to help you manage appointments, payments, and marketing. Acuity Scheduling enables online booking with custom intake forms, automated confirmations, and appointment reminders. You can also send professional invoices for custom services, manage client relationships through contact forms and email campaigns, and sell digital or physical products, like beauty courses or gift cards.

Key features

• Professionally designed templates for beauty and wellness businesses

• Integrated online booking with Acuity Scheduling

• Built-in email marketing and social promotion tools

• Ecommerce for retail and digital product sales

• AI website generation and SEO/AI visibility tools

Note: Plans and pricing for each platform can vary by location. For Squarespace, see our pricing page for the most up-to-date details in your location. 

2. GlossGenius

Pricing starts at: $24 per month

GlossGenius is focused on beauty professionals, like hair stylists, nail artists, estheticians, and barbers. It offers ready-made website templates where to showcase services, portfolios, and client reviews.

The platform includes business features for salon management, like client booking, automated reminders, payment processing, and built-in marketing tools. For some advanced features, like client waitlists and forms, you’ll need a higher-tier subscription.

While it’s purpose-built for beauty businesses, it doesn’t currently have some advanced features offered by other platforms, like AI website building and business tools.

Key features

• Beauty-specific website templates

• Integrated booking and payment tools

• Automatic reminders and confirmations

3. Square Online

Pricing starts at: $49 per month or limited free plan

Square Online is part of Square, making it an option for beauty professionals who already use Square for point-of-sale or retail operations. It offers basic websites where clients can book appointments or buy products online.

Square’s free plan offers basic site functionality, and paid plans include cancellation and no-show fees, ecommerce features, and marketing automations. 

Website customization is more limited than some other platforms and paid subscriptions start at a higher price point, but it can be a convenient option if you’re already using Square for payments.

Key features

• Scheduling and payments through Square

• Free plan available with booking features

• Email and SMS marketing tools 

See our full Square Online vs. Squarespace comparison

4. Vagaro

Pricing starts at: $23.99 per month

Vagaro is a business management platform designed for salons, spas, and fitness studios. It includes a basic booking website, a mobile app for clients, and tools for managing staff schedules, service menus, and customer communications.

Vagaro’s website builder is simple to use but less customizable than full-featured design platforms like Squarespace. However, it offers many operational tools: you can send invoices, sell products, and set up loyalty programs. Note that pricing scales up as you add booking calendars or business locations.

Key features

• Scheduling and appointment management

• Invoicing and membership options

• Ecommerce and retail sales tools

5. Wix

Pricing starts at: $17 per month or limited free plan

Wix offers a customizable website builder with beauty-focused templates. You’ll need a higher-priced subscription to access integrated tools for booking, payments, and marketing. 

AI-powered tools help you generate website content, and you can also add an online store to sell products and manage orders. While Wix isn’t focused solely on beauty businesses, it does offer more design flexibility than some other platforms.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website editor and AI design tools

• Online appointment scheduling

• Ecommerce for retail products

• Email and social marketing automations

See our full Wix vs. Squarespace comparison

6. WordPress.com

Pricing starts at: $4 per month or limited free plan

WordPress.com provides a flexible website builder that largely depends on plugins for customization and business tools. It doesn’t include native tools for booking, invoicing, or other beauty business needs, you can integrate third-party plugins to get the functionality you need.

If you want added control over your site’s layout and prefer to connect to tools you already use, it’s an option. Keep in mind that this setup may require more tracking across different accounts and platforms to ensure smooth operations. With a higher-tier plan, you can access SEO tools, analytics, and premium website themes.

Key features

• Plugin library for adding business tools

• Customizable website templates

• SEO and analytics tools on higher-tier plans

See our full WordPress.com vs. Squarespace comparison

How to find the best beauty website builder

The best website builder for your beauty business depends on your priorities. Do you value customization, automation, or business management most?. 

Before you decide, consider how each platform aligns with your services, client flow, and marketing goals. The right choice should make it easy to manage your appointments, promote your work, and grow your beauty brand confidently. Ideally, the right platform will make your daily operations more efficient for you and your clients.

If you want a unified platform that combines beautiful design with booking, invoicing, and marketing at a competitive price, Squarespace offers a balanced solution that can grow with your brand.

