How to Publish a Squarespace Website Immediately

If you’ve finished designing your site and you’re ready for the world to see it, you might be wondering how to publish Squarespace website pages so they’re actually visible to the public. Squarespace doesn’t use a big “Publish” button, so the process can feel confusing the first time.

This guide walks you through everything you need before going live, how to make Squarespace website public, and what to check after launch to ensure everything works smoothly.

What You Need Before You Can Publish

Before your site can go live, Squarespace requires three things. Without these, your site will stay private or show a password screen.

1. A Squarespace subscription

You must upgrade from the free trial to a paid plan. Any paid plan works. This unlocks full site visibility and removes trial limitations.

2. A domain (Squarespace or third‑party)

You can publish on a Squarespace subdomain, but most people connect a custom domain. Either option works for how to publish Squarespace website, but a custom domain looks more professional.

3. Site password removed

Even with a subscription and domain, your site will stay hidden if the site‑wide password is still turned on. Removing this is the key step in how to allow public to view website Squarespace.

Once these three pieces are in place, your site is ready to go live.

How to Make Your Squarespace Website Public

This is the part most people miss. Here’s the exact process for how to make Squarespace website public so anyone can view it.

Step 1: Upgrade to a paid plan

  1. Log in to Squarespace

  2. Open your site

  3. Go to Settings → Billing & Account → Billing

  4. Choose a plan and activate your subscription

Your site is now eligible to be public.

Step 2: Remove the site‑wide password

This is the most important step.

  1. Go to Settings → Site Availability

  2. Change the setting to Public

  3. If a password is listed, delete it

  4. Save your changes

The moment you remove the password, your site becomes publicly accessible.

This is the core of how to allow public to view website Squarespace.

Step 3: Set your homepage

Make sure visitors land on the correct page.

  1. Go to Pages

  2. Hover over the page you want as your homepage

  3. Click the gear icon

  4. Select Set as Homepage

Your main page is now the first thing visitors see.

Step 4: Connect your domain (optional but recommended)

If you want a custom domain:

  1. Go to Settings → Domains

  2. Choose Use a domain I own or purchase one

  3. Follow the connection steps

Once DNS updates, your domain will load your now‑public site.

An image of a man with a checklist on how to edit and publish a how to publish a Squarespace website checklist.

Post‑Launch Checklist

Now that your site is live, here’s what to check to make sure everything works smoothly. Think of this as your “after publishing” routine.

Confirm your site is visible

Open an incognito window and type in your domain. Check that:

  • No password prompt appears

  • The correct homepage loads

  • Navigation works

  • Buttons and forms function properly

Turn off any “Coming Soon” or placeholder pages

If you used a temporary page during your build, make sure it’s not still set as the homepage or in your main navigation.

Review your SEO visibility settings

Go to Settings → SEO and confirm:

  • “Hide my site from search engines” is turned off

  • Your site title and description are filled in

This doesn’t affect how to publish Squarespace website, but it affects how quickly search engines find you.

Check mobile layout

Most visitors will see your site on a phone. Use Squarespace’s mobile preview to confirm spacing, buttons, and text look clean.

Test your forms and scheduling

If you use contact forms, newsletter signups, or scheduling tools, submit a test entry to confirm everything is connected correctly.

Update your links everywhere

Now that your site is public, update your:

  • Social media profiles

  • Email signature

  • Google Business Profile

  • Business cards

  • Marketing materials

Final Thoughts

Learning how to publish Squarespace website pages is simple once you know the steps. Upgrade your plan, remove the password, set your homepage, and connect your domain. After that, run through the post‑launch checklist to make sure everything is polished and working.

Image of a women learning how to publish her Squarrespace website.
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