Squarespace AI is a set of built-in tools that write and rewrite text, generate and reshoot images, build a site from a few prompts, draft email campaigns and check how often AI search mentions your business. Some of it's free to use, while Image Studio and the AI Visibility tool spend AI credits from an allowance that depends on your plan.
Here's what people don't realise until they hit it. On the Basic plan you only get 10 starter AI credits, and they're one-time: they don't roll over and they don't renew, as of October 2026. Core, Plus and Advanced add subscription credits that renew monthly with your billing cycle. So if you're on Basic and planning to lean on Image Studio or AI Visibility, budget for upgrading or buying credit packs.
Which Squarespace AI tools cost credits
| Tool | What it does | Uses AI credits? |
|---|---|---|
| Text AI | Writes from a prompt, or simplifies, shortens and lengthens text you've written | No |
| Clarkson AI chat | Edits pages, products, discounts, campaigns, contacts and styles from chat prompts | No |
| Image Studio | Generates images from prompts, or reshoots existing ones against a studio backdrop | Yes |
| AI Visibility | Tests prompts in ChatGPT and Gemini to see whether your business is mentioned | Yes |
| SEO descriptions and alt text | Suggests missing meta descriptions and alt text, on Fluid Engine in version 7.1 | Not listed |
Writing and rewriting text
Text AI works in blog posts, course excerpts, Email Campaigns text sections, product and video descriptions and image captions in the classic editor. In the blog editor, the prompt field has a limit of 2002 characters. Pick a starter such as Paragraph, Sales Pitch or Blurb, add your topic and click Write. To rework something you've already written, highlight it, open the three circles menu and choose Simplify, Shorten or Lengthen. If Write is greyed out with a negative number beside it, you've highlighted too much.
Set up a Brand Identity first. It's a description of your business plus a chosen personality for the tone, and Squarespace says it improves the quality and consistency of what gets generated. It's also a requirement before you can use the AI suggestions for missing SEO descriptions and alt text.
Squarespace is blunt about the limits. Generated text may not be accurate or right for you, and it may be the same or similar to what another user's site gets from a similar prompt. Its advice is not to publish anything you wouldn't have written yourself, and to edit drafts to add your own voice and details. You're responsible for whatever you publish. Squarespace works with OpenAI, Anthropic and Google to power the tools.
Image Studio and building a site with AI
When you add an image block or a product, click Generate image. New image makes one picture, and Story set makes a set of four from one prompt. You choose the aspect ratio and a visual style, then refine the result with Edit with AI. Reshoot takes an existing photo and repositions, relights and places it against a studio backdrop in the colour you pick. If nothing comes back, Squarespace says your content may have been flagged by mistake, so retry the prompt.
To build a whole site, the Blueprint AI Builder on the templates page walks you through a custom template step by step, and Squarespace GPT inside ChatGPT passes your business name, type, personality and goals to the same builder. Either way, Squarespace AI generates text and images and picks style settings, and you agree to its Product Specific Terms in the process. If you're new to the platform, my guide on how to use Squarespace covers the basics around it.
Clarkson, the chat that edits your site
Clarkson AI chat sits behind an icon at the top right when you edit a page. You can ask it to add or replace images, change text, create and edit products and discounts, draft and schedule email campaigns, edit contacts, summarise your analytics and update site styles. Squarespace is rolling it out in waves, so it may not be on your site yet. There's also a Clarkson AI template under Run a Campaign that drafts a blast email from a goal, an asset and a short description.
How AI credits work
- Trial sites get 10 trial credits for select tools, and they expire when you upgrade.
- Every paid plan then gets 10 starter credits, used once and never renewed.
- Core, Plus and Advanced add subscription credits each month, which don't roll over.
- Credit packs top you up, up to 400 credits at a time, from Buy credits in the AI Credit Wallet panel. Unused pack credits roll over and expire one year after purchase.
- Subscription credits are spent first, unless your pack expires sooner, in which case the pack goes first.
Credit packs are one-time purchases. They aren't refunded automatically if you cancel your account or delete your site, and once you've used any credits from a pack, you can't cancel or get a refund on any of it. If your balance shows nothing, your site may have expired or you may have hit the monthly limit. You'll see your balance next to AI Visibility in the SEO and AI Visibility panel, and the Run Cost field tells you what a set of prompts will use before you run it.
Getting your Squarespace site seen in AI search
The AI Visibility tool is available on every plan, but only in English and on version 7.1 sites. It runs branded prompts, which name your business, and non-branded ones about your industry or area, then shows how often ChatGPT or Gemini mention you and where. Your search visibility score combines that with your SEO score, and a perfect score needs complete alt text and meta descriptions everywhere plus a Mentioned status on every prompt.
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Before any of that, check one setting. In Settings, open Crawlers and make sure Block known artificial intelligence crawlers is unticked, because content that crawlers can't reach is unlikely to appear. After that, Squarespace's advice is plain: clear headings, lists, tables and FAQs, natural phrasing rather than jargon, no keyword stuffing, author profiles and clear about and contact pages, reviews, and a claimed Google Business and Bing Places listing. You can track visits from AI tools in the Traffic Sources section of Analytics.
My verdict on Squarespace AI
I'd switch on a Brand Identity and use Text AI and Clarkson freely, since they don't touch your credits, but I'd treat every draft as a starting point and rewrite it in your own words. I'd run the AI Visibility tool once you've fixed the crawler setting and filled in your alt text, because that's the cheapest win. Skip Basic if Image Studio or regular AI Visibility checks matter to you, since 10 credits won't go far. For what each plan includes, here's Squarespace pricing plan by plan.
Getting cited in AI answers is now part of being found online, and it's a skill teams can learn. 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
Is Squarespace AI free?
Text AI and Clarkson AI chat don't use AI credits. Image Studio and the AI Visibility tool do, and the credits you get depend on your plan.
How many AI credits do I get on Squarespace?
Trial sites get 10 trial credits. Paid plans get 10 one-time starter credits, and Core, Plus and Advanced also get renewable monthly subscription credits.
Do Squarespace AI credits roll over?
Subscription credits don't roll over. Unused credits from purchased packs roll over to the next month and expire one year after purchase.
Can Squarespace AI write my blog posts?
It can draft text in blog posts from a prompt of up to 2002 characters, but Squarespace advises reviewing and editing everything and not publishing text you wouldn't have written yourself.
How do I stop Squarespace blocking AI crawlers?
Open the Settings panel, click Crawlers and untick Block known artificial intelligence crawlers.
