If you want a custom, branded website for your business – but don’t want to rely on an external developer or deal with complicated tech – then I recommend using Squarespace templates.
These custom templates for Squarespace are created by professional third-party website designers and are often designed with online business owners and service providers in mind. Not only do they feature standout designs, but they’re also built with features that can help enhance your website’s functionality and conversions.
I’ve put together a guide that showcases the best Squarespace templates and how to choose the right one for your business.
Squarespace themes vs. premium templates
First, what is the difference between Squarespace themes and premium Squarespace templates?
Squarespace themes are free, built-in templates you choose from when you first create your Squarespace website. These templates are designed by Squarespace and offer a good starting point for your layout and design.
If you don’t like the template options that come with your Squarespace site, you can opt for a premium template from a third-party designer.
Premium templates (aka third-party templates) are custom designs created specifically for Squarespace’s platform by professional website designers. Using a premium template is equivalent to getting a high-end, custom website – but without hiring a designer.
Here are the biggest benefits of using third-party templates:
- Custom design: There are so many Squarespace designers and shops, each with their own design style. This gives you plenty of variety to choose from when selecting a template that fits your brand’s style.
- Easy set up: Most template shops will send you the template right after you purchase, and it will automatically be set up within your Squarespace account. Many Squarespace designers also provide instructions, guidance, or will install it for you as an add-on service.
- Affordable: Using a premium template is like having a custom website developed for your business at a fraction of the price.
12 best Squarespace template shops
Below, I’m sharing my recommendations for online shops that offer premium Squarespace templates. Each shop offers a range of designs and functionality that are suitable for online business owners, coaches, content creators, and more.
1. 23&9 Creative
23&9 Creative Squarespace templates are great for solo entrepreneurs, whether you’re a creator or a photographer. The design features range from one-page scrolling websites to blogging-focused sites, or a simple setup for service-based businesses.
Every template includes predesigned core pages such as Home, About, Offerings, and Contact – though, each template differs. They also have the ability to add blog, e-commerce, and scheduling functionality.
Pricing: 23&9 Creative Squarespace templates range from $159-$199.
What’s included:
- Access to 23&9 Creative’s signature course
- Step-by-step tutorials for editing the template
- Access to Canva graphic elements
2. Big Cat Creative
If you’re looking for comprehensive brand templates, I recommend Big Cat Creative. In addition to Squarespace templates, this shop offers add-on templates for social media which can help tie your brand content together.
Pricing: All templates are $297.
What’s included:
- Six-month free Squarespace trial
- Squarespace 7.1 tutorials
- Website copy workbook
- Graphic tutorials
- SEO checklist
- Email support
3. Kate Scott
Kate Scott’s Squarespace templates are designed for creative business owners, including copywriters, course creators, photographers, and service providers.
Her templates are not only visually stunning, but structured in a way that’s highly functional for modern business owners. Some of the standard built-in pages include services, scheduling, opt-in forms, media kit, podcast, and resources, among others that come in handy for online entrepreneurs.
The shop also offers templates for sales funnels, one-page websites, and Flodesk emails.
Pricing: Kate Scott’s website templates range from $99-$595.
What’s included:
- 24 built-in pages
- 90 days of email support
- 12-month free Squarespace trial
- 25% Squarespace discount
- One-click installation
- Access to The Launch Course with video tutorials and in-depth lessons
4. Ghost Plugins
Ghost Plugins is unique because they offer templates that are either blank or branded – meaning, you can start with a premade design or just build off of a framework.
The examples below show Ghost’s Paper™️ Templates, which provide an essential layout and structure without any prebuilt colors or fonts:
The Paper™️ templates are a good option if you’re comfortable using a bit of coding (CSS) to customize your website on your own.
But if you’d rather start with a finished design, here are the Branded versions, which are also available for purchase:
Ghost also offers a library of free plugins you can use to customize your site even further. You can add animations, fun icons, or button customizations using these free plugins. And you don’t need to use a Ghost theme to use their plugins:
Pricing: You can download Ghost’s Classic Template for free. Paid templates range from $99-$199.
What’s included:
- 10 pre-designed pages
- Template installation guide
- Extended 6-month Squarespace trial
- 20% off any paid Squarespace plan
- Customer support
5. Blooming Design Co
Blooming Design Co. is another one of my recommended template shops for online business owners. Each template is fun, modern, and designed with service providers in mind. There are templates for multi-page websites as well as landing pages for sales or podcasts.
Pricing: Blooming Design Co.’s templates range in price from $47 to $197.
What’s included:
- Page or template installation
- Tutorial video
- Canva graphic files
6. Applet Studio
Applet Studio has helped over 800 clients (and counting) launch their websites with templates. The templates are designed for creative entrepreneurs, coaches, and service providers which makes them ideal for selling online courses.
Pricing: Template prices range from $189 to $225.
What’s included:
- Template-specific instructions that will walk you through the setup process
- Access to Figma or Canva source files for graphics
- Access to Easy Squarespace, a template restyle course
- Customer support
7. Websites by Elise
Websites by Elise offers modern, professional templates for Squarespace. Elise, the designer behind this shop, is a certified website developer who also offers Squarespace SEO services to help businesses improve their ranking on Google.
Her templates are strategically built to succeed on Google and even come with an SEO crash course.
