What moves, what you rebuild, and what stays behind
This guide is built from Shopify's Squarespace migration guide, Shopify's CSV and redirect documentation and Squarespace's export article, all read on 30 October 2026. It is a research walkthrough based on documentation, not firsthand migration testing. Treat every step as something to check against your own store before you switch the domain.
The short version: product data comes across in a spreadsheet you have to edit, customers come across in a second spreadsheet with stricter rules, and almost everything visual (images, blog posts, reviews) is either missing from the export or in a format Shopify cannot import. Budget your time accordingly. [1][6]
| Data | Squarespace export | Shopify path | Effort |
|---|---|---|---|
| Products and variants | CSV from Products & Services, up to 10,000 physical and service products | Native product CSV import after editing to Shopify's template | Medium: column mapping and cleanup |
| Product images and alt text | Not in the export | Add image URLs to the CSV or upload in the admin | High for large catalogues |
| Customers | Contacts CSV; no notes or saved addresses beyond the last physical order address | Native customer CSV import; use Shopify's template headers | Medium |
| Historical orders | Orders CSV filtered by status and date | No native import named; third-party apps such as EZ Importer | Depends on the app |
| Blog posts and pages | WordPress .xml only | Shopify cannot import it; copy manually | High if you have many posts |
| Reviews | Cannot be exported | A review app; some accept a CSV you build yourself | High |
| Subscriptions | Not covered by Shopify's guide | Confirm with both vendors before cutover | Unknown until confirmed |
Step 1: export from Squarespace
Products: open Products & Services, then Products, and export all items. Shopify's guide names the file SquarespaceProductDownload.csv and notes the 10,000-product cap on physical and service products. Customers: export all contacts from Contacts. Orders: go to Products & Services, then Orders, then Export data, choose fulfilled orders only if you want history, and set a date range. [1]
Blog and pages: Squarespace's own export produces a WordPress-format .xml file. It includes layout pages and one blog page with its posts, but not store pages, product blocks, drafts or custom CSS, and it needs a published site set to Public; trial sites cannot export. Only one blog exports, so pick the one that matters if you have several. Shopify cannot import that file, so treat it as a backup and a copy source. [6]
Do not cancel or let the Squarespace plan lapse during this step. Squarespace notes that expired sites may need reactivation before export and content may already be gone. [6]
Step 2: reshape the product file for Shopify
Shopify's guide recommends editing the Squarespace file to match Shopify's product template and importing through Products, then Import. For new products only Title is strictly required, but once you have variants the URL handle column is required too, and a handle can only contain letters, numbers and dashes. [1][4]
| Squarespace column | Shopify column | Fix required |
|---|---|---|
| Product URL | URL handle | Copy it into every variant row; Squarespace fills only the first row |
| Categories (paths like /clothing/blouses) | Type | Replace with one product type, then rebuild groupings as collections |
| Weight | Weight in grams | Pounds x 453.6 or kilograms x 1,000 |
| Price and Sale Price where On Sale = Yes | Compare-at price and Price | Move Price to Compare-at, then Sale Price to Price |
| Visible | Published on online store | Change Yes/No to true/false |
| Stock | Inventory quantity | Strip non-numeric characters; single-location stores only |
| (no images) | Product image URL | One URL per row, extra rows for extra images; URLs must be public |
Step 3: import products, then customers
Delete the two example products in Shopify's sample file before importing. Shopify says to import products first, then customers, then any historical orders, so later records attach to the right products and people. A product missing a variant option can fail to import; add those by hand. Shopify allows up to 3 options and 250 images per product. [1][2][4]
Build the customer file on Shopify's customer CSV template (headers are not case sensitive); the file must be UTF-8 and 15 MB or smaller, and the Email column must be present. Squarespace's export has no country column, so add Default Address Country Code using ISO codes. Accepts Email Marketing takes yes or no; only mark yes for people who actually opted in on Squarespace. Duplicate emails are skipped except the last one, and total spent and order counts do not import. [1][5]
Before importing historical orders through an app, turn off staff new-order notifications or every imported order sends an email. [2]
Step 4: map old URLs and add redirects before the domain moves
