A Squarespace portfolio is either a whole site started from a Portfolios template or, more often, a portfolio page: a landing page of featured images or text links that each open a project. In version 7.1 you add one from the Pages panel by clicking +, choosing Portfolio and picking a layout, which you can change later.
The limits are where people get stuck, so here they are up front, as of October 2026. You can add up to 60 projects to one portfolio page. You can't password protect a single project, move a project to another portfolio page or turn it into a standalone page. Deleting a project can't be undone. And in the Squarespace app you can't add new portfolio pages or edit projects at all.
Portfolio page, gallery section or image block?
| Method | What it does | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Portfolio page | A landing page of projects shown as featured images or text links, each opening its own project page | Organising separate bodies of work, clients or series |
| Gallery section | A set of images on any page, with optional descriptions and clickthrough links | Grouping images by subject, theme or series inside a page or project |
| Image block | A single image you can place in columns and rows | Highlighting one piece or trying different caption styles |
These work together rather than against each other. Each portfolio project is built from page sections, so a project can hold gallery sections, block sections and auto layouts. You can't add blocks to the portfolio section itself, but you can add block sections above or below it, which is where an intro line or a contact button usually goes.
The five portfolio layouts
- Grid: Simple puts featured images in a grid with titles underneath.
- Grid: Overlay puts the titles on top of the images.
- Hover: Background lists titles, and hovering swaps the section background for that project's image.
- Hover: Fixed lists titles and shows a smaller image in a fixed position on hover.
- Hover: Follow Cursor shows a smaller image that follows the cursor around.
Grid layouts let you set 2, 3 or 4 columns, the aspect ratio and a Fade or Zoom hover effect. Hover layouts let you choose inline or stacked links, delimiters between inline links, and the animation. Hover layouts put a semi-transparent overlay on featured images, and Squarespace says you can't increase or remove it.
Adding the page and your first projects
- Open the Pages panel and click + next to the navigation section you want.
- Click Portfolio, choose a layout, type a page title and press Enter.
- In the Pages panel, click your portfolio page, click +, then choose a project layout or Add a blank project.
- In the General tab, add a featured image and title, and edit the URL slug.
- Click Status. New projects start as Draft, and only Published projects are visible to visitors.
- Add an SEO title and description under SEO, and a sharing image under Social image, then click Save.
- Click Edit on the project to add sections, then save or schedule it.
To reorder projects, drag them in the side panel. To hide one, set its status back to Draft. Every project shows links to the next and previous project at the bottom, and you can't hide those, only restyle them.
Styling titles, colours and pagination
Project title fonts follow your site-wide heading styles, and which heading depends on the layout: Heading 4 for Grid: Simple, Heading 3 for Grid: Overlay and Heading 1 for hover layouts. That means changing the heading size changes every heading of that level across your site. To style portfolio titles on their own, open Assign Styles, find the Title tweak for your layout and set it to Custom.
Colours live in your site styles under Colors. Edit the portfolio section's colour theme and look for the Portfolio tweaks that match your layout. Pagination colour follows the colour theme of each project's bottom section, so if your projects end on different themes, the next and previous links can look different from one project to the next. Style changes to a layout apply to every portfolio page using that layout, and settings are remembered if you switch layouts and come back.
The mobile check most people skip
On phones and tablets, every portfolio layout stacks into a single column, whatever you set for desktop. Most mobile browsers don't support hover effects, so if you use Grid: Overlay with titles set to show After Hover, mobile visitors may never see your project titles. Open the portfolio section's Format tab and set Show Text to Before Hover to fix it.
Writers and portfolios without images
You don't need pictures for a portfolio. Squarespace suggests a portfolio page with a hover layout for a text-led landing page, with one project per piece of work, or a blog page with a post per piece. If you're thinking of adding a CV as an embedded PDF, Squarespace points out that the PDF format stops search engines crawling the text, so a text block on a layout page is better for being found. For client-only work, password-protect a separate page with a custom lock screen, since you can't lock individual projects.
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My verdict on Squarespace portfolios
I'd use a portfolio page if your work falls into clear projects and you want a clean, clickable grid with each project getting its own SEO title and URL. I'd skip it for a single body of images that don't need their own pages, because a gallery section on a normal page does that with less admin. Plan the structure before you build, since projects can't move between portfolio pages later. If you're new to the editor, start with how to use Squarespace, and when you're ready to tune titles, here's how to change fonts in Squarespace.
Once a portfolio's live, keeping it updated is a task that a little workflow automation can make far lighter. I run AI training and workshops for teams, and help businesses with AI enablement and workflow automation, so the busywork runs itself and people get time back. Most of that work is with SaaS marketing teams and small businesses. Here's how we can work together.
Frequently asked questions
How many projects can a Squarespace portfolio page hold?
You can add up to 60 projects to a portfolio page.
Can I password protect a single portfolio project?
No. It isn't possible to password protect or otherwise hide individual projects, apart from setting them back to Draft. You can password-protect whole pages instead.
Can I move a project to another portfolio page?
No. Projects belong to their portfolio page and can't be moved between portfolio pages or turned into standalone pages.
Why can't mobile visitors see my portfolio titles?
Hover effects aren't supported on most mobile browsers. If you use Grid: Overlay with titles set to After Hover, change Show Text to Before Hover.
Can I edit my portfolio in the Squarespace app?
No. In the Squarespace app you can't add new portfolio pages or edit projects.
