Choosing an online store platform comes down to what you sell, how many orders you expect, and whether you need a dedicated retail engine or a flexible website builder. For most small stores, the real decision is between Shopify Basic and Squarespace Core, which cost the exact same $72.80 a month at 30 orders of $40. This guide turns platform questions into a practical decision path, compares monthly costs across three options with verified rates, and highlights when another solution fits best.
Worked example: total monthly cost of the same store on three options
These figures use list prices checked on 2026-10-03 to compare what the same store pays each month on three popular entry plans.
Hypothetical store: 30 orders a month at $40 average order value ($1,200 in monthly sales). Every customer pays with a standard domestic credit card through the platform’s native payment system. Standard card fees on entry plans are 2.9% of $1,200 ($34.80) plus 30¢ × 30 orders ($9.00) = $43.80.
| Plan (yearly billing) | Plan fee + card fees + store fee | Month total |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify Basic | $29.00 + $43.80 + $0.00 | $72.80 |
| Squarespace Basic | $19.00 + $43.80 + $24.00 (2%) | $86.80 |
| Squarespace Core | $29.00 + $43.80 + $0.00 | $72.80 |
Squarespace Basic looks $10 cheaper on the pricing page ($19 versus $29), but ends up $14 a month more expensive ($86.80 versus $72.80) because of its 2% online store fee ($1,200 × 2% = $24.00).
The break-even point between Squarespace Basic and Core is $500 a month in online sales ($10 ÷ 2% = $500). Below $500 a month, Basic wins: at 10 orders of $40 ($400 in sales), card fees are 2.9% of $400 ($11.60) plus 30¢ × 10 ($3.00) = $14.60. Squarespace Basic costs $19 + $14.60 + $8.00 (2%) = $41.60, while Core costs $29 + $14.60 = $43.60. Once online sales pass $500 a month, Squarespace Core beats Basic and costs the exact same $72.80 as Shopify Basic.
What happens as your store grows: 150 orders a month ($6,000 in sales). Card processing at the standard 2.9% + 30¢ rate costs 2.9% of $6,000 ($174.00) plus 30¢ × 150 orders ($45.00) = $219.00.
| Plan (card rate) | Plan fee + card processing | Month total |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify Basic (2.9% + 30¢) | $29.00 + $219.00 | $248.00 |
| Shopify Grow (2.7% + 30¢) | $79.00 + $207.00 | $286.00 |
| Squarespace Core (2.9% + 30¢) | $29.00 + $219.00 | $248.00 |
| Squarespace Plus (2.7% + 30¢) | $49.00 + $207.00 | $256.00 |
Even at $6,000 a month, upgrading to a higher plan to unlock a cheaper card rate increases your total monthly bill. On Shopify Grow, the 0.2% card rate reduction saves $12.00 on $6,000 in volume, but the plan costs $50.00 more ($79 - $29 = $50.00), leaving you $38.00 behind ($286.00 versus $248.00).
The card fee saving alone covers the higher plan price only at these sales thresholds:
- Squarespace Core ($29) to Plus ($49): costs $20 more a month for a 0.2% card saving. Pays off from $10,000 a month in card sales ($20 ÷ 0.2% = $10,000).
- Squarespace Core ($29) to Advanced ($99): costs $70 more a month for a 0.4% card saving. Pays off from $17,500 a month in card sales ($70 ÷ 0.4% = $17,500).
- Shopify Basic ($29) to Grow ($79): costs $50 more a month for a 0.2% card saving. Pays off from $25,000 a month in card sales ($50 ÷ 0.2% = $25,000).
- Shopify Basic ($29) to Advanced ($299): costs $270 more a month for a 0.4% card saving. Pays off from $67,500 a month in card sales ($270 ÷ 0.4% = $67,500).
Run it with your own numbers: Monthly store cost = plan price + (monthly sales × card fee %) + (order count × 30¢) + store fee. Plug your numbers into our profit per order calculator to calculate margins per item, and see our monthly cost guide for budgeting apps and domains.