To help you compare options, we looked at some commonly cited website platforms for tutors and teachers of all types. Below, you’ll find the starting monthly price for an annual subscription and a brief description of each one.

Top website builders for tutoring businesses

Each of these platforms offers website building along with features designed for educational businesses, like appointment scheduling, payments, student management, and course delivery. Below, you’ll find a more detailed look at each one.

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1. Squarespace

Pricing starts at: $16 per month

Squarespace combines professional design with built-in business tools, making it an ideal choice for tutors and teachers who want to run their business and build their professional brand from one place. You can choose from website templates made for tutors and educators, use curated AI templates, or create a custom site with the Blueprint AI website builder.

Beyond design, Squarespace includes essential business management tools like class or appointment booking, custom invoicing, and branded email marketing. You can also host and sell online courses directly through Squarespace, giving students access to lessons, video content, and digital downloads within the same platform that manages your website and bookings.

If you teach in person, Squarespace can help you to manage bookings, intake forms, and automated reminders. For those teaching online, it offers tools for digital content delivery and member-only spaces for students. AI features for SEO and marketing make it easier to grow visibility and reach new learners.

Key features

• Website designs made for tutors and educators

• Booking through Acuity Scheduling

• Invoicing and intake forms

• Online course creation and hosting

• Digital content and memberships

• AI tools for SEO and marketing support

Note: Plans and pricing for each platform can vary by location. For Squarespace, see our pricing page for the most up-to-date details in your location. 

2. Kajabi

Pricing starts at: $71 per month

Kajabi is a course-building platform for educators, tutors, and coaches who want to sell online courses and memberships. It offers tools to create, market, and sell online courses in one place.

Kajabi’s built-in marketing tools include email automations, landing pages, and sales funnels. You can upload videos, lesson files, and quizzes for students to access through a branded course portal. However, Kajabi subscriptions have a higher starting price than some of the other website builders in this list, and functionality for in-person tutoring or lessons, like scheduling and invoicing, require separate integrations.

Key features

• Online course and membership hosting

• Built-in marketing and email automations

• Lesson modules, quizzes, and student progress tracking

See our full Kajabi vs. Squarespace comparison

3. Teachable

Pricing starts at: $89 per month (after promotional pricing)

Teachable is a platform for teachers and tutors who want to sell structured online courses. You can upload video lessons, files, and assignments, and students can track their progress through a simple interface.

Since Teachable’s focus is online course delivery, it doesn’t include native scheduling for one-on-one lessons, in-person classes, or live tutoring sessions. If your business model also includes private or in-person sessions, you may prefer to use a separate scheduling platform or a lower-priced platform that offers both.

Key features

• Online course and student management

• Integrated checkout and payment processing

• Student analytics and progress tracking

• Course completion certificates

4. Tutor Platform

Pricing starts at: $49

Tutor Platform is designed specifically for tutoring businesses. It offers scheduling, student communication, and payments, with a centralized dashboard to manage lessons. Tutors can conduct online sessions through integrated video tools, track attendance, and store progress reports.

It includes many of the tools you need to teach online or live classes, though it could be less purpose-built if your business operates mostly in person. Tutor Platform also offers fewer website customization and AI efficiencies than some of the other platforms in this list.

Key features

• Built-in scheduling and video integration

• Payment processing and invoicing tools

• Student management and progress tracking

5. Wix

Pricing starts at: $17 per month or limited free plan

Wix offers a flexible website builder with tools educators can use to manage lessons and marketing. Its AI site generator can help you quickly design a custom tutoring website. You can customize Wix’s website templates to your business and use built-in email marketing tools to help promote your services. 

However, you’ll need a higher-tier plan to run more of your business on the platform. To accept payments, manage bookings, connect to online learning tools, or set up recurring billing or course delivery, you’ll need an upgraded subscription or third-party tools.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website editor

• AI design assistance

• Appointment booking and payments on higher tiers

• Email marketing tools and analytics

See our full Wix vs. Squarespace comparison

6. WordPress.com

Pricing starts at: $4 per month or limited free plan

WordPress.com provides a foundation for tutoring websites through its plugin ecosystem. The base website builder doesn’t include booking or payment tools, but you can add plugins for scheduling, invoicing, and online course delivery through third-party integrations.

