Why Big Brands Rarely Use Squarespace (Yet)

Squarespace is one of the best tools on the market for small businesses that just need “a good-looking website that’s easy to edit.” Its visual editor, clean templates, hosting, and all-in-one approach make it a great fit for solo founders, small agencies, and local businesses.

But when you look at large brands or complex online businesses, you don’t see many of them on Squarespace. That’s not an accident.

It’s not because Squarespace “looks unprofessional” or can’t create beautiful sites. It’s because the technical surface area of the platform is still too limited for what bigger brands actually need — especially on the backend.

In this article, I’ll break down why that backend layer matters so much, where Squarespace is currently limited, and how AI might force Squarespace to either evolve or stay stuck as a “simple site builder for small businesses.”

Squarespace is Designed for Simplicity, Not Deep Control

Squarespace’s core target audience is clear:

Small businesses and individuals who want a simple way of managing their website with an easy page editor.

For that audience, Squarespace is almost perfect. You get:

• A visual editor

• Built-in templates

• Basic forms, blogs, and e-commerce

• Hosting, SSL, and infrastructure handled for you

You don’t have to think about databases, servers, frameworks, or deployment. That’s a big win for non-technical users.

But that same simplicity creates hard limits when you move into the world of:

• Large content libraries

• Complex memberships

• Multi-step funnels

• Heavily personalized experiences

• Custom dashboards and internal tools

And this is where most big brands live.

The Real Issue: Lack of Backend Control

On Squarespace, almost everything you do is happening at the template and content level. You work with pages, sections, collections, and some basic configuration — but you don’t have a true backend that you can extend.

For serious digital products, the backend is where the magic happens:

• Custom data models – storing more than just pages, blog posts, and products

• User-specific data – preferences, history, progress, saved items, multi-account views

• Dynamic logic – “if user X has done Y, show Z,” rather than “everyone sees the same thing”

• Integrations – APIs, webhooks, background jobs, internal tools

Right now, with Squarespace, almost every site is effectively the same for every visitor. You might change content per page or collection, but you don’t really have first-class, per-user logic.

For a big brand, that’s a dealbreaker.

They expect:

• Logged-in user dashboards

• Region or language-aware content

• Pricing and offers that adapt to the user

• Personalized recommendations

• Internal admin views that go far beyond a basic page editor

Without deeper backend access, developers who work on Squarespace are constantly pushing against hard limits.

User Accounts: A Step in the Right Direction… But Not Enough

Squarespace has introduced a very basic version of user accounts and memberships. That’s a good sign, but it still feels like a half step.

The main problem:

Developers don’t have enough control to extend or leverage these accounts.

You can gate content. You can define basic member areas. But you can’t really:

• Attach complex user-specific data models

• Run custom logic based on user behavior

• Build multi-role systems (admins, managers, end users)

• Create true web apps or rich internal portals on top of Squarespace’s auth

So from a large brand’s perspective, these membership features feel more like “content paywalls” than a full-fledged, extensible user system.

That might be enough for a small creator selling premium content. It’s not enough for a SaaS-like experience, a large community platform, or any product that needs rich user state.

E-Commerce: Fine for Simple Stores, Too Basic for Complex Brands

Squarespace’s e-commerce capabilities are okay for:

• Small catalogs

• Simple physical products

• Basic subscriptions

• Straightforward checkouts

But when you look at what serious e-commerce brands need, you start to see the gaps:

• Advanced discount logic and promotions

• Multi-warehouse or multi-vendor setups

• Deep integrations with ERPs, CRMs, and logistics tools

• Complex product options, bundles, and personalization flows

• Robust APIs and webhooks for automation

That’s why bigger e-commerce players tend to choose platforms like Shopify, custom headless builds, or WooCommerce instead of trying to stretch Squarespace beyond what it’s designed for.

For a boutique brand selling 20 products? Squarespace is great.

For a high-volume store with complex operations? The backend limitations become very visible, very fast.

No Real Backend Extension Layer for Developers

Another core reason big brands don’t choose Squarespace:

There’s no real “developer platform” in the sense of building deep custom functionality on top of Squarespace’s backend.

Yes, you can inject code. Yes, you can work with custom CSS and some JavaScript. You can even integrate external services via embeds or API calls from the front-end.

But compare that with:

• Shopify – full app ecosystem, admin APIs, storefront APIs, webhooks, custom apps

• WordPress – plugins, themes, custom post types, REST API, headless builds

• Headless CMS – flexible content models, APIs, and webhooks by design

Squarespace doesn’t yet offer a mature, backend-level extension system where developers can:

• Hook into events (user registered, order placed, content updated)

• Store and query arbitrary custom data tied to users or content

• Build full-fledged apps that live inside the Squarespace ecosystem

Instead, developers are working around constraints, not building on top of a platform that truly wants to be programmable.

AI Changes the Game — Especially for Squarespace

Historically, Squarespace’s biggest strength has been the editor experience: drag, drop, tweak, publish.

But with AI, that advantage is being challenged.

We’re entering a world where:

• AI can generate layouts and sections from prompts

• AI can write page copy, blogs, and product descriptions

• AI can suggest designs, colors, and even site structures

If AI tools can help non-technical users build decent-looking sites on almost any platform, then:

“Easy page editing” stops being a strong enough differentiator.

That’s why the backend matters even more going forward.

The future web will be full of:

• Personalized experiences per user

• AI-driven recommendations and flows

• Data-heavy dashboards and live interfaces

• Deep integrations between tools and platforms

If Squarespace stays focused only on the visual editor and doesn’t open up its backend for serious development, it risks being increasingly boxed into the “simple brochure site” and “basic small store” category — while more developer-friendly platforms capture the high-value, high-complexity projects.

What Squarespace Would Need to Attract Bigger Brands

If Squarespace wants to become a serious option for larger brands, it would need to move in a few clear directions:

• Real backend APIs and webhooks
  Let developers react to events and build autom automations properly.

• Flexible data models
  Not just pages and blog posts — allow custom data structures and relationships.

• First-class user system
  True user accounts with roles, profiles, and attachable custom data.

• Extensible app ecosystem
  A way for third-party developers to build apps that live deeper than just a script injection.

• AI built into the backend, not just the editor
  AI that can reason about user data, content, and behavior, not only help write page text.

That doesn’t mean Squarespace has to become as complex as a full headless stack. But it does mean giving developers enough power to build unique, personalized, and complex experiences without constantly hitting a wall.

So Why Aren’t Big Brands Using Squarespace?

In short:

• Squarespace looks great and feels great for editing.

• But it doesn’t yet offer the backend depth big brands and complex online businesses need.

• Its current feature set is aligned with small businesses, not large, dynamic digital products.

With AI starting to automate the “pretty front-end” part, the real value will shift even more towards data, logic, and personalization — all of which live primarily in the backend.

The open question is:
Will Squarespace evolve and open that layer up to developers, or will it stay focused on being the best simple site builder in the market?

For now, if you’re a small business that needs a great-looking, easy-to-edit site, Squarespace is still a strong choice.

If you’re planning a complex, personalized, heavily integrated digital platform — you’ll almost always be better served by a stack that gives you real backend control.