A Square Online alternative for a content website with a separate online store
Grigora is a Square Online alternative for businesses that need a CMS, newsletter and online store from $12/month billed annually using Stripe or Razorpay. Square is often the better fit when online and in-person sales share inventory and customers. Current Square Plus and Premium include email marketing, so compare the full plan and processing costs rather than assuming campaigns always cost extra.
Published by Grigora · Updated · Sources and method
Is Grigora the right Square Online alternative?
Grigora is a Square Online alternative for businesses that need a CMS, newsletter and online store from $12/month billed annually using Stripe or Razorpay. Square is often the better fit when online and in-person sales share inventory and customers. Current Square Plus and Premium include email marketing, so compare the full plan and processing costs rather than assuming campaigns always cost extra.
Choose Grigora if you want…
- Your own gateway's rate, not a premium for the free trial
- One price, not one price per location
- A real site with pages, a CMS and directories
- A newsletter included rather than sold separately
- An AI-designed site rather than a Square template
Stick with Square Online if you…
- •Take payments in person on Square and want one catalogue
- •Run a restaurant or shop that needs pickup, delivery and QR ordering
- •Want to start at $0 and accept the higher rate
Square Online or Grigora: the decision in one view
Square Online alternatives at a glance
How the payments-led stores and all-in-one builders compare.
Swipe the table sideways to see every column
| Platform | Best for | Free access | Starting price | Sales fees | Data and site portability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grigora | A site with a store on your own gateway | Free trial | From $12/mo billed annually | 0% platform fee; Stripe/Razorpay fees apply | Posts/content; rebuild design |
| Square Online | Square merchants selling online | Yes; processing fees apply | Free; Plus $49/mo/location | 0% platform fee; US online cards 2.9%–3.3% + 30¢ | Items/customers; rebuild design |
| Weebly | Simple sites on Square payments | Yes (Weebly ads) | From $13/mo billed annually | 0% (Square processing) | Static HTML; blog/store data separately |
| Ecwid | A store on any existing site | No permanent free plan | Starter from $5/mo | 0% platform transaction fee; processing extra | Products/orders CSV; website rebuild required |
| Shopify | Serious online stores | No (trial) | Basic $29/mo billed annually | 0% with Shopify Payments; third-party fees apply | Data/themes; platform features need rebuilding |
| Big Cartel | Artist and maker shops | Yes (Gold) | From $15/mo | 0% (processing only) | Partial |
Pricing as of September 2026. Square Online plans are per location; processing rates shown are Square's online card rates. Verify current pricing on each provider's site.
Sources for the overview table
- Grigora: official reference 1
- Square Online: official reference 1, official reference 2, official reference 3
- Weebly: official reference 1, official reference 2
- Ecwid: official reference 1, official reference 2
- Shopify: official reference 1, official reference 2
Reasons to consider moving from Square Online to Grigora
Consider these trade-offs against your existing setup before planning a move.
The free plan's rate
3.3% plus 30 cents on every online sale. The plan is free; the sales are not.
Per location
$49 a month for each premises. A second shop doubles the bill.
Square or nothing
One payment provider, at its rate. No Stripe, no Razorpay.
Publishing workflow
Check whether Square’s page editor and blog workflow meet your content needs. Current Plus and Premium include email marketing.
What Square Online does well
- One catalogue and settlement across the till and the website
- Excellent pickup, delivery and QR ordering for shops and restaurants
- A genuinely free starting plan
- Phone support, 24/7 on Premium
Where Square Online falls short
- Standard US online cards cost 3.3% + 30¢ on Free versus 2.9% + 30¢ on paid plans
- Paid plans are per location
- Square payments only
- Evaluate editorial and layout flexibility against your publishing needs
Grigora vs Square Online at a glance
The rate column is where the free plan is paid for.
| Feature | Square Online | Grigora |
|---|---|---|
| Plan price | $0 / $49 / $149 per location | $12/mo, not per location |
| Online processing on free plan | 3.3% + 30 cents | Free trial |
| Online processing on paid plans | 2.9% + 30 cents | Your gateway's rate |
| Payment gateways | Square only | Stripe, Razorpay |
| In-person and online in one catalogue | Best in class | No |
| Website and blog | Basic | AI-designed site with CMS |
| Email marketing | Square Marketing, separate | Included |
| AI first-draft site | No | Yes |
| White label for agencies | No | $199/mo plan |
Grigora vs Square Online: feature by feature
A category-by-category breakdown, pricing, AI, design, e-commerce, email, SEO, performance, and support.