The platform is likely a better fit if you’re comfortable with web customization or if you already have third-party business tools that can easily sync with a WordPress website. You’ll get plenty of flexibility, but setup and ongoing management can take more time than with an all-in-one platform. You’ll also need a higher-tier website plan to access some ecommerce and SEO features.

Key features

• Plugin library for scheduling and payments

• Built-in blogging tools

• Limited free plan available 

See our full WordPress vs. Squarespace comparison

How to choose the best tutoring business platform

The right website builder for your tutoring or education business depends on how you teach, manage your schedule, and connect with students. Consider your workflow and business goals, whether that’s booking local sessions, selling online courses, or scaling a hybrid teaching model.

Look for a platform that can grow with you and support both your teaching and administrative needs. Tools like automated scheduling, invoicing, and marketing can save time and help you focus on students.

If you want a unified platform that supports both in-person and online teaching, Squarespace offers a streamlined solution with booking, invoicing, and course hosting in one place—plus professional design tools and AI features to help you build your site quickly, manage your workflows, and grow your education business.

Equally important are built-in tools for bookings, secure payments, and lead capture, as well as marketing features and analytics systems to help you to attract and convert the right clients. You’ll also want a solution that allows for easy updates and scales with your business, so your website and tooling grows alongside your services. 

Read on for a comparison of some of the most commonly used professional services website builders, including entry-level pricing for annual plans and key features.

Top website builders for service providers

Each of these platforms offers website building to help you establish your brand online, and a way to integrate with or natively access tools you need to run and promote professional services. Below, you can find descriptions of each platform and the features they offer that are most relevant to professional services businesses, like invoicing, project tracking, and appointment management.

Compare more brands and website builders

1. Squarespace

Pricing starts at: $16 per month

Squarespace offers a comprehensive set of features that combine 20 years of design expertise with service business functionality. With professionally crafted, industry-specific templates and a drag-and-drop editor, you can showcase your services, add case studies or testimonials, and represent your brand, without coding knowledge. You can also use the Blueprint AI website builder or curated AI website templates to create a bespoke website. 

For operational support, Squarespace provides scheduling, secure payments, branded invoicing, and lead capture forms. You’ll also find integrated client management features, such as custom proposals. Instead of switching between platforms, you can manage clients and payments from one place.

On the backend, mobile-responsive design and integrated SEO and analytics ensure your website is optimized and scalable as your business evolves. Squarespace Email Campaigns offers customizable templates and outreach automations to help you stay on brand and top-of-mind for clients.

Key features

• Professionally designed, customizable templates for service-based brands

• Scheduling and appointment booking tools

• Secure online payments and custom invoices

• Client intake and contact forms

• Portfolio, testimonial, and service page layouts

• Email marketing and social media integrations

• Blog and CRM features to share your insights and establish credibility 

2. Duda

Pricing starts at: $19 per month

Duda’s website building platform offers advanced design tools and business features for professional services businesses. Users get a responsive drag-and-drop editor, CSS/HTML access for customization, and built-in SEO and performance optimization. 

While Duda supports advanced customization, beginners may find the learning curve steeper than more user-friendly drag-and-drop website builders. You may also find its marketing features more limited compared with competitors, which could hinder ongoing client engagement. You’ll also need to pay higher subscription costs to access advanced features like ecommerce, multi-site management, CRM, and advanced integrations. 

Key features

• Built-in templates and drag-and-drop editor 

• AI-powered SEO assistant and AI building assistant 

• Access to free and premium image library for visuals

3. GoDaddy

Pricing starts at: $9.99 per month or limited free plan

GoDaddy offers a straightforward, accessible option for professional services businesses looking to establish an online presence. The drag-and-drop editor and built-in SEO tools help users design, customize, and optimize pages without technical expertise, while AI writing and content creation tools further save time. 

Businesses that rely on appointment booking to deliver services will need to upgrade for more robust booking and payment functionality within GoDaddy. Some marketing automation also require a subscription upgrade. Additionally, while you can customize colors, fonts, and images, you may find it harder to make significant layout changes or create custom layouts, which can be a constraint if you’re aiming to create more complex designs. 

