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To preview a Squarespace site, save your edits, leave the page editor, and open Squarespace’s visitor-style preview. The controls depend on whether your site uses version 7.1 or 7.0. Preview is not public publishing: you can review privately with a password, while public access requires a paid subscription and Site Availability set to Public.
First identify your Squarespace version
Squarespace has different preview controls in versions 7.1 and 7.0. If the buttons below do not match your screen, confirm the version before troubleshooting. The workflow also differs depending on whether you are previewing a new site, checking a change to a live page, or sharing a private review.
Preview a Squarespace 7.1 site
- Save the page. Finish your edits and make sure they have been saved.
- Exit the editor. Click Exit to close the page editor. The full visitor-style preview is intended to be opened after leaving editing mode.
- Open preview. Click the preview icon in the top-right corner.
- Review the page. Animations play in preview. Interact with navigation, links, forms and other controls as a visitor would.
- Close preview. Click the X in the top-right corner to return.
Closing the editor before preview also removes the editing toolbar, giving you a less obstructed view of the page. Preview helps you assess the rendered page, but it is not a separate staging server and cannot guarantee that every logged-out, device or network condition will be identical.
Preview a Squarespace 7.0 site
- Save your changes and return to the main menu. Preview is unavailable while the editor or the Site Styles panel is open.
- Enter full preview. Hover over the top-left corner of the site preview and click the arrow.
- Inspect the site. Follow links, open menus and scroll through the page.
- Leave preview. Hover in the same area and click the arrow again.
Check mobile, tablet and wide-screen layouts
Use Squarespace’s device view to inspect responsive layouts at the available screen sizes. Check each breakpoint for clipped text, overlapping blocks, unexpected line breaks, navigation problems and buttons that are difficult to tap.
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For a second check, open the site in a private or incognito browser window. This creates a logged-out visitor view and can expose embedded code that does not display while you are signed in. Test the site at the actual width you care about rather than relying only on a scaled desktop window.
To examine a wider layout on a desktop, zoom out with Ctrl plus minus on Windows or Command plus minus on Mac. Restore the browser to 100% (Actual Size) before editing; Squarespace supports editing at 100% zoom.
What to test before launch
Content and navigation
- Read headings, body copy, prices and calls to action at desktop and mobile widths.
- Open every navigation item, footer link and prominent button.
- Check that images are cropped as intended and that lazy-loaded images appear as you scroll.
- Submit a test form if your workflow permits it, then confirm where the submission is stored.
Visitor state
- Use an incognito window to check what a logged-out visitor sees.
- Test the built-in domain or connected domain that you intend to share.
- Check pages that are password protected, disabled or placed in Not linked.
Accessibility and interaction
- Navigate with a keyboard and confirm that focus remains visible.
- Check contrast, readable type sizes and tap targets on small screens.
- Verify that menus, accordions, video controls and forms work without editor controls present.
Keep the site private while people review it
Previewing only changes your view; it does not decide who can access the site. Squarespace provides several staging choices, each with different navigation and access effects.
Disable an individual page
Disabling a page keeps that page unavailable to visitors while other parts of the site can remain accessible. Use this when a page should not be reachable at all during preparation.
Put a page in Not linked
A page in the Not linked section is removed from normal site navigation. It can still be reached by its direct URL, so Not linked is appropriate for hiding a page from menus, not for protecting confidential content.
Password-protect one page
A page password restricts that page to anyone who has the shared password. All reviewers use the same credential, so send the password through a channel you control.
Password-protect the entire site
For a trial site, Squarespace keeps the site private by default. To let reviewers browse without giving them editing permissions, set a site-wide password and share the built-in domain without /config. Site-wide passwords are case-sensitive, shared among visitors and expire a visitor session after four hours. Do not reuse your Squarespace account password.
A password-protected site is hidden from search engines while protection is active. If the site was public before, search engines may already have indexed some pages; adding a password blocks further access but does not guarantee that old results disappear immediately.
Share the correct preview URL
Do not send the logged-in editing address. A URL containing /config can send a recipient to a Squarespace login screen or the editor.
