Most mental health influencers, who have a traumatic brain injury like me, struggle to balance creating content with managing their own well-being. I am Ruslan Smirnov; I faced the same challenge until I found a way to simplify my process with hosting with Squarespace. This tool helped me build a clean, inviting space where my message and community could grow naturally. In this post, I’ll share how it boosted my connection with followers while supporting my mental health goals.
Ever feel like managing your website is as easy as taming a tornado? Well, let me tell you about hosting with Squarespace—it’s like having your own all-in-one toolkit right at your fingertips. Having built over 50 websites using Squarespace, I’ve discovered it’s more than just a basic hosting service.
Sure, basic hosting might barely dent your wallet, but with Squarespace, you get the whole shebang, hosting included in every plan. Right after you sign up, they set you up with a built-in domain (yoursiteid.squarespace.com), plus unlimited storage, round-the-clock support, and a rock-solid 99.90% uptime guarantee.
Let me spill the beans on what I’ve learned from creating dozens of websites with Squarespace. You’ll get the lowdown on their plans, figure out how domain hosting works, dodge common pitfalls, and pick up some handy tips to make the most of your Squarespace hosting adventure.
My maiden adventure with the Squarespace website
Remember those pre-pandemic days when I was dipping my toes into the digital sea with a Squarespace account? I had my social media links hooked up, ensuring visitors could effortlessly follow my posts and updates. It felt like the dawn of a fresh journey, as I navigated through the tools and features, learning as I went. I started learning how to use it with the Squarespace website and how to separate the hosting provider if you choose WordPress
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If you choose Squarespace, you can’t use a separate hosting provider, as with WordPress. Instead, everything is built into the platform, so your site runs on Squarespace’s own hosting system. This means you don’t have to worry about finding, setting up, or paying for hosting on your own, but it also means you have less flexibility than you would with WordPress, where you can choose any hosting provider you prefer.
Starting My Squarespace Journey
The blank page can feel like both a gift and a curse. When I began looking for a platform to share my mental health content, I needed something that wouldn’t add to my stress.
What Squarespace Hosting Brings to the Table
Think of Squarespace as your trusty sidekick in the website world— an all-in-one solution, and lots more than just a web host. It packs a punch with features built right into the platform, making life easier for folks like us.
What’s the Deal with Built-in Hosting vs. Third-party Hosting?
Imagine not having to wrangle with separate hosting setups. Squarespace takes traditional platforms like WordPress and turns them on their heads by bundling everything—web hosting and site builder—into one neat package. You can forget about server setups, installing software, or juggling updates. This approach makes everything feel like a breeze.
And here’s the kicker: Squarespace runs its own cloud hosting infrastructure. No third parties here, just consistent A-game performance for every site.
The platform runs its own distributed cloud hosting infrastructure instead of relying on third-party providers. This gives consistent performance to all websites built on the platform.
What’s included in a Squarespace plan
Each Squarespace subscription comes with these hosting features:
- Cloud hosting that keeps your website running smoothly
- Unlimited bandwidth and storage for every plan level
- Automatic SSL certificates for secure connections
- WHOIS privacy protection at no extra cost
- Built-in CDN (Content Delivery Network) for faster global loading
- Regular automated backups and security updates
The Personal plan starts at $16 monthly with annual billing. This is a big deal as it means that simple hosting costs, but you get both hosting infrastructure and sophisticated website-building tools.
Squarespace domain hosting explained
The platform serves as a domain host and offers over 200 top-level domains. A free custom domain comes with every annual plan for the first year.
Domain management couldn’t be simpler—domains you register through Squarespace work with your website automatically. You won’t need to touch DNS records or deal with technical setup. Each domain pointing to a Squarespace site gets an automatic SSL certificate.
Users who own domains elsewhere can connect them easily while managing everything from one dashboard.
Lessons Learned from Building 50+ Squarespace Sites
My experience with building over 50 Squarespace sites has taught me what works and what doesn’t on this platform. Here are the most important lessons I’ve picked up along the way.
1. Hosting is uninterrupted but not flexible
Squarespace’s integrated hosting eliminates the hassle of managing separate services. The platform makes everything simple. Yet this simplicity has its drawbacks. You won’t find support for server-side code like PHP, Ruby, or SQL. Your options become limited if you need custom server features or database management. My projects show that Squarespace sites excel as “brochure” style websites with text, images, and some JavaScript.
2. Performance is reliable for most use cases
The platform’s dependable performance stands out as a major plus. Squarespace delivers a solid 99.9% uptime rate, which keeps your site available to visitors. I’ve seen very few outages over the last several years. Your visitors will get consistent performance no matter where they are in the world. The speed and reliability work great for standard business websites, blogs, and portfolios.
