10 Hidden Squarespace Features You Probably Didn't Know About

Squarespace is widely recognized as a powerful and user-friendly website builder that offers a range of tools for users to create stunning, responsive websites. Whether you’re a small business owner, artist, or blogger, Squarespace provides an easy-to-navigate interface with a vast selection of templates and customization options. However, even seasoned Squarespace users might not be aware of all the hidden features it offers.

In this blog, we’ll dive into 10 lesser-known but incredibly useful Squarespace features that can enhance your website’s functionality, save you time, and elevate the overall user experience. From advanced design customization to hidden integrations, these features will help you make the most of the platform.

1. Custom CSS Editor: Make Your Website Stand Out

While Squarespace offers a broad selection of customizable templates, many users don’t realize how much further they can take their website’s design through the Custom CSS editor. With CSS, you can modify almost any element on your website. This hidden feature is perfect for those who want to tweak their website’s aesthetics beyond the default template options.

How to access the Custom CSS Editor
Common customizations users can apply
Best practices for using CSS in Squarespace

2. Developer Mode: Unlock Full Customization

For users who want total control over their website’s functionality, Squarespace offers Developer Mode. This feature allows you to access the platform’s underlying code and make more advanced customizations than what’s available in the traditional editor.

What Developer Mode enables you to do
How to enable Developer Mode safely
When to use Developer Mode (and when to avoid it)

3. Social Media Integration: Easy Content Sharing

Squarespace makes social media integration simple, but there are lesser-known ways to enhance how you connect your website to platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Setting up automatic social media feeds
Customizing social sharing buttons for maximum engagement
Using the social image feature to improve your content’s appearance on social platforms

4. Built-In E-commerce Features: Take Your Online Store to the Next Level

Squarespace’s e-commerce capabilities are well-known, but it also has several hidden features for store owners looking to streamline their operations and improve customer experience. From inventory tracking to automatic tax calculations, these tools can make managing your online store a breeze.

Hidden payment gateways Squarespace supports
How to set up automated email confirmations and reminders
Advanced shipping options you may not know about

5. Password-Protected Pages: Restrict Content Access

Need to create a member-only area on your website or protect a special page with sensitive information? Squarespace’s password protection feature can keep certain pages of your site secure while offering a seamless user experience.

How to password-protect your pages
Common use cases for password protection
Managing user access and privacy

6. Customizable Forms: Go Beyond the Default Templates

Forms are a critical part of many websites, whether for collecting leads or gathering customer feedback. Squarespace provides customizable form blocks that allow you to integrate third-party tools and add more functionality than the standard options.

How to create a custom form with Squarespace
Integrating forms with tools like Mailchimp and Google Sheets
Advanced form settings you may not have noticed

7. Image Editor: Tweak Your Visuals Directly in Squarespace

Another hidden feature many users overlook is Squarespace’s image editor. Rather than relying on external editing software, you can make quick adjustments to your photos right within the platform, ensuring they fit perfectly within your website.

How to crop, adjust, and apply filters to images
Editing image focal points for better display on different devices
Saving time with batch image editing

8. SEO and Analytics: Boost Your Website’s Visibility

Squarespace has built-in SEO tools, but its hidden capabilities allow you to get deeper insights into your site’s performance and improve your ranking on search engines. Understanding the nuances of Squarespace SEO can significantly increase your site traffic.

Hidden SEO settings and tips to boost your rankings
Using Squarespace’s built-in analytics to track your progress
Integrating Google Analytics for advanced data

9. Content Block Shortcuts: Save Time and Increase Productivity

Content blocks are the building blocks of a Squarespace site, but there are a few tricks to using them more efficiently. Knowing these shortcuts can save you time and make managing content much easier.

How to duplicate and reuse content blocks across pages
Managing content block settings and customizing their appearance
Using the block-based layout to your advantage

10. Scheduling Features: Streamline Your Operations

Squarespace offers scheduling features that many users don’t realize can be utilized to manage appointments, bookings, and consultations directly through your site. If you’re a service provider, these tools are essential for streamlining client interactions.