How the free plan is paid for
Fit: GrigoraSquare Online's free plan charges 3.3% plus 30 cents on online card payments. Plus and Premium charge 2.9% plus 30 cents. The difference between free and $49 a month is four tenths of a percent on every sale. Grigora charges no platform fee and your gateway charges its own rate.
| Feature | Grigora | Square Online |
|---|---|---|
| Online rate on the free plan | Free trial | 3.3% + 30 cents |
| Online rate on paid plans | Gateway rate, no platform fee | 2.9% + 30 cents |
| Extra cost of free on $10,000 of sales | $0 | $40 versus Plus |
| Break-even for Plus at $49/mo | Not applicable | About $12,250 a month in sales |
Takeaway: Square Free has no subscription fee; payment processing is charged separately, as it is on Grigora checkout.
Per location
Fit: GrigoraSquare Online's paid plans are $49 or $149 a month per location, because they are built for merchants with tills. A business with two premises pays twice. Grigora's plans are priced by site, and Business carries five.
| Feature | Grigora | Square Online |
|---|---|---|
| Plus for one location | Starter, $12/mo billed annually | $49/mo |
| Plus for three locations | Business, $45/mo, 5 sites | $147/mo |
| What a location buys | A full site | A store front for that till |
Takeaway: Square counts tills. Grigora counts sites.
Living on Square
Fit: Square OnlineThe honest category. If you sell in person on Square, one catalogue that serves the counter and the website, one inventory, one settlement, plus pickup, delivery and QR ordering, is a genuine advantage that Grigora does not offer.
| Feature | Grigora | Square Online |
|---|---|---|
| Sync with in-person sales | No | Yes |
| Pickup, delivery and QR ordering | Basic shipping and pickup | Best in class |
| Single settlement with the till | No | Yes |
| Choice of gateway | Stripe, Razorpay | Square only |
Takeaway: For a Square shop or restaurant, Square Online is the obvious online half.
The website around the store
Fit: GrigoraSquare Online's site builder covers a homepage, an ordering page and a few extras with limited design control. Grigora generates a site design and includes a CMS, with page counts governed by its plan allowances.
| Feature | Grigora | Square Online |
|---|---|---|
| AI first-draft site | Yes | No |
| Templates | Template library | Square themes |
| Design control | Block editor | Limited |
| Directories and collections | Built in | No |
| Blog | Full CMS | Minimal |
Takeaway: Square builds an ordering page. Grigora builds the business's website.
Newsletter & email
Depends on your needsSquare Email Marketing supports one-time campaigns, automated messages, customer groups and reporting. It is included with current Square Plus and Premium plans. Grigora includes newsletter allowances on its paid website plans. Compare the correct Square plan, especially if the account uses a legacy Square Online subscription.
| Feature | Grigora | Square Online |
|---|---|---|
| Email marketing in the plan | 2,500 to 25,000 subscribers | Included with Square Plus/Premium |
| Campaign builder | Included | Included with Square Plus/Premium |
| Automation and segmentation | Included | Included with Square Plus/Premium |
| Abandoned-cart mail | Included | Included with Square Plus/Premium |
Takeaway: Both offer email campaigns. Check the included plan and whether POS-connected customer groups matter to your workflow.
SEO
Fit: GrigoraSquare Online covers basic metadata. Grigora provides schema controls, IndexNow and free tools.
| Feature | Grigora | Square Online |
|---|---|---|
| Meta and sitemap controls | Yes | Basic |
| Schema controls | Yes | Limited |
| IndexNow submission | Yes | No |
| Free SEO tools suite | Free tools | No |
Takeaway: Both provide SEO controls; organic discovery depends on content, implementation and local relevance.
Ownership & export
Fit: GrigoraSquare exports items and customers; the site does not export. Grigora exports content and catalogue.
| Feature | Grigora | Square Online |
|---|---|---|
| Export items and customers | Yes | Yes |
| Export site content | Yes | No |
| White label for agencies | $199/mo plan | No |
| Support | Email, priority on higher plans | Phone and chat; 24/7 on Premium |
Takeaway: Square wins on support hours. Grigora lets the site leave.