Decision step 1: What do you sell?
Start by classifying your catalog into physical goods, digital downloads, services, or recurring memberships:
- Physical products: If packing and shipping goods is the whole business, start with Shopify. Every plan includes unlimited products, abandoned checkout recovery, automated sales tax calculation and built-in fraud analysis when you use Shopify Payments.
- Services, portfolio or bookings next to a shop: If the store sits beside a photography portfolio, coaching offer or café menu, start with Squarespace. Every plan can sell unlimited products and services, and the site itself is the main product.
- Courses and memberships: Check specialized transaction fees before choosing. Squarespace charges a separate transaction fee for digital courses and memberships: 7% on Basic, 5% on Core, 1% on Plus, and 0% on Advanced.
- Regulated goods: If you sell a regulated product (the SBA’s examples include alcohol and firearms), review each platform’s acceptable use policies and payment restrictions before building.
Decision step 2: What else must the site do?
- Shopify is built around selling. Every plan includes abandoned checkout recovery and gift cards, and the Shopify App Store adds features the core plan lacks. Price each app before you install it, because apps are where the bill grows.
- Squarespace is a website builder with a full store. All plans include abandoned cart recovery, customer accounts, gift cards and subscription products, plus Apple Pay, Klarna and Afterpay with Squarespace Payments.
- Wix lets you build pages and list products on a free site before upgrading. Its store features include subscriptions, digital products, print on demand, dropshipping and selling on Google, eBay, Etsy, Amazon, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok from one dashboard. Wix shows the price for your country at checkout, so take your own figure from its plans page.
Decision step 3: How will you take payments?
Card fees grow with every sale, so they matter more than the plan price once you sell regularly. Built-in payments avoid the extra fees some platforms add for outside processors:
- Shopify Payments: Standard card processing is 2.9% + 30¢ on Basic, 2.7% + 30¢ on Grow, and 2.5% + 30¢ on Advanced. Premium cards (such as American Express and business cards) cost 3.5% + 30¢ on Basic. If you use a third-party processor (such as your own merchant account or external PayPal), Shopify charges an additional third-party transaction fee of 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow, and 0.6% on Advanced.
- Squarespace Payments: Standard card processing is 2.9% + 30¢ on Basic and Core, 2.7% + 30¢ on Plus, and 2.5% + 30¢ on Advanced. Premium card transactions cost 3.2% + 30¢ across all plans. Squarespace charges a 2% online store fee on Basic, dropping to 0% on Core, Plus, and Advanced.
- Wix Payments: Charges one fixed rate for credit cards depending on your country, with rates listed in its support center. Wix connects to over 70 payment gateways worldwide.
For chargeback rules and settlement timing, see our guide to online payments, fees and chargebacks.
Decision step 4: Do you sell in person too?
If you run a retail shop counter, craft fair booth, or pop-up market, evaluate in-person point-of-sale (POS) features:
- Shopify: In-person card transactions cost 2.6% + 10¢ on Basic, 2.5% + 10¢ on Grow, and 2.4% + 10¢ on Advanced. POS Pro, listed for physical storefronts, is an $89 a month add-on per location.
- Squarespace: Point of Sale payment processing is included on all plans, but is currently available only in the United States and the United Kingdom.
- Wix: Supports in-person sales through Wix Retail POS and Wix Mobile POS.
Decision step 5: Do you already run an existing website?
- Existing WordPress owners: If you already maintain a WordPress site on paid hosting, installing WooCommerce gives you a full online store with zero monthly platform fees. WooPayments charges 2.90% + $0.30 per US card sale. Read our head-to-head review of Shopify vs WooCommerce.
- Starting from scratch: Building on a hosted all-in-one platform like Shopify or Squarespace means hosting and SSL are part of the plan, so there is no server to maintain.
Decision step 6: How many team members need access?