3. Domain setup is simple but has its limits
Setting up domains on Squarespace is straightforward, especially with their domain services. Still, complex DNS configurations can be tricky. Domain verification is vital for security and functionality. The platform handles simple tasks well, yet advanced setups might give you trouble. DNS changes need up to 48 hours to take full effect, so you’ll need some patience.
4. SSL and security work on autopilot
The best part about building sites on Squarespace is not having to think about SSL certificates. Every website gets automatic SSL certificates and management. Your site stays secure without any manual work. This feature matters more now since Google gives priority to secure websites in search rankings.
5. Server maintenance becomes a thing of the past
The freedom from server maintenance is one of Squarespace hosting’s biggest perks. The team monitors the platform 24/7. They handle automatic backups, security patches, and SSL renewals. Small businesses and creators can focus on content and design instead of technical details.
Common Hosting Mistakes to Avoid on Squarespace
People often run into these common hosting pitfalls with Squarespace, despite its user-friendly design. You can avoid a lot of frustration by learning about these mistakes now.
1. Ignoring bandwidth and storage needs
Squarespace offers unlimited bandwidth and storage on all plans, which is different from other website builders’ strict limits. The term “unlimited” comes with some file size restrictions:
- Images and documents: 300 MB per file
- Audio files: 160 MB per file
- Video files: 500 MB per file
Your website will perform better thanks to these limits, though most users never come close to reaching them.
2. Not understanding domain transfer rules
You’ll need to wait 60 days after registering or transferring your domain with your current provider before moving to Squarespace. The transfer can take 1-15 days to complete. New site builders often forget to include this waiting period in their launch schedule.
3. Overlooking email hosting limitations
Here’s something that surprises many users: Squarespace doesn’t host email directly. The platform blends with Google Workspace instead, which costs about £6/month per user. This setup means your email lives outside the Squarespace system, making it less of a complete solution than you might expect.
4. Assuming Squarespace works like WordPress
The most common mistake I see happens when people treat Squarespace like WordPress. Squarespace uses a closed system that trades customization options for reliability and simplicity. The platform focuses on built-in tools and optimized processes, unlike WordPress’s plugin-heavy approach. Understanding this core difference helps prevent frustration down the road.
How to Get the Most Out of Website Hosting on Squarespace
These five proven strategies will help you get the most from your Squarespace hosting experience. My experience of building dozens of websites has refined these approaches.
1. Choose the right plan for your site type
Your specific needs should determine the plan selection. Simple websites work well with the Personal plan. The Business plan comes with marketing tools and e-commerce features that include a 3% transaction fee. Advanced features like inventory management come with the Commerce plans, which remove transaction fees completely. Pick a plan that matches your goals instead of paying extra for features you won’t use.
2. Use built-in tools instead of third-party plugins
Squarespace runs on its native functionality. The platform’s built-in SEO features operate automatically. You won’t need additional plugins. The Squarespace Extensions marketplace offers specialized third-party tools for multilingual capabilities, image optimization and more.
3. Optimize images and media for faster load times
Your site’s performance depends substantially on image size. Load times work best when files stay under 500KB. Photos should use JPEG format while graphics needing transparency work better as PNG. Sharp images across all devices need widths between 1500-2500 pixels.
4. Connect your domain properly
Domain connection with Squarespace works seamlessly. Annual plans include a free custom domain for the first year. Squarespace provides detailed instructions to update DNS settings for existing domains.
5. Use analytics to monitor performance
Your account’s Analytics section gives you valuable performance data. You can monitor visitor metrics, geographic data and search keywords. Set your KPIs based on your objectives – whether you want more traffic or higher conversions.
Conclusion
My experience of building over 50 websites on Squarespace proves that this platform excels as a powerful all-in-one hosting solution. The platform eliminates technical complexity found in traditional hosting environments and provides reliable infrastructure for most business websites.
The platform costs more than simple hosting services. The price difference makes sense when you think over everything bundled togethernreliable cloud hosting, unlimited storage, automatic SSL certificates, and an easy-to-use website builder. Small businesses and creatives find great value in this combination to build professional websites without technical headaches.
Simplicity remains the platform’s strongest feature. Domain management, security updates, and server maintenance run automatically in the background. You can focus on creating content instead of fixing technical problems. The 99.9% uptime guarantee will give your site round-the-clock availability to visitors.
Squarespace’s limitations deserve attention. The closed ecosystem restricts server-side customization, which makes it unsuitable for complex web applications. Email hosting needs a separate Google Workspace subscription that adds to your costs.
Note that Squarespace works differently from WordPress if you’re building your first website. The platform focuses on reliable built-in functionality and optimized workflows rather than plugins and extensive customization. This fundamental difference helps set the right expectations from day one.
While Squarespace might not fit every project, it creates visually impressive and stable websites with minimal technical overhead effectively. The platform offers a dependable foundation that grows with your needs for portfolios, blogs, or business sites while keeping technical complexities away.
