Wix vs Squarespace for church websites
By Logan Busic, Founder, Church Digital, who ran the 2,000-church website study. .
The short answer
In our study of 2,000 church websites, Squarespace church sites were more often current: 91.4% showed an update within the last year, against 77.1% on Wix. Squarespace sites also more often had working online giving (77.3% against 64.9%). On entry price, Wix starts lower (from $17 a month against $19; the cost section below says what each figure covers). Neither result proves the platform caused it, so choose on who will keep the site updated every week.
- Updated within the last year: Squarespace ahead by 14.3 points (Wix 77.1%, Squarespace 91.4%)
- Working online giving: Squarespace ahead by 12.4 points (Wix 64.9%, Squarespace 77.3%)
- Service times findable: Squarespace ahead by 10 points (Wix 82.4%, Squarespace 92.4%)
- Three-year cost: Wix $612 to $5,724, Squarespace $684 to $3,564
Most Wix vs Squarespace comparisons score features. This one looks at what churches actually end up with. In our 2026 study of 2,000 church websites, we identified 245 sites built on Wix and 198 built on Squarespace, and checked each one for the three things a first-time visitor needs.
Neither platform is ours. We build church websites for a living, so we have a stake in this market, and the numbers below are published in full so you can check them.
What we found on real church websites
| Wix | Squarespace | |
|---|---|---|
| Church sites in the study | 245 | 198 |
| Updated within the last year | 77.1% | 91.4% |
| Working online giving | 64.9% | 77.3% |
| Service times findable | 82.4% | 92.4% |
- Updated within the last year: Squarespace leads by 14.3 points. 91.4% of Squarespace church sites showed an update within the last year, against 77.1% on Wix.
- Working online giving: Squarespace leads by 12.4 points. 77.3% of Squarespace church sites had a working online giving path, against 64.9% on Wix.
- Service times findable: Squarespace leads by 10 points. 92.4% of Squarespace church sites made service times findable, against 82.4% on Wix.
For context, across every reachable site in the study 74% showed an update within the year and 67.3% had working giving. This is correlation, not causation: a platform does not make a church tend its website, but churches that tend their websites cluster on certain platforms. Read the full study and method.
Where Wix and Squarespace rank among church platforms
| Wix | Squarespace | All sites | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Updated within the last year | 6th of 8+3.1 pts vs average | 4th of 8+17.4 pts vs average | 74% |
| Working online giving | 6th of 8-2.4 pts vs average | 4th of 8+10 pts vs average | 67.3% |
| Service times findable | 8th of 8-1.4 pts vs average | 2nd of 8+8.6 pts vs average | 83.8% |
Rank among the 8 named platforms in the study (The Church Co, Subsplash, Weebly, Squarespace, Tithe.ly Sites, Wix, WordPress (self-hosted), GoDaddy Websites + Marketing). A tie shares the higher rank. See every church website builder compared.
Price and who does the work
- Monthly price
- Wix$17–$159/month billed annually ($24–$172 month-to-month) — plus your volunteer’s hours
- Squarespace$19–$99/month billed annually ($25–$139 month-to-month) — plus your volunteer’s hours
- Church Digital$120/month flat — published, whole price
- Setup fee
- Wix$0 — the setup is your time
- Squarespace$0 — the setup is your time
- Church Digital$0, ever
- Who builds the site
- WixYou (or a volunteer), in the Wix editor
- SquarespaceYou (or a volunteer), from a template
- Church DigitalWe do — custom design, built for you
- Who updates it
- WixYou — every sermon, event, and photo
- SquarespaceYou — weekly, by name, forever
- Church DigitalWe do — email us the change
- Contract
- WixMonthly or annual plans, self-serve
- SquarespaceMonthly or annual plans, self-serve
- Church DigitalNone — cancel anytime, from your account
- Online giving
- WixA third-party embed you choose and configure yourself
- SquarespaceA third-party embed you choose and configure yourself
- Church DigitalWe connect the giving platform you already use
Vendor details come from our full reviews of Wix and Squarespace, which name each pricing source and the date it was checked (first verified 2026-07-16). Prices change; confirm on the vendor's own page.
What three years costs
- Wix
- $612 to $5,724
- Light to Business Elite, $17 to $159/month on annual billing
- Squarespace
- $684 to $3,564
- Basic to Advanced, $19 to $99/month on annual billing
- Church Digital
- $4,320
- $120/month flat, $0 setup, built and updated for you
Three years at the monthly prices in the table above, times 36. This leaves out domains, add-ons, renewal increases and the hours someone at the church spends building and updating the site, which is the larger cost on a do-it-yourself platform.
