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CMS comparison FirstSpirit vs Squarespace

FirstSpirit vs Squarespace

FirstSpirit is a closed-source enterprise DXP that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. Squarespace is a closed-source site builder that runs on the vendor's cloud. The table below sets them side by side on 28 features. They get a different status on 19.

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  • FirstSpirit Enterprise DXP · Closed source · 19 of 28 built in
  • Squarespace Site builder · Closed source · 9 of 28 built in

Sources checked: FirstSpirit on 29 Sept 2026, Squarespace on 29 Sept 2026. Plans and releases can change after those dates.

WAYF is an official Payload partner and top contributor. Every platform in the table is classified by the same published definitions, and each answer lists the vendor page it came from.

Feature comparison

Built inPaid tierPlugin or add-onLimitedNot available
FirstSpirit vs Squarespace feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
FirstSpirit Enterprise DXP
Squarespace Site builder
Overview
What it is Java-based enterprise CMS with in-preview editing and a CaaS layer for headless delivery. Runs as FirstSpirit Cloud or on-premises.Hosted website builder with templates, a visual editor, blogging and commerce. Squarespace runs the hosting.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. FirstSpirit 5.2 monthly release line, FirstSpirit Cloud and on-premises Version 2026.10 (5.2.261011), released 15 Sept 2026 Squarespace website plans on version 7.1 SaaS, continuously updated
Vendor Crownpeak Technology GmbH, part of Rezolve Ai since December 2025 firstspirit.com Squarespace, Inc. squarespace.com
Licence Closed source Proprietary Closed source Proprietary
Hosting Self-hosting Vendor cloud No self-hosting Vendor cloud
Built with Java, ContentCreator web client, SiteArchitect desktop appHosted SaaS, custom CSS and JavaScript on Core and higher plans
Database Built-in repository, plus SQL databases such as PostgreSQL for data sourcesManaged by Squarespace
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. No free option Pricing on request. No free option Basic $19, Core $29, Plus $49, Advanced $99 per month billed annually in the US. 14-day free trial.
Content modelling
Content model in code You define content types in files in your repository, review them like any other code and apply them from there. Imperative migration scripts alone count as limited. Built in Templates sync to files in Git through external synchronization and FSDevTools. 34 Limited Custom post types in template.conf, only with Developer Mode on version 7.0. 23
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Limited Developers build templates in SiteArchitect but write their forms as XML. 412 Not available Fixed page and collection types. No custom fields in the editor. 2
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. Built in Pages consist of sections based on section templates. Built in Editors add and reorder sections and blocks.
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. Built in Language-dependent fields per project language. Plugin or add-on Weglot extension. Without it, editors duplicate pages per language. 45
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. Built in FirstSpirit automatically generates the image resolutions defined per project. Built in Squarespace serves uploaded images in generated sizes.
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Built in CaaS REST API. 56 Limited Commerce APIs for products, orders and inventory on Core and up. No API for pages. 16
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Built in CaaS GraphQL API generated from the FirstSpirit data model. 56 Not available
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Limited CaaS Change Streams push change events over WebSocket. 6 Limited Commerce events only, through the Webhook Subscriptions API. 7
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. Built in Generates pages from templates. CaaS covers headless delivery. Built in
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in Changes stay unreleased until the release workflow runs. 8 Paid tier Page drafts need a Premium or Enterprise plan. Blog posts can be drafts on any plan. 8
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Limited Admins set up timed schedule entries. Editors have no per-item publish date. 10 Limited Blog posts only. 9
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Built in Not available Undo and redo within an editing session only. 10
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in Built in Editing happens on the rendered page.
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. Built in ContentCreator in-preview editing. Omnichannel Manager for headless frontends. 7 Built in
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Built in 8 Limited Enterprise Draft editor role drafts pages for an admin to publish. No custom stages. 811
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Limited Release with dependencies publishes a page with its linked media and parents. 9 Not available
Real-time co-editing Two or more editors can work on the same entry at once and see each other's changes live. Not available The Collaboration module adds comments on fields. No co-editing. 11 Not available
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. Built in Groups with permissions per store and node. Not available Fixed contributor permission types. 11
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Limited Form rules hide or lock single fields per user group. 12 Not available
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Built in SAML and OpenID Connect login modules. 1314 Paid tier Premium and Enterprise plans. OpenID Connect through Entra ID, SAML through Google. 1718
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. Built in Audit logging to the server log once enabled. 15 Not available
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Built in Several projects per server. Multisite Management shares content between them. 16 Limited Each site needs its own plan. Enterprise teams manage several sites from one account. 11
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in ContentCreator and SiteArchitect plug-ins. Not available
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in FirstSpirit Marketplace. 17 Built in Squarespace Extensions, a directory of third-party tools. 12
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Plugin or add-on Formcentric for FirstSpirit, a partner product. 18 Built in Form blocks store submissions. 13
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Not available Built in Customer accounts on all plans. Member sites for gated content. 114
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. Plugin or add-on AI Suite module: Content, Analyze and Image assistants. 117 Built in Squarespace AI writer. Monthly AI credits vary by plan. 115
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Built in CaaS Platform MCP server builds and runs CaaS GraphQL queries. 19 Not available The official MCP server covers domain search only. It can't reach site content. 16

