You've outgrown Squarespace. Maybe SEO is hitting a ceiling. Maybe the design feels stuck. Maybe the monthly bill doesn't add up.
Migrating to a custom site is straightforward, but only if you protect your SEO during the move. Here's the checklist we use for every Squarespace migration.
When it's time to leave Squarespace
- Your SEO has plateaued, schema and technical limits are real
- Page speed is dragging (Squarespace sites typically score 40-65 on mobile)
- Design hits a customization ceiling you can't push past
- Monthly cost ($23-65/mo) adds up to $500-800/year forever
- You want booking, e-commerce, or integrations Squarespace doesn't natively support
Migration checklist
Don't wing this. Follow this exact order to keep rankings intact:
- Content inventory, list every page, post, and asset on the current site
- URL mapping, map every old URL to its new equivalent
- 301 redirect plan, every old URL must permanently redirect to the new one
- DNS preparation, set short TTLs 48 hours before launch
- Preserve title tags, meta descriptions, H1s, and image alt tags exactly
- Rebuild internal linking structure
- Submit new sitemap to Google Search Console
- Monitor rankings daily for 30 days post-launch
We handle all of this for you in our redesign service.
See website redesignSEO elements to preserve
- Page titles (don't 'improve' them, preserve first, optimize later)
- Meta descriptions
- H1 and H2 headings
- Image filenames AND alt tags
- Schema markup (rebuild equivalents on the new site)
- Backlinks pointing to specific deep URLs (this is what 301s protect)
Timeline expectations
Most Squarespace migrations take 1-2 weeks total, content audit and URL mapping first, then build, then a careful coordinated launch.
You typically see a 1-3 week dip in rankings as Google reindexes, then recovery to your previous position (often higher, because the new site is faster and more SEO-capable).
How Elevate handles the process
- Full content audit and URL mapping before we touch a line of code
- Bulk 301 redirect setup with edge caching
- Rebuild every page with preserved SEO + improved schema
- Search Console resubmission and monitoring for 30 days post-launch
Ready to migrate off Squarespace without losing what you've built?
Jacob
Founder of Elevate Web Design. Building fast, conversion-focused websites for small businesses across Canada and the US since 2018.