Pricing: All templates are $297.
What’s included:
- 20% off your first year Squarespace subscription
- Six-month extended Squarespace trial period
- Access to the 10-Module Launch Course which includes step-by-step video tutorials
- 30 days of free email support
8. Christy Price
Christy Price’s Squarespace templates are designed for authors, coaches, and service providers. While this shop’s template library is limited, each one is strategically designed and most come with 10 pre-built pages.
Pricing: Templates are between $127 and $297.
What’s included:
- Template walkthrough videos
- Customizable Canva graphics
- 30 days of email support
- Launch checklist
9. Ley Design
Ley Design offers modern and minimal Squarespace templates for coaches and service providers. What I like about this template shop is that it offers one-page website templates in addition to standard ones.
As a coach or online course creator, a one-page website can be enough to showcase your expertise and sell your digital product. These minimal sales templates can be a great way to launch quickly and still look professional.
Pricing: Templates are between $195 and $395.
What’s included:
- Template walkthrough videos
- Customizable Canva graphics
- 30 days of email support
- Launch checklist
10. The Styled Square
The Styled Square offers premium Squarespace templates and plugins for modern brands. These editorial-style templates are both beautiful and strategically designed to drive results. The plugin library is also helpful if you want to customize your website even further.
Pricing: Templates are $299.
What’s included:
- Extended six-month Squarespace free trial
- Engaging custom elements
- Template video tutorials
- Photography sourcing workbook and video guide
- Final launch checklist
- Demo stock imagery
- Squarespace discount code
11. Mission Twist
Mission Twist offers Squarespace templates for conversion-focused online entrepreneurs. What I like about these templates is that they all include a built-in sales funnel, making them ideal for selling digital products. The sales funnel pages include a lead magnet page, booking page, and a members-only resources page.
Pricing: Templates are $297.
What’s included:
- Extended six-month Squarespace free trial
- Video tutorials
- 20% off Squarespace discount code
- Six sales funnel pages
12. Pearler
Pearler offers a unique Squarespace template with a ton of customization flexibility for your business. The template includes a homepage with 10 built-out sections, as well as a sales page, course page, blog, product pages, and more.
I think this template design looks very custom without having to hire a website developer. If you want your online business to stand out from the crowd, I’d recommend checking out Pearler’s Squarespace template.
Pricing: This template is $399.
What’s included:
- Video tutorials
- Six-month Squarespace trial
- 20% off annual plan subscription
- Free domain for 12 months
- Pre-written copy
- Matching Flodesk email template
- DIY Branding Process course
What to look for in a premium Squarespace template
The overall look and feel of a template is probably what first draws you in. But there’s more to a template than the visuals.
The structure and functionality of a template is the foundation of your website, so it’s important to make sure the template you choose has everything your online business needs.
Here are some elements I recommend looking for to help you decide which template is best for you.
1. Colors and fonts
If you like the style and layout of a template but aren’t a fan of the color palette, don’t count it out just yet.
Most template colors and fonts can be completely customized to match your brand. Some designers will also include tutorials that walk you through how to change the fonts and colors.
2. The main pages
Looks aside, the main pages built into the template are the most important thing to review.
The design elements, copy, and images can all be changed, but the structure and layout of the primary pages are the base for your website.
Most Squarespace templates are designed with the same pre-built pages. These typically include Home, About, Services, and Contact.
Some templates offer more, depending on what the purpose of the template is. For example, some of the templates I shared above include sales pages, product pages, and booking pages.
3. The sections that make up each page
Squarespace templates also include different sections you can customize for each page.
Sections help break up content within a single page, making them dynamic and scrollable. If you want a one-page website that acts more like a landing page, then page sections are especially important.
I recommend checking out the live demos of each template to see what the different sections look like.
4. If you’re a blogger, check out the blog posts
If you have an active blog, make sure your template includes blogging functionality.
Not every template offers this, so it’s important to choose one that enables you to start blogging right away.
5. Optional: Email opt-ins
I also recommend looking for a template that either has a built-in email opt-in or clear locations where you could add your own opt-ins.
That’s because building an email list is essential for course creators or anyone selling digital products. Your email list is a key source for lead generation, so it’s important to seamlessly incorporate it into your website.
Many templates have an email opt-in section built in, and some even include dedicated pages for a sales funnel. I suggest taking a look at the lead generation pages and features if you want your website to be equipped to generate leads right away.
Final thoughts
Squarespace is a great website platform for course creators, service providers, and online business owners. And if you want to create a standout website with little to no coding experience, then I recommend using a premium Squarespace template.
Premium templates can be used for new or existing Squarespace websites, are easy to set up in your account, and often come with design tips and tutorials – straight from the creative designers behind these shops.
And all of these features combined make it easier than ever to have a professional and modern website for your business.
To find your best fit, I recommend choosing a template from any one of our top picks since they’ve been designed specifically for online business owners. So not only are they beautiful, but they also come equipped with features intentionally designed to help you build your audience and your business.
Melissa Guller is the founder of Wit & Wire, where we help everyday experts become profitable course creators. She previously worked full-time for Ramit Sethi, Teachable, and General Assembly. Today, she shares simplified tech tutorials and modern marketing strategies through our blog, YouTube, and Wit & Wire Weekly newsletter
