Adding Subscription Billing & Recurring Payments On Squarespace Websites

Squarespace has a new subscription feature that’s only accessible if you upgrade to their Commerce Advanced plan (starting at $65/mo). This might be a suitable option if your subscription box or recurring billing requirements are very simple.

However, many Squarespace website owners use our recurring billing integration to power their business and offer subscriptions instead.

They do this by embedding the Subbly subscription checkout flow on their existing Squarespace site. Subbly will even help you install this and configure it for free!

This is what people are saying about us in Facebook's top subscription entrepreneur groups...

Subbly really is built subscription-first. While you'd need a lot of plugins and connectors to start off on other platforms like Shopify or WooCommerce, here, it's all built right in.

Charmaine Merriweather
Founder & Owner of HUES Book Box

Before I found Subbly I never had the ability or finances to have a subscription business platform which could meet my needs and expectations. Subbly has been there for me every step of the way!

NATALIE SEATON
Founder and CEO @ BathBox

Everything was so straightforward, the support team are AMAZING, I would not have been able to launch without Subbly.

ALEXANDRA HARVELL
Founder and CEO @ Little Bakers Club

We’ve used the software for over 3 years and it keeps getting better. It has everything you need to easily run a successful subscription box business!

LIAM BRENNAN
Co-founder @ Buster Box

Subbly is straightforward and easy to use. Designing your site is simple and allows you to control your entire business from one place.

GEORGE KLEANTHOUSE
Founder and CEO @ Model Box

What to know before using the Squarespace subscription feature

Squarespace's subscription billing option might not be for everyone looking to sell subscriptions or process recurring payments. Before you upgrade your Squarespace account to the Commerce Advanced plan, which is required before you can use it, this is what we think you should know.

Pros of Squarespace Subscription Billing

Squarespace is a great platform because it's simple. It’s versatile, and perfect for anyone who wants to start a blog, a portfolio or publish a small business website.

Like many of the large, well established website builders, Squarespace’s eCommerce functionality is great for the sale of one-time products. Their integrations with other platforms like Facebook and Instagram are useful, and they have a partnership with payment processor Square so you can integrate online and offline sales data using Square’s POS system.

Cons of Squarespace Subscription Billing System


Complexity

Squarespace’s strength (simplicity) could also be its Achilles heel. Subscription products and recurring payments may appear simple to the unacquainted but, it gets incredibly complex very quickly. We're talking, layers upon layers of complexity.

Some website operators may find Squarespace's ecommerce features limiting. especially those interested in selling subscription products or billing recurring revenue. Some of our customers have told us that they enjoy the flexibility we provide as Subbly's recurring payments configurations can be tailored exactly to the nuances of their specific product offering.

Cadence

Squarespace only offers two different billing/shipping cadences - monthly and weekly. This limitation can be too restrictive if you want to offer various billing cycles. Squarespace website owners hunt us down to use our subscription billing system for this exact feature. Read more about how you are able to use Subbly on your Squarespace here via our easy to follow guide.

Cost

Squarespace's pricing might look extremely affordable at first glance, but the subscription features we're talking about are only available on the most expensive Squarespace membership (Advanced Commerce) priced at $65 for a monthly subscription.

Compare this to our Subbly plan, which allows you to sell subscription products from just $39/month. To their credit, and unlike other subscription/website offerings, their Advanced Commerce plan has 0% transaction fees (but note: other payment gateway transaction fees still apply).

Depth of Support

Although they advertise 24/7 support, past customers have told us that this only gives you access to live chat during work hours, excluding weekends. Most of the time, the support is limited to text or email support via a ticketing system. Some people who have decided to cancel Squarespace and switch to Subbly have mentioned how refreshing it is to talk to a real, knowledgeable human who can fix their problems quickly instead of giving them the bureaucratic run-around. They understand why this is so valuable because subscription details can get both complex, and technical very, very quickly. Keep this in mind if your technical knowledge is lacking.

When to use?

Squarespace

  • You need to easily build a blog or company website that doesn’t sell any subscription products or process recurring payments.
  • If 1% in transaction fees (regardless of payment method) are a deciding factor for you.
  • Your business setup is very simple and only requires a few of the supported billing/shipping cadences.

Subbly

  • You need to easily build a website on which you can create subscription products and process subscription payments from customer accounts.
  • You’re looking for affordable pricing with a reliable partner that will help you scale your business without penalty.
  • You’re after a solution that will accommodate simple and complex product offerings and which will not impede the growth of your subscriber base.

The Subbly Subscription Plugin for Squarespace

You can start a subscription business on Squarespace and accept recurring payments from your customers using the Subbly plugin.

Depending on what you need to implement, e.g. recurring payments, custom billing cycles, monthly, quarterly, weekly, and more - you name it. All of this is possible with our embeddable system.

Click here to read how you can do it with a few clicks of the mouse.

You can get as complex as you wish. You can even build custom onboarding flows for collecting customer data and personalizing their subscription box. You can even offer a "build-a-box" offering or digital products. For a full list of everything that’s possible, check out our features in full.

Best-in-Class Support

Our customer support team is obsessed with making your subscription box service a huge success.
Got a question? We're ready to answer your questions and offer you free advice!

Squarespace or Subbly

Squarespace is a great website builder, and Subbly is a great recurring payment and subscription checkout. It’s a match made in heaven. But if you want to use our website builder instead, that’s also an option.

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