Which one fits your church
Wix fits a church when
- A volunteer or staff member loves Wix and updates the site weekly. Don’t take a working system away from the person making it work.
- Your budget is truly capped near $17–$29/month. Wix is honestly cheaper than we are — if your time is free.
- You want hands-on creative control more than you want the job done for you.
What it does well
- A genuinely capable editor
- Low, published entry price
- No church-software lock-in
Where churches struggle with it
- The update burden lands on a person
- Giving is an integration project
- The plan you want is rarely the cheapest one
- Nobody is checking
Squarespace fits a church when
- You have a named person who enjoys the tool and updates it weekly — the study says Squarespace churches like yours mostly thrive.
- Design control matters to your team and they want to own it themselves.
- The published $19–$29/month price is the whole budget, and your volunteer’s time isn’t part of the math.
What it does well
- The templates really are that good
- Their churches keep sites fresh
- Transparent, published pricing
Where churches struggle with it
- The weekly-update question
- Church features are assembly required
- Giving lags the church platforms
If nobody has the hours for either
Website
A custom-built church website, hosted and maintained for you.
Normally $120/mo, founding rate $90/mo
$90 a month for as long as you stay (regular $120). No setup fee. Nothing to pay until your site is live.
$0 today. Checkout saves your card; the first charge is the day your site goes live, after you approve it.
- Custom design for your church
- Service times, sermons, giving, events
- Hosting and updates included
- Live on your own domain
- Christmas and Easter pages, every year
- Help applying for the Google Ad Grant
$0 setup · no contract · cancel anytime
First-month money-back guarantee
If the building or the weekly updates would land on a volunteer who does not have the hours, Church Digital is the done-for-you route: we design, build, host and update the site, and the church emails us changes.
Common questions
- Is Wix or Squarespace better for a church website?
- It depends on who will keep the site current. In our 2026 study of 2,000 church websites we identified 245 on Wix and 198 on Squarespace. On freshness, Squarespace church sites came out ahead (91.4% against 77.1%). On working online giving, Squarespace church sites came out ahead (77.3% against 64.9%). This is correlation, not causation: a platform does not make a church tend its website, but churches that tend their websites cluster on certain platforms.
- Which costs less for a church, Wix or Squarespace?
- Wix: $17–$159/month billed annually ($24–$172 month-to-month) — plus your volunteer’s hours. Squarespace: $19–$99/month billed annually ($25–$139 month-to-month) — plus your volunteer’s hours. Vendor prices change, so confirm on each vendor's own pricing page before you commit.
- Does Wix or Squarespace build the church's website for you?
- Wix: You (or a volunteer), in the Wix editor. Squarespace: You (or a volunteer), from a template. If nobody at the church has the hours, Church Digital designs, builds, hosts and updates the site for $120 a month flat with $0 setup.
- Which is easier for a church to keep updated, Wix or Squarespace?
- We can't measure ease directly, but we can measure the result. Updated within the last year: Squarespace leads by 14.3 points. 91.4% of Squarespace church sites showed an update within the last year, against 77.1% on Wix. Across all sites in the study the figure was 74%. Who updates it: on Wix, you — every sermon, event, and photo; on Squarespace, you — weekly, by name, forever.
- Which is better for online giving, Wix or Squarespace?
- Working online giving: Squarespace leads by 12.4 points. 77.3% of Squarespace church sites had a working online giving path, against 64.9% on Wix. How giving works on Wix: a third-party embed you choose and configure yourself. On Squarespace: a third-party embed you choose and configure yourself. Across all sites in the study, 67.3% had a working giving path.
- What does a church website cost over three years on Wix or Squarespace?
- Wix: $612 to $5,724 (Light to Business Elite, $17 to $159/month on annual billing). Squarespace: $684 to $3,564 (Basic to Advanced, $19 to $99/month on annual billing). Three years at the monthly prices in the table above, times 36. This leaves out domains, add-ons, renewal increases and the hours someone at the church spends building and updating the site, which is the larger cost on a do-it-yourself platform.
- How was the Wix vs Squarespace data collected?
- We audited 2,000 real church websites across the United States in July 2026, identified the platform each one runs on, and checked each site for a recent update, a working giving path and findable service times. No individual church is named. The full method is published at /research.
More head-to-head comparisons
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