Key features

• SEO tools

• Drag-and-drop web editor

• AI writing and content creation

• Email marketing campaigns

See our full GoDaddy vs. Squarespace comparison

4. Hostinger

Pricing starts at: $3.49 per month

Hostinger offers an AI website builder with drag-and-drop editing, as well as pre-made templates. Plans also include some basic SEO and email campaigns tools. 

The design and layout customization in its website builder may be less flexible than some other platforms on this list. You’ll also need a higher-priced subscription to access advanced integrations, such as multi-site management and booking automations. More sophisticated AI tools such as content generation, logo creation, and an SEO assistant also require a higher-priced plan. 

Key features

• AI website builder

• AI email campaigns

• SEO tools

• Marketing tools, including contact lists

See our full Hostinger vs. Squarespace comparison

5. Square Online

Pricing starts at: $49 per month or limited free plan

Square Online offers a simple website builder that integrates closely with Square point of sale and booking systems. It includes options to set up subscriptions or recurring services, implement appointment scheduling, and sync with Square’s other software for payments and customer accounts. 

Square’s website editor may be less flexible compared to dedicated website builders, with section editing but limited drag-and-drop customization. It includes service-specific tools like advanced booking workflows, but not client portals that allow clients to view transaction history or access private files. These gaps may lead to extra costs or require you to juggle multiple platforms to fit your purposes.

Key features

• SEO tools

• Payments and appointments through Square

• Email marketing

See our full Square Online vs. Squarespace comparison

6. Wix

Pricing starts at: $17 per month or limited free plan

Wix offers AI website building and customizable website templates that can be adapted to service businesses. It includes some basic marketing features, like built-in SEO tools and lead-capture forms.

However, online bookings, ecommerce tools, or payment processing are only available if you upgrade to a higher-priced plan. Advanced analytics, live chat, and some lead-capture capabilities are also available on higher-tier subscriptions. If you want to centralize more of your workflows in one place, you’ll need an upgraded plan.

Key features

• Built-in SEO tools 

• Drag-and-drop site editor and AI website builder

• Light marketing features, including lead-capture forms and automated emails

See our full Wix vs. Squarespace comparison

7. WordPress.com

Pricing starts at: $4 per month or limited free plan

WordPress.com offers a flexible website builder for service providers who want a branded online presence. On its own, WordPress allows you to publish service descriptions, client testimonials, and blog content to launch your business website quickly and present your expertise with credibility.

If you want more of an all-in-one experience, you’ll need to install plugins for business tools, like client portals or appointment systems. You may still need to manage those integrations separately from your website account, to a degree. If you plan on rolling out ecommerce services, using advanced SEO tools, or leveraging scalable workflows, you’ll also need to upgrade to a higher plan that unlocks those capabilities.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop website builder

• Advanced SEO tools on higher-tier plans

• Connect service tools with plugins

See our full WordPress.com vs. Squarespace comparison

How to choose the best professional services website builder

Choosing the best professional services software ultimately depends on your goals, technical comfort level, the image you want to project, and how much you value centralizing your workflows within fewer platforms. 

Professional services—like consulting, accounting, legal, or design—rely heavily on trust and credibility, so your website should communicate expertise and professionalism. The right platform will balance design flexibility with practical tools that make it easy to manage clients, showcase services, and attract new business. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, but some platforms make it easier to achieve a polished, high-performing site without needing advanced technical skills.

When comparing website builders for your service business, look for design customization and built-in marketing features—these elements help your business appear credible and make you more discoverable online. Ease of use is also key. Drag-and-drop builders and intuitive dashboards save you time on updating content, publishing blogs, or sharing insights quickly. Additionally, platforms with built-in scheduling tools, invoicing, and client management features can make your site a functional business hub, not just a digital brochure.

While many platforms offer parts of this mix, Squarespace is a great option for those seeking design sophistication combined with business-ready functionality, so you can grow and manage your client projects effectively.

This guide breaks down what to expect during the holiday season and how to prepare your content, ad strategy, and site performance to meet that demand. By putting in the work now, you can improve your results not just for Q4, but year-round.

Note: This article was created in partnership with Google AdSense.

1. Understand the holiday traffic cycle

The holidays don’t just come with more traffic, but also with higher-value traffic. People go online with a purpose. They’re searching for gift ideas, making travel plans, comparing prices, and looking for end-of-year inspiration. That intent makes them more likely to engage with both your content and your ads.