How to set up scheduling on your site
Integrating Squarespace Scheduling with Google Calendar and other platforms
Customizing booking forms and reminders

11.Custom CSS Editor: Make Your Website Stand Out

While Squarespace is known for its stylish templates, there are limits to how much you can customize using the default tools. Enter the Custom CSS Editor—a hidden gem that allows you to modify almost every visual aspect of your site.

What is CSS and Why Should You Use It?

CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) is a coding language used to define the style of a webpage. If you’re familiar with HTML (HyperText Markup Language), which handles the structure of a page, CSS controls the layout, colors, fonts, and overall appearance. With Squarespace’s Custom CSS editor, you can tweak the visual presentation of your site by adjusting these elements directly.

How to Access the Custom CSS Editor

To access the Custom CSS Editor in Squarespace:

Go to the Design section of your Squarespace site.
Select Custom CSS from the menu.
The editor will open, allowing you to paste or write your own CSS code.

Common Customizations Users Can Apply

Fonts and Text Styles: You can adjust the size, spacing, and weight of text across your entire site, or just for specific headings and paragraphs.
Buttons and Links: Style buttons to match your brand’s aesthetic—customize their colors, size, and hover effects.
Borders, Shadows, and Animations: Add subtle animations, drop shadows, and border effects to bring your website to life.
Positioning Elements: If you need to adjust the positioning of elements like logos, navigation menus, or images, Custom CSS is your tool.

Best Practices for Using CSS in Squarespace

Preview Changes: Always preview your site before finalizing any changes. Mistakes can sometimes break layouts or create inconsistencies.
Minimize Code: Only use CSS when necessary, as overcomplicating your design with too many style rules can slow down your site.
Use External Resources: There are many online resources for learning CSS, like W3Schools and CSS-Tricks, which offer code snippets and tutorials for beginners.

12. Developer Mode: Unlock Full Customization

Squarespace’s Developer Mode is a more advanced feature that grants deeper control over your website’s code. While it’s ideal for developers, even non-tech-savvy users can benefit from understanding this mode’s power.

What Developer Mode Enables You to Do

In Developer Mode, you’re able to:

Modify Core Templates: If you want to completely alter a template’s design structure, Developer Mode allows you to access the raw HTML and CSS files.
Integrate Third-Party Code: This feature makes it easier to embed custom code snippets and external applications like analytics, interactive tools, and more.
Create Custom Functions: You can write custom JavaScript to enhance your website’s interactivity and functionality.

How to Enable Developer Mode Safely

Enabling Developer Mode requires more advanced technical knowledge. Here’s how you can activate it:

Go to Settings > Advanced > Developer Mode.
Enable Developer Mode and follow the on-screen instructions to connect your site to a local development environment using Git.

When to Use Developer Mode (and When to Avoid It)

Use Developer Mode If: You want to create a fully unique website, are familiar with coding, or need to integrate third-party services that aren’t supported natively.
Avoid Developer Mode If: You are not comfortable with coding or if you need a quick solution. Mistakes in Developer Mode can break the layout of your site or cause performance issues.

13. Social Media Integration: Easy Content Sharing

Sharing your content on social media is essential for driving traffic, but Squarespace offers advanced features to ensure that your social media integration is seamless and automatic.

Setting Up Automatic Social Media Feeds

Squarespace allows you to display social media feeds directly on your website. This can be a great way to showcase real-time content from platforms like Instagram or Twitter. To add social media feeds:

Go to Settings > Connected Accounts.
Link your Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or other social media accounts.
Add the corresponding social media blocks to your pages, which will automatically pull in recent posts and display them.

Customizing Social Sharing Buttons

Squarespace also offers customizable social sharing buttons that can be placed on your content. You can control where and how these buttons appear (at the top or bottom of articles, for example). To customize:

Go to Design > Social Links.
Choose which platforms to display and adjust the button style to match your site’s branding.

