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CMS comparison Instatic vs Squarespace

Instatic vs Squarespace

Instatic is an open-source site builder that you host yourself. 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 17.

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  • Instatic Site builder · Open source · 15 of 28 built in
  • Squarespace Site builder · Closed source · 9 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Instatic on 30 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
Instatic vs Squarespace feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Instatic Site builder
Squarespace Site builder
Overview
What it is Open-source, self-hosted CMS with a visual canvas editor. One Bun server runs the editor, content store and publisher, and publishing writes plain HTML files to disk.Hosted website builder with templates, a visual editor, blogging and commerce. Squarespace runs the hosting.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. Instatic 0.0.20, open source Version 0.0.20, released 13 Sept 2026 Squarespace website plans on version 7.1 SaaS, continuously updated
Vendor CoreBunch instatic.com Squarespace, Inc. squarespace.com
Licence Open source MIT Closed source Proprietary
Hosting Self-hosting No vendor cloud No managed hosting. You deploy the Docker image to your own server, or use the Railway and Render templates. No self-hosting Vendor cloud
Built with TypeScript, Bun, React adminHosted SaaS, custom CSS and JavaScript on Core and higher plans
Database SQLite, PostgreSQLManaged by Squarespace
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. Free to start Free and open source, with no paid tiers. You pay only for hosting. 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. Not available Tables and fields live in the database and change in the Data workspace. Plugins can create tables through the SDK. 610 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. Built in Custom post types and data tables in the Data workspace. 616 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 Visual Components with typed parameters and named slots, placed and reordered on the canvas. 72 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. Not available One site-wide language setting. No per-locale fields or entries. 21 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 Uploads get a set of WebP sizes, and the publisher writes srcset and sizes from the layout. 81 Built in Squarespace serves uploaded images in generated sizes.
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Limited The JSON API under /admin/api/cms serves the admin behind a session cookie. No token-based content API outside MCP. 920 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. Not available Not available
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Not available No built-in webhooks. A plugin with network access can call a URL from content hooks. 10 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 Publishing renders every page to static HTML on the server's disk. 11 Built in
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in 51 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. Built in Per page and per post-type entry. 5 Limited Blog posts only. 9
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Built in Published versions of pages and entries, restorable into the draft. Added in 0.0.20. 124 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 The canvas renders drafts in the site design. Branch preview links work without an account. 122 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 Editing happens on the rendered page canvas, with a live mode for the full-size page. 214 Built in
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Limited Branch merge requests with a review page and comments. No configurable review stages. 12 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 Publish ships all draft pages at once. Branches group edits across pages and entries, but entries still publish one by one. 125 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. Limited Live co-editing of pages, components and layouts in the Site editor. Content workspace entries save separately. 13144 Not available
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. Built in The Owner builds roles from a fixed list of capabilities. 1516 Not available Fixed contributor permission types. 11
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Not available Capabilities apply per table type and edit category, not per field. 16 Not available
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Not available Email and password with optional TOTP two-factor. 15 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 Append-only log of logins, content changes, role edits and plugin actions. 17 Not available
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Not available One site per installation. 2 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 Plugins add admin pages, editor extensions, dashboard widgets and canvas modules. 10 Not available
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Not available Plugins install as uploaded zip packages. No official directory. 10 Built in Squarespace Extensions, a directory of third-party tools. 12
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Built in Forms are built on the canvas and submissions land in a data table. 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. Built in Built-in agent in the Site and Content workspaces, with your own Claude, OpenAI, OpenRouter or Ollama key. 19 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 Built in at /_instatic/mcp, with OAuth or scoped personal access tokens. 20 Not available The official MCP server covers domain search only. It can't reach site content. 16

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

Where they differ

Instatic and Squarespace get a different status on 17 of the 28 features and the same status on 11. Instatic has 15 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.

Licence
Instatic is open source (MIT). Squarespace is closed source (Proprietary).
Self-hosting
Instatic can be self-hosted. Squarespace cannot be self-hosted.
Vendor cloud
Instatic has no vendor-run cloud. Squarespace has a vendor-run cloud.
Free option
Instatic has a free option. Squarespace has no free option.

Built in on Instatic, a different answer on Squarespace 8

  • Content model in the UI Instatic: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Drafts Instatic: Built in. Squarespace: Paid tier.
  • Scheduled publishing Instatic: Built in. Squarespace: Limited.
  • Version history Instatic: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Custom roles Instatic: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Audit log Instatic: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Extensible admin UI Instatic: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Official MCP server Instatic: Built in. Squarespace: Not available.

Built in on Squarespace, a different answer on Instatic 2

  • Plugin marketplace Instatic: Not available. Squarespace: Built in.
  • Site member accounts Instatic: Not available. Squarespace: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 7

  • Content model in code Instatic: Not available. Squarespace: Limited.
  • Localization Instatic: Not available. Squarespace: Plugin or add-on.
  • Webhooks Instatic: Not available. Squarespace: Limited.
  • Content releases Instatic: Limited. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Real-time co-editing Instatic: Limited. Squarespace: Not available.
  • Single sign-on Instatic: Not available. Squarespace: Paid tier.
  • Multiple sites Instatic: Not available. Squarespace: Limited.

More comparisons

Instatic 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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