According to Google AdSense data from the end of 2024, publishers across multiple regions saw ad revenue grow as much as 18%, with click-through rates rising up to 26% in some regions of the world. These reflect a seasonal shift in advertiser competition, user interest, and content engagement.*

If you can get your audience to spend more time on your site or visit multiple pages, that increases the chances they’ll see and click on your ads. The first step is understanding when and where traffic spikes happen on your site. 

Use your website analytics to look back at October through December of last year. Pinpoint your most visited pages and highest-converting content. Did your traffic rise around specific holidays? Were there particular blog posts, product roundups, or tutorials that drew more visitors? That historical data can guide your upcoming content strategy.

Also examine your traffic by device. In 2024, mobile and tablet visits increased across many regions, though desktop browsing held strong in North America.* If you saw a mobile spike during Black Friday week or Christmas, it’s worth investing extra time in optimizing for smaller screens.

*Internal Google data based on eCPM and CTR volumes during 2024, from October to December.

2. Use the ad formats that match user behavior

Not all ads perform equally, especially during peak season. Certain formats consistently outperform others during the holidays. These include:

• Anchor ads: These stay visible as users scroll through your content, making them a strong choice for mobile and tablet traffic. They’re less intrusive than interstitials and often deliver higher viewability rates.

• Offerwall ads: These are opt-in formats that offer users something in exchange for viewing an ad. If you run a site with downloadable tools, exclusive content, or video tutorials, these ads offer a way to monetize deeper engagement.

• In-page ads: These ads are embedded directly within your content, making them versatile and effective. They work particularly well on longer blog posts or product reviews, where the reader scrolls through multiple sections.

Here’s how these different types of ads might work in practice.

• A gift guide featuring “Top 20 Personalized Gifts for Under $50” might benefit from in-page ads between sections.

• A downloadable budget tracker for holiday spending could integrate rewarded ads before access.

• A non-disruptive anchor ad at the bottom of the screen is more likely to attract mobile visitors reading “10 Quick Holiday Recipes.”

Before the holidays hit, review your ad management tool to confirm that these ad formats are in use. If you’re pairing Google AdSense with a Squarespace site, you may also want to activate Auto Ads, which uses machine learning to test ad placements and automatically show the most effective ones for your audience.

Each format brings a different value, so think about your content and how users engage with it. 

Read the guide to ad placement strategy

3. Start publishing with the season in mind

Great ad performance depends on great content. During the holiday season, that means creating content that’s timely, useful, and aligned with seasonal searches. Instead of chasing holiday trends, think about the intent behind your audience’s searches.

People are usually looking for ways to save time, make decisions, or solve seasonal challenges. Budget guides, quick gift ideas, travel checklists, family-friendly recipes, or tips for starting fresh in the new year all fit the bill. You want to meet them at the moment they’re searching and offer something of immediate value.

For example, a freelance consultant might publish “End-of-Year Business Checklist for Solopreneurs.” A home organization blogger could update their post, “How to Declutter Before the Holidays.” Or a parenting-focused site might create a guide on screen-free gift ideas for kids.

The timing of your content matters, too. Publishing as early as possible in Q4 gives your content time to get indexed by search engines and start earning backlinks. It also allows time for internal promotion via newsletters or social media.

If you already have older seasonal content that performed well, refresh it. Consider updating statistics, replacing outdated links, or swapping in newer product mentions. Refer to Google Search’s advice on creating helpful, reliable and people-first content for recommendations. 

Squarespace users can streamline this process by scheduling blog posts, adding seasonal imagery, and using announcement bars to point to new or refreshed content. Adding internal links to related content also helps keep users engaged longer, increasing the likelihood of ad views.

4. Make device optimization a priority

If your site loads slowly or displays awkwardly on mobile, it’s going to cost you both traffic and revenue. During the holidays, mobile and tablet usage spikes, especially during commutes, while multitasking, or shopping on the go. That means your site needs to be fast, easy to navigate, and ad-friendly across all screen sizes.

• Use Google PageSpeed Insights or Lighthouse to find performance issues.

• Compress large image files.

• Avoid overlapping ad placements or pop-ups that interrupt browsing.