FirstSpirit sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. FirstSpirit 5.2 monthly release line, FirstSpirit Cloud and on-premises.

  1. Release notes FirstSpirit 2026.10
  2. [RELEASE] FirstSpirit 2026.10
  3. FSDevTools on GitHub
  4. External Synchronization: development
  5. CaaS Connect module documentation
  6. CaaS Platform REST interface documentation
  7. Omnichannel Manager 3.0
  8. ContentCreator: the standard Release workflow
  9. FirstSpirit docs: Specific release
  10. FirstSpirit docs: Schedule tasks
  11. FirstSpirit Collaboration user guide
  12. FirstSpirit docs: IN_GROUP rule
  13. Setting up SSO via the FirstSpirit SAML login module
  14. Authentication with OpenID Connect
  15. Audit logging in FirstSpirit
  16. Multisite Management user documentation
  17. FirstSpirit Marketplace: AI Suite
  18. Formcentric for FirstSpirit
  19. CaaS Platform MCP server documentation
  20. Rezolve Ai acquisition of Crownpeak

Squarespace sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Squarespace website plans on version 7.1.

  1. Squarespace pricing
  2. Squarespace Developer Platform: Custom Post Types
  3. Squarespace Developer Platform FAQ
  4. Manually creating a multilingual site
  5. Creating a multilingual site with Weglot
  6. Squarespace Commerce APIs overview
  7. Squarespace webhooks overview
  8. Drafting pages (Premium and Enterprise)
  9. Scheduling blog posts
  10. Using undo and redo in Squarespace
  11. Contributor roles and permissions
  12. Squarespace Extensions
  13. Form blocks
  14. Member Sites
  15. Using Squarespace AI
  16. Overview of the Squarespace MCP server
  17. Logging in with single sign-on through Microsoft Entra ID (Premium & Enterprise)
  18. Logging in with single sign-on through Google (Premium & Enterprise)

Considering more platforms? Compare FirstSpirit and Squarespace with the rest of your shortlist in the CMS comparison tool.

Where they differ

FirstSpirit and Squarespace get a different status on 19 of the 28 features and the same status on 9. FirstSpirit has 19 built in on its baseline edition, Squarespace has 9. Two matching statuses can still name different paid tiers or limits, so read the notes in the table before treating a row as equal.

Self-hosting
FirstSpirit can be self-hosted. Squarespace cannot be self-hosted.

Built in on FirstSpirit, a different answer on Squarespace 13

  • Content model in code FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Limited.
  • Localization FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Plugin or add-on.
  • REST API FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Limited.
  • GraphQL API FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Drafts FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Paid tier.
  • Version history FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Approval workflows FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Limited.
  • Custom roles FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Single sign-on FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Paid tier.
  • Audit log FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Multiple sites FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Limited.
  • Extensible admin UI FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Official MCP server FirstSpirit: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.

Built in on Squarespace, a different answer on FirstSpirit 3

  • Form builder FirstSpirit: Plugin or add-on. Squarespace: Built in.
  • Site member accounts FirstSpirit: Not available. Squarespace: Built in.
  • AI writing assistant FirstSpirit: Plugin or add-on. Squarespace: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 3

  • Content model in the UI FirstSpirit: Limited. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Content releases FirstSpirit: Limited. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Field-level permissions FirstSpirit: Limited. Squarespace: Not available.

More comparisons

FirstSpirit against other platforms

Squarespace against other platforms

Open the CMS comparison tool to put up to six platforms in one table.

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