Site launched while still private or password-protected
- Why it matters
- Search engines can't crawl a private site, so nothing appears in search.
- Fix
- Set site availability to public once launch is approved, then submit the sitemap.
Platform audit checklist
Squarespace SEO audit checklist for agencies
What to check when you audit, launch or take over a Squarespace site, and the platform-specific problems that come up most.
- audit areas
- 4
- individual checks
- 12
- common problems, with fixes
- 3
- launch-day checks
- 4
Short answer
Squarespace manages hosting, the sitemap and robots.txt itself, so an audit focuses on the settings and content an agency can control. Check page-level SEO titles and descriptions, which pages are hidden from search results, 301 redirects set through URL mappings, blog and product collection items with their own metadata, any structured data added through code injection where the plan allows it, and image weight on design-heavy templates.
Platform details reviewed October 30, 2026. Squarespace changes its settings and menus regularly, so confirm specifics in its current documentation before acting.
What's different about SEO on Squarespace
- The platform generates the sitemap and controls robots.txt; site owners can't edit robots.txt directly.
- Pages can be hidden from search results individually in their SEO settings.
- Redirects are created as URL mappings in the site's developer settings rather than on a server.
- Custom code such as additional structured data depends on code injection, which is only available on some plans.
The Squarespace audit checklist
Visibility
- Site availability is public, not private or password-protected, once live.
- Pages meant to stay out of search use the page-level hide-from-search setting.
- Demo or template placeholder pages have been removed.
Metadata
- SEO titles and descriptions are set for each key page rather than inherited defaults.
- Blog posts and products have their own SEO title and description.
- Social sharing images are set for the pages most likely to be shared.
Redirects and URLs
- URL mappings provide 301 redirects for old URLs after a migration or restructure.
- Page and collection slugs are readable and stable.
- Tag and category pages in collections are deliberately linked or not.
Performance and code
- Large hero images and background videos are compressed.
- Injected scripts are limited to those still needed.
- Any custom structured data matches visible content.
Common Squarespace problems and fixes
No redirects after moving from another platform
- Why it matters
- Old URLs return errors and lose the visitors and links pointing to them.
- Fix
- Add URL mappings from each old URL to its closest new page.
Inherited, repetitive titles
- Why it matters
- Pages and collection items left on defaults have titles that don't describe them.
- Fix
- Write SEO titles and descriptions for key pages and the most important items.
Launch-day checks for Squarespace
- Site availability set to public.
- Custom domain connected as primary.
- URL mappings added for previous URLs.
- Search Console verification added through the site's connected-services settings, then the sitemap submitted.
Frequently asked questions
Can you edit robots.txt on Squarespace?
No, the platform manages it. Use page-level search visibility settings to keep individual pages out of results instead.
Does Squarespace add structured data automatically?
It adds some basic markup. Anything more needs code injection, which depends on the plan; whatever is added must match the visible content.
How do you move a site to Squarespace without losing search traffic?
List every URL on the old site, map each one to its closest new page, add those as 301 URL mappings before switching the domain, then check Search Console for errors in the following weeks.
Need a Squarespace site audited?
Send the site, the sections to include and any recent changes. You'll get a written scope and quote before any work starts.
- You keep the client relationship
- Unbranded deliverables
- Written scope before work starts