Next, test ad layouts across devices. A sidebar ad that works fine on desktop might push your content too far down on mobile. Likewise, rewarded ads should appear where users are likely to engage, not where they disrupt scrolling.

For Squarespace users, websites are responsive by default. But it's still smart to preview pages manually before the seasonal rush.

5. Don’t let compliance slide under pressure

Before peak season arrives, review your site using the AdSense Policy Center, which you can access by signing into your AdSense account. Look out for:

• Overuse of ads on a single page

• Accidental or misleading placements

• Lack of clear navigation or accessibility

It’s easy to think more ads equal more revenue, but that’s not always true. Ad clutter can lead to poor user experience, which increases bounce rates and decreases long-term engagement. Worse, it can damage the trust you’ve built with your audience and lead to your ad account being penalized or suspended.

As a rule of thumb, If it feels like too many ads, it probably is. Keep your layout clean and your user journey clear. Your goal should be sustainable earnings and an enjoyable experience for your site visitors, not short-term gains at the expense of trust.

6. Build a campaign calendar, not a content list

The most effective creators build a campaign-style calendar to organize their holiday strategy. Instead of just a list of blog post ideas, plan a coordinated rollout with deadlines, promotional timelines, and follow-ups.

A content calendar can help you stay on track and plan publishing for strategic moments. Your calendar should include:

• Blog post topics, outlines, and due dates

• Timeframes for content updates, especially on high-traffic pages

• Email campaign launch dates

• Social promotion windows, like previews, reminders, recirculation

• Analytics check-ins to evaluate content and ad performance

Planning this way helps you make more impactful choices with your content. For example, publishing a gift guide the week before Black Friday is helpful. But publishing two weeks earlier and promoting it via newsletter and social channels is more strategic.

You can also stagger content to match the shopping season. Early October might feature budget-focused posts, November can cover gift-buying, and December can shift toward last-minute solutions or planning for the new year.

7. Think long-term, not just seasonal

The strategies you use during the holidays can serve your site all year long. By identifying high-converting content, refining your ad setup, and building an editorial calendar, you’re developing systems that support growth well beyond the holidays.

Use what you learn now to shape your strategy for the new year and beyond. Which ad formats worked best? Which pages saw the most time on site? Where did users bounce? The answers will help you fine-tune your approach moving forward and help you adapt content to other times of year.

• An end-of-year checklist can become a quarterly feature.

• A seasonal product roundup format can be reused for spring, back-to-school, or summer.

• A reward-based content strategy can become part of your regular content calendar plans.

Start your prep now

Holiday seasonality can bring a revenue boost, but more importantly, it can reveal the blueprint for what makes your content and ad strategy work best. The earlier you begin planning, the better your odds of turning seasonal opportunity into sustainable success.

With the right tools and a plan in place, you can meet your audience’s needs while maximizing ad performance. Whether you're just starting with Google AdSense or looking to build on past wins, start analyzing, optimizing, and publishing with intention to get the most out of the season.

To help you compare, we collected details on some of the most popular platforms for creative professionals. Below, you’ll find the starting monthly price for an annual plan and a summary of each platform’s creative and business tools.

Top website builders for creatives

Each of these platforms supports website creation and offers at least some business management tools for creative professionals. Below, you’ll find a more detailed description of each, focusing on features that matter most for working creatives: client management, contact forms, invoicing, booking, and portfolio presentation.

Compare more brands and website builders

1. Squarespace

Pricing starts at: $16 per month

Squarespace combines professional design with business tools built for creative professionals, making it an ideal choice if you want your website and client management to work seamlessly together. You can start with one of Squarespace’s website predesigned templates for creative services—tailored to photographers, designers, writers, and other visual artists—or use curated AI templates or the Blueprint AI website builder to generate a custom site based on your goals.

Beyond your website, Squarespace includes tools that help you manage your creative business: custom invoicing and client proposals, branded email campaigns, and appointment scheduling powered by Acuity Scheduling. You can also create member-only areas or sell digital downloads to diversify your income.

Squarespace’s AI tools streamline content creation and marketing, helping you draft blog posts, generate SEO titles and descriptions, and improve visibility through built-in analytics and SEO guidance.

