Squarespace Commerce alternative
A Squarespace Commerce Alternative for Stores with a Back Office
Squarespace gives you a beautiful store from $19 a month billed yearly, with a 2% store fee on Basic and no fee from Core up. It stops short of your books, your stock, and your wholesale rules. Managed Zoho Commerce charges no platform transaction fee, writes orders into Zoho Books and Inventory, and we build and run it from $250 a month, with your Zoho license billed by Zoho.
With Cascadia you get
- Orders land in Books and Inventory
- Wholesale and tiered pricing
- Custom feeds and pricing rules
- Your own payment gateway
- Migration from Squarespace included
- Monthly, nothing prepaid
Cascadia vs Squarespace Commerce at a Glance
Three Questions That Decide It
Do You Sell Digital Products?
Do You Sell Wholesale Too?
Where Do Accounts and Stock Live?
Side by Side
| Squarespace Commerce | Cascadia | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | Basic $19 a month billed yearly (October 2026) | –Plans from $250 a month plus your Zoho license |
| Store fee | –2% on Basic, 0% from Core (October 2026) | Platform takes zero percent |
| Digital items | –7% on Basic, 5% on Core (October 2026) | No platform fee on any item |
| Payments | –Lower card rates need Squarespace Payments (October 2026) | Gateways tested, not assumed |
| Design and templates | Strong templates and editor | –Competent, behind Squarespace |
| Books and Inventory | ×Integration is a separate build | Orders flow into Books and Inventory |
| Wholesale pricing | ×Not listed on the pricing page | Tiered pricing built where needed |
| Custom feeds and rules | –API integrations from Core up (October 2026) | Built with the Commerce API and Deluge |
Entry Price
Store Fee
Digital Items
Payments
Design and Templates
Books and Inventory
Wholesale Pricing
Custom Feeds and Rules
What the Plan from $250 a Month Includes
Squarespace gives you tools and a template. Our monthly plan from $250 gives you the work of someone who builds on Zoho Commerce, priced by hours of Zoho work. Your Zoho license is billed by Zoho and sits outside it.
- Your store built and themed
- Catalog and variants built, imported in bulk, stock synced
- Collections plus search and filters
- Migration from Squarespace
- Store settings, domain, and SSL
- Coupons, bundles, and promotions
- The checkout flow and its fields tailored
- Payment gateway configuration, shipping zones, and sales tax setup
- Books and Inventory linked, with CRM, Campaigns, and Desk synced
- API and custom Deluge development
Where a Zoho Store Goes Further
A site builder wins on look and speed to launch. The back office is where it runs out of room.
Your Accounting Is Already Waiting
Squarespace lists API integrations for order fulfillment and inventory work on Core and above. Zoho Commerce writes orders into Books and Inventory directly, with no separate platform to reconcile.
Wholesale Without a Workaround
Tiered pricing for trade buyers sits naturally in a store built on Zoho Inventory. In a site builder it often becomes a second store or a manual quote.
The Plan Fee Is Not the Whole Fee
Squarespace lists a 2% store fee on Basic and 7% on digital content and memberships. On Core the store fee is 0%. Zoho Commerce takes zero percent on every plan, and you only pay your processor.
Honest Where Squarespace Wins
If you sell a few dozen products, want a beautiful template, and need nothing beyond the site, Squarespace at $19 a month is better value. We would send you there.
Who Is Weighing These Options
Stores That Outgrew a Template
The design is still lovely but the catalog has thousands of variants, the stock count is wrong, and orders are retyped into the books every Friday.
Businesses Selling Digital Items
Squarespace lists a 7% fee on digital content and memberships on Basic, 5% on Core, and 1% on Plus. If digital items are a real share of sales, that rate matters.
Teams That Want Custom Logic
A supplier feed, a pricing rule, or an ERP push is a build job. A site builder offers integrations from Core up. Anything beyond that needs custom work on a platform that can take it.
Choose Squarespace Commerce if
- You want a low entry price for a simple store
- Your template and a small catalog do the job
- Nothing downstream needs your order data
Choose Cascadia if
- You already run Zoho Books or Inventory
- You sell wholesale with tiered pricing
- You need custom feeds or pricing rules built
How a Move from Squarespace Goes
- 1
Inventory the Store and the Site
Squarespace often holds pages, blog posts, and the store together. We separate what moves to Commerce from what stays as a website.