Explore Grigora before switching from Square Online
Current public product pages and plans, so you can inspect what you would be moving to. Open any image at full size.
Grigora vs Square Online pricing
Square's plans are per location and paid for partly through the rate.
Website, newsletter & store in one plan
Grigora Starter, Pro and Business rates are $12, $20 and $45 per month billed annually ($144, $240 and $540 per year), or $15, $25 and $59 month to month. Plan limits apply to sites, storage, bandwidth, AI credits and newsletter subscribers. Payment-provider fees and optional paid services are additional.
Per location, on Square payments
Current US Square plans checked September 12, 2026: Free $0, Plus $49/month/location and Premium $149/month/location. Standard online card rates are 3.3% + 30¢ on Free and 2.9% + 30¢ on Plus/Premium; other payment methods and international cards can differ. Email marketing is included in current Plus/Premium. Existing legacy Square Online accounts may have different packaging.
Grigora Starter is $12/month billed annually, plus Stripe or Razorpay processing. Square Free has no subscription fee; Plus is $49/month/location and includes email marketing. Compare subscription and processing costs together for your order volume.
The real cost: Grigora vs Square Online
A single-location shop doing $10,000 a month online.
| What you pay for | Square Online | Grigora |
|---|---|---|
| Plan | $0 (Free) or $49/mo (Plus) | $12/mo billed annually |
| Online processing on $10,000 | $330 + $0.30/order on Free; $290 + $0.30/order on Plus | Gateway rate, no platform fee |
| Email marketing | Included in current Plus/Premium | Included (2,500 to 25,000 subs) |
| A real website with a blog | Basic | Included |
| Second location | Another $49/mo | Pro, $20/mo total for 2 sites |
| In-person sync | Included | Not offered |
US standard online card processing illustration. Add the plan subscription and transaction count: at $10,000/month the percentage-rate difference is $40, less than one $49 Plus subscription. Stripe or Razorpay processing also applies on Grigora; compare actual rates, international-card fees and refunds.
Square Online and Grigora: public website references
These captures show each product’s public website. See the feature and pricing sections for capabilities and plan details.
Is Grigora the right Square Online alternative for you?
Where each platform is the right one.
Square Online alternative for online-only businesses
Compare the website, newsletter and checkout workflow when no in-person catalogue synchronization is needed. Include your actual payment-provider fees.
… for businesses that publish
A blog with directories and comments, and a newsletter, beside the store.
… for anyone on the free plan
At $10,000/month, the 0.4-percentage-point online rate difference saves $40 before the $49 Plus subscription. Included features and order volume determine whether upgrading or moving makes sense.
Square Online is the right call if…
You take payments on Square in person and want one catalogue, one inventory and pickup or QR ordering.
Which one is right for you?
Choose Grigora if…
- You sell online only, or your gateway is Stripe or Razorpay
- You do not want per-location pricing
- You want a real site with a CMS and a newsletter
- You want an AI-designed site
- You are an agency that resells
Choose Square Online if…
- •You already sell in person on Square
- •You need pickup, delivery and QR ordering
- •One catalogue and one settlement matter most
How to switch from Square Online to Grigora
Square provides item and customer exports, while website layouts must be rebuilt. If Square POS stays in use, decide how inventory, orders and customer records will stay synchronized before moving online checkout.
- 1
Decide about the till
If in-person sales stay on Square, keep it there and move only the website and online store.
- 2
Export items and customers
Export the catalogue and customer list from Square.
- 3
Start your Grigora site
Describe the business in a sentence and the AI generates a site with its own design.
- 4
Import products and the list
Bring items into Grigora Commerce on Stripe or Razorpay, and consenting subscribers into the newsletter, preserving suppression status.
- 5
Test before changing DNS
Export items and customer records, preserve marketing consent, and decide how online inventory will stay synchronized if Square POS remains. Gift cards, loyalty, saved payment details and recurring charges require separate checks. Check page titles, descriptions, canonical URLs, internal links, image alt text, forms and checkout on the new site. Keep an old-to-new URL map, add relevant 301 redirects and monitor indexing after launch; redirects cannot guarantee unchanged rankings.