Key features

• Templates designed for creative services

• Built-in invoicing, proposals, and estimates

• Client booking with Acuity Scheduling

• Portfolio layouts and gallery features

• Branded email campaigns and marketing tools

• AI content creation and SEO assistance

• Memberships and digital downloads

Note: Plans and pricing for each platform can vary by location. For Squarespace, see our pricing page for the most up-to-date details in your location. 

2. Canva

Pricing starts at: $10 per month or limited free plan

Canva is often known as a graphic design platform, but it also offers website publishing for simple portfolios. It could be a fit if your main goal is to build a website to showcase your work and you’re less concerned about centralizing your business workflows.

Canva websites are straightforward and easy to start, but the platform doesn’t currently offer advanced business tools like native invoicing or integrated client booking. You can embed third-party links for scheduling or payments if needed, but this setup can require extra work to manage and connect multiple platforms.

Key features

• Template-based website builder

• Drag-and-drop editing

• Supports third-party payments and scheduling

See our full Canva vs. Squarespace comparison

3. GoDaddy

Pricing starts at: $9.99 per month or limited free plan

GoDaddy’s website builder includes built-in tools for small businesses and freelancers. Creative professionals can use its templates to build a portfolio. With integrations, you can send invoices and connect appointment scheduling to your website.

Higher-tier GoDaddy plans offer email marketing campaigns, branded invoices, and ecommerce options.

Key features

• Built-in email marketing on higher-tier plans

• Scheduling and appointment booking

• Drag-and-drop website editor

See our full GoDaddy vs. Squarespace comparison

4. Showit

Pricing starts at: $19 per month

Showit is a drag-and-drop website builder designed with photographers, designers, and other visual creators in mind. It offers detailed website editing tools and the option to connect your blog through WordPress.

However, you’ll need to integrate with third-party software to manage client bookings, payments, or automated communication on Showit. This can work if you have existing software and project management systems set up and prefer them to an all-in-one solution.

Key features

• Drag-and-drop editing

• WordPress integration for blogging

• Templates built for photographers and creatives

5. Webflow

Pricing starts at: $14 per month or limited free plan

Webflow gives creative professionals advanced control over their website design and animations. It’s often used by professionals who want to create interactive or highly customized portfolio sites.

The platform doesn’t currently include built-in business tools for scheduling, invoicing, or taking payments. You can embed third-party apps to handle some of these tasks, but it can add setup complexity.

Key features

• Advanced visual design and animation tools

• Collaboration options for creative teams

• Plugin and integration support

See our full Webflow vs. Squarespace comparison

6. Wix

Pricing starts at: $17 per month or limited free plan

Wix offers an approachable website-building experience for creative professionals. The platform includes a drag-and-drop editor and different AI tools to support content creation.

However, ecommerce, payments, and other business features, like automated sales tax, subscriptions, and email campaigns are available only on higher-tier plans. Once you have a higher-tier subscription, you can add booking calendars and payments from within Wix’s business dashboard. 

Key features

• Simple drag-and-drop editor

• AI-assisted website creation

• Portfolio templates and lead forms

See our full Wix vs. Squarespace comparison

7. WordPress.com

Pricing starts at: $4 per month or limited free plan

WordPress.com offers flexibility for creative professionals who want additional control over design and functionality. While it doesn’t include native tools for invoicing or booking, you can add them through third-party plugins.

Creative professionals who already use WordPress themes or plugins may appreciate the familiarity and flexibility. However, setup and customization could require more time than drag-and-drop platforms, and you’ll still need to manage third-party tools to handle your full workflow.

Key features

• Large library of website themes 

• Plugin options for booking and invoicing

• Free plan available

See our full WordPress.com vs. Squarespace comparison

How to find the best creative services website builder

Choosing the right platform for your creative business depends on how you work and how much you want your website and business software to intersect.

Compare each option’s core functionality, pricing, design flexibility, and ease of use before you commit. For many creatives, an ideal platform will blend beautiful design with time-saving business tools like client communication, invoicing, and booking.

It’s also worth thinking ahead. A platform that integrates AI tools, marketing automations, and analytics can help you adapt as technology and client expectations evolve.

If you want a single platform that supports your creative workflows, from design to marketing and client management, Squarespace is a standout option. Its design templates, scheduling, invoicing, and AI tools make it easy to present your work and manage your business from one place.