Shopify's URLs follow its own structure; its guide gives the example of /policies/ becoming /pages/. Build a two-column sheet of every old URL that gets traffic or backlinks and the Shopify URL that replaces it, then import it at Content, Menus, URL redirects, Import. Standard stores can hold up to 100,000 redirects. [1][3]
Know the rules before you rely on them: a redirect only fires from a URL that is broken on Shopify, the fixed paths /products, /collections and /collections/all cannot be redirected, collection tag URLs cannot be redirected, and query strings may not behave as expected. Remove the domain from Squarespace before connecting it to Shopify to avoid SSL errors, and note that Squarespace may lock a domain for 60 days after registration or contact changes, which blocks a transfer. [1][2][3]
| Old page type | Typical Shopify destination | Check |
|---|---|---|
| Product page | Matching /products/ handle | Variant and price render correctly |
| Category or shop page | Rebuilt collection | Collection contains the right products |
| Policy page | Page under /pages/ | Text copied and up to date |
| Blog post | Manually recreated article | Images re-uploaded, links fixed |
| Retired product | Closest collection or replacement product | Not the homepage by default |
Subscriptions and reviews need a decision, not an import
Squarespace service products can carry a subscription or a payment plan. Shopify's Squarespace guide does not mention subscriptions at all, so do not assume active subscribers can be moved by CSV. Before cutover, ask Squarespace and your payment processor what happens to active subscriptions when you close the store, and decide whether subscribers re-subscribe on Shopify through a subscription app. [1][7]
Squarespace does not let you export reviews. If reviews matter to conversion, pick a review app first and check whether it accepts a CSV you build by hand from your existing reviews. [1]
Who should move, and who should wait
Move if you have outgrown Squarespace commerce for reasons you can name: you need more apps, more checkout options or more catalogue tooling. Shopify Basic is $39 a month billed monthly or $29 a month billed yearly, with Shopify Payments at 2.9% + 30c per US online card sale, and a 2% transaction fee if you use a third-party payment provider instead. [8]
Wait if your store is small and mostly content-led, if most of your traffic lands on blog posts, or if you run active subscriptions you cannot yet move. Those cases carry the most manual work for the least gain.
Launch-week checklist
- Squarespace plan still active; all three CSVs and the XML backup saved locally. [6]
- Products imported as unpublished, then spot-checked for price, weight, inventory, variants and images. [1]
- Customers imported with Accepts Email Marketing set only for real opt-ins. [5]
- Collections rebuilt from the old category paths. [1]
- Shipping, taxes and payments configured and a test order placed. [2]
- Redirect CSV imported and five of the highest-traffic old URLs tested by hand. [3]
- Domain disconnected from Squarespace, then connected to Shopify; transfer lock checked. [1]
- Staff order notifications turned back on after any historical order import. [2]
- Decision recorded for subscriptions and reviews, with a date to revisit.
Questions before you decide
Can Shopify import my Squarespace product export directly?
Shopify's guide says to edit the Squarespace product CSV to match Shopify's product template first, then import it through Products, Import. Images, image alt text and reviews are not in the Squarespace export and must be added afterwards.
Will my Squarespace blog move to Shopify?
Not automatically. Squarespace exports blog posts only as a WordPress-format .xml file, and Shopify's guide says Shopify cannot import it, so posts have to be copied into Shopify manually.
Do customers keep their passwords?
No. Shopify's customer import documentation says passwords cannot be migrated from another store, so you need to invite customers to create new passwords to register their accounts.
How many redirects can I add on Shopify?
Shopify's redirect documentation lists up to 100,000 URL redirects for standard stores and up to 20,000,000 for Plus stores, and redirects can be bulk-imported from a CSV.
Sources & verification
Product details and prices can change. Check the linked provider before buying.
- Shopify Help Center: Migrating from Squarespace Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Shopify Help Center: Migrating to Shopify overview Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Shopify Help Center: URL redirects Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Shopify Help Center: Using CSV files to import and export products Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Shopify Help Center: Importing and exporting customers Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Squarespace Help Center: Export your site content Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Squarespace Help Center: Service products Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Shopify pricing Accessed 30 Oct 2026
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