Squarespace is a broad website platform. Hangwork is a focused portfolio builder for visual artists. The useful question isn't which one can make a website; both can. It's which tradeoffs fit the job your portfolio actually needs to do — and, for most artists, what it costs to keep it online year after year.
The cost difference, in real numbers
For a portfolio, the fair comparison is Squarespace's entry tier — not its commerce plans. As of mid-2026, that plan runs about $16/month billed annually (roughly $190 a year), or $25/month month-to-month. Wix's cheapest ad-free plan is nearly identical, so the same math applies to both.
Now put that next to Hangwork's lifetime option at $99 once:
- At roughly $16 a month on an annual plan, you pass Hangwork's full price during the seventh month — and the billing keeps going.
- On $25 month-to-month pricing, you pass Hangwork's full price in four months.
- Three years in, Squarespace's entry plan comes to around $575. Hangwork is still $99, once.
Hangwork lifetime access is a single payment and is not tied to keeping a plan active. A $10/month option is also available for a lower starting cost, without downloads, and the site stays online only while that subscription is paid.
Plan names and prices change, and vary by region and billing term. Check Squarespace's live pricing page for current figures before deciding.
Hangwork vs. Squarespace at a glance
| Question | Hangwork | Squarespace |
|---|---|---|
| Cost model | $99 once with downloads, or $10/month without downloads | ~$16/mo billed annually (~$190/yr), or $25/mo monthly — recurring |
| Primary job | Image-first artist portfolios | General websites, services, stores, and portfolios |
| Site storage | A free account owned by the artist | Squarespace's hosted platform |
| Custom domain | Connect your own at no extra cost | Free for year one on annual plans, then renews — and only while the plan is active |
| Portfolio features | Galleries, project pages, captions, video, about, contact | The same, plus broader business tools |
| Selling directly | Your own Stripe checkout for prints, editions, commissions, monthly print clubs, and recurring payments — no Hangwork cut | Built-in cart and checkout on eligible plans |
| Exit path | Lifetime access includes ordinary downloadable site files | Content export is available, with platform-specific limits |
Squarespace plan names, features, and prices change. Check its live pricing page and current plan guide before deciding.
What you're not giving up
The worry with a "focused" tool is that focus means missing pieces. For everything a portfolio actually does, it doesn't.
Hangwork starts with the work: freeform walls and grids, project pages, captions, video embeds, an about page, contact details, and a live phone-and-desktop preview so you can see the site the way visitors will. You can connect your own custom domain at no additional cost, and the site is hosted for you.
And you can sell your work. A Store tab builds a product catalog and a Shop page — prints, editions, originals, commissions, or a monthly print club — and each option opens checkout in your own Stripe account. Stripe Payment Links can take one-time purchases, monthly payments, or recurring subscriptions. The money, buyer details, and receipts go straight to you, with no Hangwork cut and no marketplace in between. Prefer to point people elsewhere instead? You can still link a piece straight to a gallery's page, an existing shop, or an email. Here's exactly how selling works.
What Hangwork isn't is a full store backend: there's no multi-item cart, synchronized inventory, or order dashboard — you mark a piece sold out yourself, and Stripe handles the transaction. For most artists selling a handful of pieces, that's plenty. If you need carts, taxes, and shipping rules, see the section below.
The part you own
The ownership model is the larger difference underneath the price. Lifetime access includes downloadable plain site files and is not tied to an active Hangwork subscription. Monthly access is hosted while paid and does not include downloads. Read exactly what happens if Hangwork shuts down.
Hangwork charges nothing to connect a custom domain, but you register the domain itself through a third-party registrar such as Porkbun. A domain typically costs around $10–15 a year, paid to the registrar, not to Hangwork.
Choose Squarespace when you need a broader business platform
This is a real category, and Hangwork isn't it. A gallery, shop, or design studio may need a full checkout with a cart, taxes, and shipping, plus synchronized inventory, scheduling, email campaigns, customer accounts, or gated member content. Hangwork can take recurring Stripe payments for a monthly print club or subscription, but it isn't a substitute for a complete ecommerce or membership system. If that broader backend is central to what you're building, Squarespace or a dedicated commerce platform is the better fit, and the subscription buys tools Hangwork doesn't include.
That narrower scope is a benefit only when it matches your needs. If the site's main job is to present the work beautifully — and offer a few pieces for sale — the extra platform is weight you're paying for every month.
See it before you pay
You don't have to take any of this on faith. Browse the templates to see how the work sits on the wall — then build your own draft in the editor and preview it fully before spending anything. You only pay when the site's ready to publish.
The decision in one sentence
Choose Hangwork lifetime access for a focused, no-renewal art portfolio with downloads, a custom domain, your own Stripe checkout when you want to sell, and everything the work needs to shine; choose monthly Hangwork for a lower starting cost; choose Squarespace when a full synchronized store and broader managed business tools are the point.