Squarespace's next chapter promises more powerful tools for building client businesses. But for many designers, simplicity was the reason they chose the platform in the first place.
For many designers, the appeal of Squarespace has never been that it can do everything.
It's that they don't have to.
Hosting, security updates, plugin compatibility, server maintenance. Much of the technical work that comes with managing a WordPress website is handled for them.
That simplicity has helped make Squarespace an attractive platform for designers and their clients.
But after reading the company's latest product roadmap, I'm wondering whether that relationship is about to change.
Squarespace wants to make it possible to build much more than websites.
The question is whether the designers who chose Squarespace for its simplicity actually want to build those things.
More than websites
Nearly ten years ago, Anthony Casalena was already talking about a Squarespace that did more than build websites.
In an August 2016 interview, he described opportunities in domains, newsletters, and commerce.
"We think those things are better together than apart," he said.
That ambition has been taking shape ever since.
But the vision outlined in Squarespace's 2026 Circle Day keynote recap, published Monday, goes considerably further.
Upcoming AI Sections will support React components, CSS libraries, and more advanced custom functionality.
New Commerce APIs will enable developers to create applications that interact with customer information, discounts, and payment plans.
And then there's Forma.
Squarespace's forthcoming product brings websites, applications, and AI agents into one environment. The company envisions professionals creating everything from custom booking systems to automated customer interactions.
Circle partners will be among the first to test it when the beta opens.
This isn't simply about making better websites.
Squarespace is proposing a much bigger role for the people who build with its tools.
More possibilities. More responsibility?
Imagine a client hires you to build their website.
Today, that might involve design, content, ecommerce, and a handful of integrations.
Tomorrow, the same client might want a custom application to manage bookings, a system connecting customer records, and an AI agent handling inquiries.
Those could be valuable new services.
They could also introduce responsibilities that many Squarespace designers have deliberately avoided.
Who maintains the application? Who troubleshoots unexpected behavior? Who makes sure the system continues working as the client's business changes?
And will clients begin expecting these capabilities from designers who previously only built websites?
Of course, there's another possibility.
Squarespace could do for custom business software what it did for websites: make sophisticated technology accessible without requiring everyone to become a developer.
That would be a meaningful expansion of what designers can offer.
But making something easier to build isn't necessarily the same as making it easier to maintain.
And with Forma still awaiting its beta, we don't yet know how well Squarespace will handle that distinction.
What does it mean to be a Squarespace designer?
I don't think every designer needs to start building applications or AI agents.
There's still plenty of value in helping a business establish a professional presence online.
But I do think Squarespace is inviting its professional community to reconsider what's possible.
For some, this could mean larger projects, new services, and opportunities that previously required moving clients to other platforms.
For others, the appeal of Squarespace may remain exactly what it's always been: the ability to do excellent design work without taking on unnecessary technical complexity.
What's interesting is that Squarespace now appears determined to serve both.
Is Squarespace simply expanding what designers can do, or is it beginning to change what it means to be a Squarespace designer?
I suspect the answer will depend on whether the company can preserve the simplicity that made the platform attractive while expanding the possibilities of what professionals can build.
That's what I'll be watching.