- 6
Point your domain and redirect
Connect your domain and redirect old URLs to map previous addresses to their closest replacement.
Why people look for a Square Online alternative in 2026
Square Online exists so Square merchants can sell on the web without a second system, and for them it is exactly right. The trouble is that its pricing and its website were both designed for that merchant, and a lot of people using it are not one.
Free, at 3.3%
Square Free charges 3.3% + 30¢ for standard US online card payments; current Plus and Premium charge 2.9% + 30¢. On $10,000 of monthly online sales, the percentage difference is $40 before the paid subscription. Plus costs $49 per month per location, so the rate saving alone does not cover it at that volume. Grigora also requires Stripe or Razorpay processing: its 0% platform commission does not make payment processing free.
Per location, on Square
Plans are per location because Square thinks in tills. A second premises is a second $49. Every plan runs on Square payments only, at Square's rate, with no option to bring Stripe or another provider.
A store with a page in front
Square prioritizes commerce, ordering and the link to in-person sales. Test its page editor and blog workflow against your content plan. Email marketing is included in current Plus and Premium, so the decision should reflect editorial needs and the complete package.
How Grigora compares
Grigora is a website platform with a store in it, priced by plan rather than by location, on your own gateway rather than one provider's rate.
One price, your rate
Starter at $12 a month billed annually includes an AI-designed site, the CMS with directories and moderated comments, a newsletter with 2,500 subscribers, and a store on Stripe or Razorpay with no platform commission.
Where Square Online still wins
The till. If you sell in person on Square, one catalogue and one settlement across the counter and the website, plus pickup, delivery and QR ordering, are worth more than anything on this page. Use Square Online for that, and read the rate line before calling it free.
Frequently asked questions
Grigora is a Square Online alternative for businesses that need a CMS, newsletter and online store from $12/month billed annually using Stripe or Razorpay. Square is often the better fit when online and in-person sales share inventory and customers. Current Square Plus and Premium include email marketing, so compare the full plan and processing costs rather than assuming campaigns always cost extra.
Square Free has no monthly subscription fee. Standard US online card payments cost 3.3% + 30¢; current Plus at $49/month/location and Premium at $149/month/location charge 2.9% + 30¢. Other methods and legacy plans may differ, and higher-volume merchants can ask about custom pricing.
As listed in September 2026: Free at $0, Plus at $49/mo and Premium at $149/mo, with Plus and Premium charged per location; eligible higher-volume merchants can request custom pricing. All plans run on Square payments.
Square’s current US website-payment documentation uses Square for card processing and lists supported wallets and other payment methods. It does not offer Stripe as a drop-in processor. Verify the options available to your exact legacy or current account; Grigora uses Stripe or Razorpay.
Email marketing is included in current Square Plus and Premium; legacy account packaging may differ. Grigora includes newsletter campaigns and automations with 2,500 to 25,000 subscribers.
Export items and customers from Square, then map fields and confirm Grigora’s supported import workflow before moving the full catalogue. Rebuild the site and preserve marketing consent. If you keep Square POS, inventory synchronization, gift cards, loyalty and existing subscriptions need separate planning.
Sources and comparison method
Published by Grigora, one of the products compared here. This is a comparison of public product documentation and published plans. Recommendations reflect the use cases described; they are not independent performance benchmarks. Homepage screenshots show how each product presents itself and do not establish feature availability.
Check the billing term, currency, regional availability, usage limits and add-ons before purchasing. A content export does not necessarily include the design, integrations or a working store. Migration steps need testing on your own site.
- Square US plans and processing fees
Free, Plus and Premium fees, per-location subscriptions and payment-method rates.
- Square Email Marketing
Email campaigns and automations are included in Square Plus and Premium.
- Square website payment options
Current card-processing and additional supported wallet/payment methods.
- Grigora pricing and included features
Annual and monthly billing, plan allowances, included features and trial terms.
Grigora references: plans and limits, commerce, MCP access, and help documentation.
Compare Grigora with other platforms
Make the switch from Square Online to Grigora
A website that sells on your own gateway, not per location, from $12/mo. Try Grigora free, no credit card required.
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