How Much Do Squarespace, Wix and Shopify Cost in Australia?

Where these numbers come from

Every figure below was read from the platforms' own public Australian pricing pages on 21 August 2026; no third-party estimates. Two warnings before you compare anything: prices change, and all four platforms run limited-time promotions (on the day we checked, Wix was advertising 50% off select plans and Squarespace 20% off new plans). We've quoted the standard prices, not the promos, so the pricing page on the day you buy is always the source of truth. These are polished, capable tools used by millions of businesses. This guide covers what they cost to run.

What each platform charges per month

Standard prices, per month, on annual billing. The small teal tags quote the badge each platform puts on its own pricing page:

The costs that aren't in the headline number

Four lines to add before you compare any card above to a quote:

• Monthly billing costs more everywhere: Squarespace Basic goes A$17 to A$24, WordPress.com Personal more than doubles. Wix skips the choice: yearly, upfront, in full.
• The "free domain" lasts one year. Squarespace, Wix and WordPress.com all bundle year one; from year two it renews at full price, every year. Shopify's plans don't list one.
• Business email is mostly extra. WordPress.com bundles an inbox for a year on Business and up, Squarespace lists Google Workspace from Core up. Beyond that, your you@yourbusiness.com.au is its own subscription.
• The app stores are where budgets creep. All four platforms run app markets, and many of the add-ons a business site ends up wanting (bookings, reviews, marketing tools) bill monthly on top of the plan.

What selling online adds, per sale

The cost on no pricing page: who does the work

Every subscription above buys good software, hosting and a support team that answers questions. None of them buys the work. The pages, words, products and updates are yours to do on every plan:

Job by job: your plan vs a message to us

What if you pay a designer to run the builder for you?

A real middle path: Wix and Squarespace both run marketplaces for hiring exactly this kind of help. In Australia a designer typically charges $1,000–$5,000 to set up a Squarespace or Wix site, depending on pages and polish, with the subscription continuing on top; ongoing changes after that are a separate arrangement, per edit or on a retainer. It solves the your-evenings problem. Just notice what the top of that range buys elsewhere: at $4,000–$5,000 you're at custom-build money, without owning the site at the end.

When running it yourself is the right call

If you enjoy building, your site is a handful of pages that rarely change, and the hours don't hurt, a builder is a fair deal, and the platforms above have made DIY about as pleasant as it gets. The maths turns when the site matters to revenue and the updates stop happening because you're busy: an out-of-date site costs enquiries while the subscription keeps billing either way.

Or: message us, and get back to your business

The alternative is not doing the work at all. We design and build your site as custom code, connect the domain and email, and keep servicing, maintaining and updating it after launch. When you want something changed, you message us and we handle it. There's no editor to learn and no app stack to manage. Our starting prices are public and every quote is fixed in writing, so you can sit them next to any subscription total on this page.

Where to next

• What a properly built online store costs instead →

  Custom-coded eCommerce: what we build and what it includes.

• Soft Florals: a florist's full online store, built for her →

  Shop, product pages and cart, handled end to end.

Skip the subscription maths