Check collaborator limits if staff members or contractors manage inventory:
- Shopify: Basic includes 0 staff accounts (account owner login only). Grow includes up to 5 staff accounts, and Advanced includes up to 15.
- Squarespace: Basic allows up to 2 contributors, while Core, Plus, and Advanced allow unlimited contributors.
- Wix: Business Elite lists 100 site collaborators.
Decision step 7: How do you want to test before paying?
Every platform provides a trial period to test product setup and placing a test order:
- Shopify: Features a promotional offer: 3 days free, then $1/month for 3 months. This lets you build, configure payments, and run test purchases for $3 over your first 90 days instead of $117 on regular monthly billing.
- Squarespace: Provides a 14-day free trial on every new website with no credit card required. Annual subscriptions save up to 36% and include one free year of domain registration.
- Wix: Allows you to build your storefront on a free plan, and offers a 14-day money-back guarantee on initial premium upgrades.
Compare the three side by side in our full breakdown of Shopify vs Squarespace vs Wix.
Who should pick something else
- Sellers with fewer than 10 orders a month: If you sell a handful of handmade items occasionally, a fixed $29 or $39 monthly subscription eats your margin. Staying on a marketplace like Etsy lets you list items for listing and transaction fees only. See sell on Etsy, Amazon or your own store.
- Established WordPress publishers: If you have an established audience and content library on WordPress, adding WooCommerce is simpler and cheaper than migrating your entire CMS.
- Businesses outside the US and UK: Confirm regional availability before choosing. Squarespace POS payments are limited to the US and UK, and Wix plan pricing and card processing fees vary by country.
Common mistakes when choosing
- Comparing headline subscription prices only: Squarespace Basic ($19) costs $14 more per month than Core ($29) at $1,200 in sales due to the 2% store fee.
- Upgrading early for card rates: Shopify Grow costs $50 more a month and only pays off from $25,000 a month in card transactions. Upgrade for staff logins or advanced reports, not for card discounts.
- Paying monthly on a permanent store: Paying monthly for Shopify Basic costs $468 a year ($39 × 12 = $468) versus $348 on annual billing, wasting $120.
- Assuming free plans take payments: Wix lets you build free, but customer checkout requires a paid plan.
- Skipping a real test purchase: Always place a test order with your own card during your trial to verify checkout and email receipts before launching.
How to decide in 5 steps
Follow this 5-step checklist to finalize your platform choice:
- Estimate your monthly sales and order volume: If you expect under $500 a month, Squarespace Basic ($19/mo yearly) offers the lowest entry cost. Above $500 a month, move to Squarespace Core ($29/mo) or Shopify Basic ($29/mo).
- Identify your primary asset: If retail sales and shipping logistics dominate your day, pick Shopify Basic. If visual presentation, client appointments, or blogging matter equally, pick Squarespace Core.
- Check payment fees for your setup: Stick with native payments (Shopify Payments or Squarespace Payments) to avoid 2% surcharges.
- Choose annual billing if you plan to trade all year: Annual billing saves $120 a year on Shopify Basic or Squarespace Core.
- Start a free trial and run a test order: Set up your top 5 products, connect your domain, and place a live order before paying.
Once your platform is chosen, follow our complete setup checklist in how to open an online store and download the free launch checklist.
This guide provides general information, not legal or tax advice.
Sources (checked 2026-10-03)
- Shopify: pricing, plan prices, trial offer, card rates, third-party fees, staff accounts, POS Pro
- Shopify: free trial, trial terms and sign-up requirements
- Shopify Help Center: domains, default myshopify.com address and custom domains
- Squarespace: pricing, plan prices, store and membership fees, card rates, POS, trial, free domain
- Wix: plans, plan names, regional pricing note, money-back guarantee, collaborator limits
- Wix: ecommerce website, paid plan required for payments, POS, marketplaces
- Wix: payments, fixed credit card processing fee, rates by country
- WooCommerce: plugins, open-source WordPress plugin, features
- WooPayments: fees, US card processing rates