- 2
Build the Zoho Commerce Store
Catalog, theme, checkout, shipping, tax, and your payment gateway are configured and tested before the existing store is touched.
- 3
Import and Link the Books
Products and customers are loaded and Zoho Books and Inventory are connected. A test order is placed and followed from checkout to ledger.
- 4
Move the Domain and Redirect
DNS switches once test orders pass, with redirects from old product URLs so search traffic follows. We watch the first weeks of orders.
How Squarespace Works
Squarespace Plans and Store Fees
Squarespace sells website plans that include ecommerce. Each number here was copied from the vendor’s published pricing and docs in October 2026.
Taken from Squarespace pricing. Checked October 2026.
What Clients Say About Working with Cascadia
“I’ve always dreaded website management, but Cascadia has done an incredible job with my WordPress site, making it one less thing for me to worry about.”
“I’ve worked with Cascadia for several years now. They are always ready to help in any way I ask and can implement my ideas with ease. A company that values their clients!”
“Cascadia has been great to work with! We recently needed some updates, and Cascadia was quick to get them completed! We highly recommend Cascadia Web Services.”
“Cascadia is very responsive and we’re happy with them as our primary IT vendor.”
“They do great work, been using for years. Prompt responses to requests.”
Has Your Store Outgrown the Template?
Talk to us about your setupAsk us
Squarespace Commerce Alternative Questions
What Squarespace charges for stores, where it stops, and what a Zoho build adds.
See Managed Zoho CommerceStill have a question?
How much does Squarespace cost for a store?
Basic is $19 a month billed yearly or $25 monthly. Core is $29 or $39, Plus is $49 or $65, and Advanced is $99 or $139 (October 2026). Core is the first plan with a 0% online store fee.
What are Squarespace transaction fees?
The online store fee is 2% on Basic and 0% on Core, Plus, and Advanced. Digital content and membership fees are 7%, 5%, 1%, and 0% across the same four plans (October 2026). Card processing is billed separately.
What are Squarespace card rates?
Credit cards start at 2.9% plus 30 cents on Basic and Core, 2.7% on Plus, and 2.5% on Advanced (October 2026). The page says these rates are available only with Squarespace Payments.
Does Squarespace have a free trial?
Yes. Every site starts with a 14 day free trial (October 2026). It is a trial of the site builder, so a live store with real orders needs a paid plan.
Can Squarespace connect to my accounting?
The pricing page lists API integrations for advanced sales functionality, aimed at order fulfillment and inventory, on Core and above (October 2026). Building the connection is a separate job. Zoho Commerce connects to Books and Inventory by design.
Which Squarespace plan has abandoned cart recovery?
All four plans list it, along with unlimited products and subscriptions (October 2026). Shipping labels and carrier-calculated shipping begin on Core.
What support does Squarespace offer?
The pricing page says its customer care team is ready to help 24/7 (October 2026). Ours is a named person for your store, rather than a general queue.
Is Squarespace better than Zoho Commerce for design?
For a template-driven brochure and small shop, many people prefer Squarespace’s editor and templates. Zoho Commerce is competent, and the case for it rests on the back office, not the look.
Can you move our products from Squarespace?
Yes. Products, variants, customers, and page content that belongs in the store move over, with redirects for old URLs. A test order is followed into the books before the domain switches.
Who holds the Zoho Commerce license?
You do. Zoho bills it directly and we add no markup. Our monthly plan from $250 covers the work, and the plan is priced by hours of Zoho work rather than users.
What does Zoho Commerce charge per order?
The platform takes zero percent. You pay your own payment processor, whose rate depends on which one you pick and your volume. We help you choose and test it.
Do you build wholesale pricing?
Yes. Tiered pricing for trade buyers can be built into the catalog and checkout. If wholesale is a large share of your sales, that alone can justify the move.
When should I stay on Squarespace?
When your catalog is modest, your template does the job, and nothing downstream needs your order data. At $19 a month, that is the better buy.
How do I cancel?
Leaving needs only a request. Service ends on the last business day of the month, with no prepaid year and no partial refund. Export your catalog and order history whenever you like.