Squarespace vs. Showit for Calligraphers: Which Website Builder is Best?
Out of all the blogs about which website platform is best, not many talk about which website platform is best for calligraphers. We’ve had to do our own research. Well, after several versions of my website and two platforms later - I’ve done the research. I’ve created my calligraphy websites with Squarespace and Showit, and I can confidently say they both have their pros and cons.
If you’re looking for the best website builder for calligraphers - your answer is here! I’m going to break down the pros and cons of both and let you decide which is best for you. Plus, I’ll get into which pages are most important for you to have.
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photo by Angelica Marie Photography
But First - Do You Even Need a Website?
I know you’re dying to ask…because I get asked this question by all my students!
“Do you even need a website to book calligraphy clients?”
The honest answer? No.
You can absolutely start your calligraphy business, land clients, and grow without a website. One of the taglines for my Pro Wedding Calligrapher course is “Book your dream wedding clients without a shop or a website.” I've booked clients without a website, and many of my students have as well - and that’s because it’s so much easier to create a website after you’ve gotten some commissions for your work. Those early projects give you photos of your work, client reviews, and start to give you a clear idea of what calligraphy services you want to sell. Those are all necessary before you dive into creating a website. Especially the photos!
Need help booking clients before you have a website? Watch my free masterclass, 3 Steps to Booking Your Dream Wedding Clients, to learn how!
That said, when you are ready for a website, it’s important to choose the right platform for your needs. Squarespace and Showit are two of the most popular options for calligraphers, but after using both I’ve realized they’re completely different.
Squarespace vs. Showit: Which is Better for Calligraphers?
When I built the first website for Monstera Gold, I had no idea what platform to choose. I started with Squarespace because it was popular and I heard it was easy to use. Later, I switched to Showit, but you’ll notice this site - CalligraphyCEO - is on Squarespace. That’s because there’s no single right choice — it depends on your business goals, experience, and how much control you want over your website’s design. Let’s get into it!
Ease of Use
If you’re new to website builders and want something simple, Squarespace is the best choice. Everything you need is built in, from customizable templates to SEO tools to buying your domain name. I started my calligraphy website on Squarespace and it was super user-friendly. You can drag and drop elements around easily to make your pages look how you want. No experience needed!
I always tell people that Squarespace is like a jack of all trades. If you want a blog, they have a feature for that, if you want to sell products on your site, you can sell directly from Squarespace. It gives you a lot of flexibility, especially if you are in the early stages and don’t know exactly what you want to do with your business yet or you’re DIY-ing your site.
Showit, on the other hand, is known for a high level of design freedom and customization. So, you can create stunning, highly visual websites. It’s meant for business owners, like us, who work in a visual field and need their designs to stand out. But with that freedom comes complexity. There’s no automatic structure, so you build everything separately, including how your mobile site looks vs your desktop site.
If you want the easiest example of how they’re different - look at what it takes to make a simple button!
In Squarespace, if you want a button, you click twice, and you have a button. Then you choose which page to link it to. All your styles will be generated automatically.
In Showit, you create a rectangle for the button, choose a color, put a text box over it, and add the link action…you get the idea! It’s more complex, but there’s also more freedom to do whatever you want.
Recommendation: If you’re a beginner, Squarespace is the better option. If custom design is your priority and you love playing with robust programs like Adobe Illustrator - Showit is worth exploring.
Selling Your Calligraphy & E-Commerce
Thinking about selling digital products or semi-custom wedding invitations? Both Showit and Squarespace allow for e-commerce. Setting up a shop is easier on Squarespace. Everything is built in — just add your products, set your pricing, and you’re good to go.
With Showit, there’s no built-in e-commerce, so you’ll need to create the pages on Showit. Then you can use the WooCommerce plugin or Shopify Lite plugin with their Advanced Blog plan to create checkout carts. The bonus is that Showit gives you more control over how your store looks. You can create much more custom product pages that increase the appeal to potential customers.
Recommendation: If your goal is to just quickly get products onto your website to start selling, Squarespace wins. If you want more control over your shop’s design or are looking to go more into products than services, Showit is a better fit.
Blogging
Both Squarespace and Showit allow blogging. Squarespace has a built-in blogging system that’s very user-friendly. Simply add your text and photos - then publish! You can have a basic blog up in minutes.
Showit on the other hand uses WordPress for its blogging platform, so you get access to advanced SEO tools and analytics. Not all Showit plans include blogging though, so you have to pick a plan that includes it. There’s nothing basic about a Showit blog. You design the main page template in Showit, so you can make it just as stunning as the rest of your site. (Which is a huge bonus!)
Recommendation: If SEO and blogging are a major part of your marketing strategy, Showit is the way to go! If you just need a simple blog without extra bells and whistles, Squarespace works just fine.
Pricing
If cost is a factor, don’t worry! Squarespace and Showit are pretty closely priced. Both are subscription-based, meaning you pay monthly or yearly to use the platform. Squarespace starts at $16 monthly. You can also get your domain through Squarespace and sometimes they run promotions where your first year of domain cost is free.
Showit’s first plan costs $23 per month or you can get their Advanced Blog plan for $34 if you want extra WordPress plugins for e-commerce, security, or analytics. Unlike Squarespace, Showit doesn’t offer domains and you’ll have to purchase yours separately. They usually range from $10 - $50 per year.
Recommendation: With less than a $10 difference, the cost isn’t much of a factor between Squarespace and Showit. You may want to look into template costs, as they can definitely vary, but otherwise, they’re both pretty comparable!
What Pages Do You Want on Your Calligraphy Website?
Once you choose your website platform, the fun begins! If you’re hurrying to get a site up so you can just start all you need is a homepage and contact page. When you have a few projects under your belt you can start building out your site more.
I recommend having the following pages:
Home Page - with an overview of your services, some photos of your work and reviews
About Page - to talk about what sets you apart and build a connection
Services Page - that further explains the calligraphy services you offer
Contact Page - so clients can inquire with you!
As you build your portfolio over time, you can add a dedicated portfolio page with a gallery of your work and start blogging to help your SEO ranking. You can have any of these pages on both platforms!
So Which Website Builder Is Better for Calligraphers?
The right platform depends on your experience level and business needs. If you’re just starting out, Squarespace is your best bet. It’s affordable, easy to use, and grows with your business. When you’re ready to invest in a design-focused, high-end website, Showit is an excellent choice — but only if you’re comfortable with design tools or working with a web designer.
No matter which one you choose, the most important thing to remember about having a website is showcasing great photos of your work. I can’t stress that enough! Showing your client work will help sell your services to more and more clients. Having a beautiful website is just one way to do that.
If you’re ready to get started with Squarespace, click here for a free 14-day trial.
If you’re ready to try Showit, click here to get your first month free!
Just getting started? Learn to book clients before you even have a website. Watch my free masterclass, 3 Steps to Booking Your Dream Wedding Clients, to learn how! Sign up for free below!
