THE SHORT ANSWER
Export the site from Squarespace as a WordPress file, import it on staging, then rebuild everything the export leaves behind: store and event pages, extra blogs, images, design and forms. Map every old URL, including Squarespace’s dated blog links, and 301 redirect it on launch day. With a clean redirect map, rankings usually settle within a few weeks.
Squarespace is easy to start on and hard to grow on. Agencies tell us their clients leave for the same reasons: limited SEO control, few integrations, and a design that only Squarespace can edit. The move itself is where rankings get lost. A careful Squarespace to WordPress migration keeps them.
Squarespace is friendlier than Wix here, because it has a real export. It just doesn’t export everything. This is the checklist we use.
The process at a glance:
- Inventory every live URL, title and description.
- Export from Squarespace and import on a staging WordPress site.
- Rebuild what the export skips: store, events, extra blogs, images and design.
- Redirect every old URL to its new page with a 301.
- Launch and watch Search Console and the 404 log for a month.
01What the Squarespace export includes, and what it leaves out
Squarespace can export a site as a WordPress file. Know its limits before you quote, because everything in the right-hand column is manual work.
| Exports | Doesn’t export |
|---|---|
| Layout pages | Store, album, event, portfolio and index pages |
| One blog, with its posts and comments | Any second or third blog |
| Text and image blocks | Video, audio and product blocks |
| Gallery pages | Drafts, style settings and custom CSS |
| Text from embed blocks | Page-specific headers, footers and sidebars |
IMAGES ARE ONLY LINKED
On a self-hosted WordPress site, imported images can still point to Squarespace’s servers. They break the day the client cancels Squarespace. Download every image into the WordPress media library before launch.
02Step 1: inventory every URL
You can’t redirect what you didn’t list. Build the full list while the Squarespace site is still live.
- Crawl the live site with a crawler such as Screaming Frog.
- Download the Squarespace sitemap from
/sitemap.xmland compare it with the crawl. - Pull top landing pages and linked URLs from Google Search Console.
- Record each page’s SEO title, description and H1 in the same sheet.
- Note which pages are store, event or portfolio pages, since those won’t come through the export.
03Step 2: export from Squarespace and import on staging
- In Squarespace, go to Settings, then Import and export, and export to WordPress. Pick the primary blog if the site has more than one.
- Import the file on a staging WordPress site with the WordPress Importer.
- Pull every Squarespace-hosted image into the media library and update the links.
- Export store products as a CSV from Squarespace and import them into WooCommerce. Our WooCommerce store builds cover the rebuild.
- Rebuild the pages the export skipped, plus forms, newsletter signups and any booking tools.
Keep the page structure, headings and copy the same unless the client wants a redesign. Changing the platform and the content at once makes it hard to tell what caused a ranking change.
FROM OUR DESK
The import is the quick part. The time goes into images, the second blog nobody mentioned and the store. We ask for a full page list with the brief, so none of those turn up as surprises on day four.
04Step 3: match or map the blog URLs
Squarespace blog posts often live at dated URLs with a blog prefix, like /blog/2024/3/14/post-name. You have two good options.
| Option | How | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| Match the old structure | Set WordPress permalinks to the same prefix and date pattern | The blog has many posts with strong backlinks |
| Use clean URLs | Short slugs like /post-name/, with a 301 from every old URL | You want simpler URLs and can map every post |
Either works. What doesn’t work is changing the structure without redirects. Check a few live post URLs first, because the prefix isn’t always /blog/.
05Step 4: map and test the redirects
| Old Squarespace URL | New WordPress URL | Note |
|---|---|---|
| /about-us | /about/ | Closest match, never the home page |
| /blog/2024/3/14/spring-menu | /spring-menu/ | Drop the date folders if you chose clean URLs |
| /shop/p/ceramic-mug | /product/ceramic-mug/ | Store URLs change with WooCommerce |
| /events/open-day | /open-day/ | Rebuilt event pages need their own row |
Add the redirects with a plugin such as Redirection or Rank Math’s redirections module, then test every row on staging and again on the live domain after launch.
06Step 5: launch and watch
- Copy the email DNS records (MX and TXT) before switching the domain, so the client’s email keeps working.
- Switch DNS at a quiet time and retest the redirect map on the live domain.
- Submit the new sitemap in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.
- Reconnect analytics and send a test entry through every form.
- Check the 404 log every week for the first month and redirect anything missed.
- Keep the Squarespace plan active until images and redirects are confirmed, then cancel.
Moving a client off Squarespace?
Fixed price from $500 for up to 10 pages, full redirect map included, no downtime. Under your brand.
07How long does a Squarespace to WordPress migration take?
| Day | What happens |
|---|---|
| Day 0 | Crawl the site and build the URL sheet |
| Day 1 | Fixed quote and launch date agreed |
| Days 2 to 4 | Import, images, rebuilt pages and forms on staging |
| Day 5 | Redirects tested, DNS switched, sitemap submitted |
| Weeks 1 to 4 | 404 log and Search Console checked every week |
That is a brochure site of up to 10 pages. Stores, multiple blogs and large galleries take longer. Coming from Wix instead? The process is similar, but Wix has no export at all. See our Wix to WordPress migration guide.
08FAQ
Can I export my Squarespace site to WordPress?
Partly. Squarespace exports layout pages, one blog, gallery pages and text and image blocks. Store, event and album pages, extra blogs and the design have to be rebuilt.
Will I lose rankings moving from Squarespace to WordPress?
A short dip is normal while Google processes the redirects. With every old URL mapped to a matching page, rankings usually settle within a few weeks.
Do my images move automatically?
Not reliably. Imported images can keep pointing to Squarespace and break once the plan is cancelled, so download them into the WordPress media library before launch.
Can I move a Squarespace store to WooCommerce?
Yes. Products export as a CSV and import into WooCommerce. Orders, customers and the store design need extra work.
How long does a Squarespace to WordPress migration take?
Around 3 to 5 working days for a typical brochure site of up to 10 pages. Stores and sites with several blogs take longer.
Is moving from Squarespace easier than moving from Wix?
Usually, yes. Squarespace has a WordPress export for pages and one blog, while Wix has no export at all. Both still need a full redirect map, image downloads and rebuilt forms.
Do I keep my domain?
Yes. Point it to the new host or transfer it away from Squarespace. Keep the same domain so the redirects keep their value.