Using the Social Image Feature

One feature many overlook is Squarespace’s ability to define a social image. This image is used when someone shares your page on social media and can help increase engagement. You can upload a custom image for each page or blog post under the SEO tab of your page settings.

14. Built-In E-commerce Features: Take Your Online Store to the Next Level

Squarespace’s e-commerce features are robust, but many store owners aren’t using them to their full potential. Here are some hidden features that can enhance your online store’s functionality.

Hidden Payment Gateways Squarespace Supports

While Squarespace supports popular payment gateways like Stripe and PayPal, did you know that it also integrates with Apple Pay, Google Pay, and even Afterpay? This allows you to offer multiple payment options, catering to a wider audience.

Setting Up Automated Email Confirmations and Reminders

Squarespace enables you to set up order confirmation emails, shipping notifications, and even cart abandonment reminders to boost customer engagement and reduce abandoned checkouts. You can customize these emails to match your branding by going to Commerce > Email Notifications.

Advanced Shipping Options

Squarespace offers more than just flat-rate or free shipping options. You can set up real-time carrier-calculated shipping rates (from providers like UPS or USPS), and customize shipping rules based on order weight, location, and item size.

15. Password-Protected Pages: Restrict Content Access

Creating a members-only area or keeping some pages private is simple with password protection. This feature allows you to restrict access to certain pages, ideal for exclusive content or sensitive information.

How to Password-Protect Your Pages

Go to the Pages menu.
Hover over the page you wish to protect and click the settings gear.
Under the Page Settings, you’ll see an option to enable a password. Enter a strong password and save your changes.

Common Use Cases for Password Protection

Member Areas: If you’re offering premium content (like courses or downloadable resources), you can create a password-protected area.
Client Projects: Use password protection to share drafts, proposals, or private documents with select clients.

Managing User Access and Privacy

You can also integrate Squarespace’s Member Areas with protected content. This allows you to manage user subscriptions, memberships, and more for a fully customized access control system.

16. Customizable Forms: Go Beyond the Default Templates

Squarespace’s form builder is easy to use, but it also offers features that many users don’t fully utilize. Forms are crucial for lead generation, customer inquiries, and more.

Creating Custom Forms

You can build forms for almost any purpose using the form block. To customize:

Add a form block to any page.
Choose from different field types (text fields, checkboxes, file uploads, etc.).
Customize the design and layout to match your website’s look.

Integrating Forms with Tools Like Mailchimp and Google Sheets

Squarespace integrates seamlessly with third-party tools. For instance:

Mailchimp: You can connect your forms to Mailchimp to automatically add form submissions to your email marketing lists.
Google Sheets: If you want to track responses in real-time, you can integrate your forms with Google Sheets for easy data analysis.

Advanced Form Settings

Conditional Logic: You can set up conditional logic that shows or hides certain fields based on user responses.
File Uploads: Allow users to upload files (e.g., resumes, images) directly through your forms, which is great for job applications or project submissions.

17. Image Editor: Tweak Your Visuals Directly in Squarespace

You don’t need to leave Squarespace to edit your images. Its built-in image editor offers a variety of tools that allow you to adjust visuals without having to use external software like Photoshop.

Editing Your Images

With Squarespace’s image editor, you can:

Crop your images to fit your page layout.
Adjust brightness, contrast, and saturation for better color balance.
Apply filters to enhance the overall look of your images, making them pop.

Editing Focal Points

The editor also allows you to define the focal point of an image, ensuring that it displays correctly across various devices. This is particularly important for images that may be cropped differently on mobile versus desktop.

Batch Editing

For efficiency, you can batch edit multiple images at once, applying adjustments to multiple photos without needing to manually adjust each one.

Conclusion:

Mastering Squarespace for Your Website Squarespace is a versatile platform with powerful hidden features that many users don’t take full advantage of. By unlocking these tools, you can fine-tune your website, streamline operations, and elevate your online presence. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced Squarespace user, exploring these features will help you get the most out of the platform.