- Open the site in an incognito window.
- Copy the visitor-facing address from the browser.
- Send the URL together with the page or site password, if one is required.
For a page in Not linked, enter full preview first and copy that page’s visitor-facing URL. If you use a draft workflow, share the draft preview URL and its password instead.
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Use page drafts for edits to an existing live page
Squarespace 7.1 offers page drafts to Premium and Enterprise customers. A draft stages edits to a live page without changing the live version during review. Drafts cannot be created for collection pages, and site-wide settings—including headers, footers and site styles—cannot be edited inside a draft.
Contributors with the appropriate role can share a draft URL. Managers or administrators can enable sharing and set a password for outside reviewers. When approved, a manager or administrator chooses Publish and replace.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsTreat replacement as a one-way launch step: Squarespace warns that you cannot revert to the original page after publishing the draft. Form-block storage must also be reconnected on the replacement page. Page drafts are therefore a collaboration and approval workflow, not merely the normal preview icon for a new site.
Preview is not public publishing
A preview lets you inspect pages while the site remains private. To make a site public, Squarespace requires a paid subscription. Open Site Availability, choose Public, and save. A public site is accessible from connected domains and can be found and indexed by search engines.
Password protection is limited access, not a public launch: visitors need the shared password and search engines cannot access the protected site. Decide whether your goal is visual review, private stakeholder approval or a real launch before changing Site Availability.
Or skip the browser setup
If you need an image of the visitor-facing page for a review ticket, regression check or handoff, ScreenshotNeo can capture the URL with one request. It accepts cookie and consent banners before capture and removes more than 60 known consent platforms, newsletter popups and chat widgets; each step can be disabled. Bot checks, CAPTCHAs, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads and cache hits are not billed, and the response identifies the result with X-Page-Verdict and X-Billed headers. It also provides an MCP server for AI agents such as Claude, Cursor and other MCP clients, with take_screenshot, get_page_info and capture_pdf tools.
Use the visitor-facing Squarespace URL, not an editor URL. If the page is password protected, the capture request must be able to reach it; do not put private credentials in a publicly shared link.
cURL
See the ScreenshotNeo documentation for all options.
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com -o shot.webpPython
import requests
r = requests.get("https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot", params={"access_key": "YOUR_API_KEY", "url": "https://stripe.com"}, timeout=90)
open("shot.webp", "wb").write(r.content)Node.js
const q = new URLSearchParams({ access_key: 'YOUR_API_KEY', url: 'https://stripe.com' });
const res = await fetch(`https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot?${q}`);Replace the example URL with your Squarespace visitor URL. ScreenshotNeo supports full-page captures, device presets or custom viewports, retina scale, dark mode, custom CSS and JavaScript, selector-based element captures, click-before-capture actions, waits for a selector, delay or network idle, hidden selectors, resource blocking, headers, cookies, user agents, authorization, timezone and geolocation, transparent backgrounds, resizing, configurable caching, signed links, PDFs, asynchronous jobs with signed webhooks, bulk capture of up to 100 URLs per call, usage reporting and an OpenAPI specification. Its parameter names are compatible with those used by other screenshot APIs, which can simplify migration.
Plans include 1,000 screenshots per month free with no card, then $5 for 3,000, $15 for 15,000, $39 for 60,000, $99 for 250,000 and $249 for 1,000,000; yearly billing provides two months free, and every feature is on every plan. Create a free ScreenshotNeo account to start.
Troubleshooting preview problems
The preview button is missing
On 7.1, exit the editor before clicking the preview icon. On 7.0, return to the main menu and close Site Styles; preview is unavailable while either editor is open.
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A reviewer sees a login page
You probably shared the editing URL. Copy the address from an incognito visitor window and remove the /config editing path.
A Not linked page cannot be found
Enter full preview and copy that page’s direct URL. Removing a page from navigation does not remove its direct address.
The mobile layout looks wrong
Check device view and then test the visitor URL in a narrow private window. Look for fixed-width blocks, oversized media, clipped text and controls that overlap at the smallest width.
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A draft changes the wrong things
Page drafts do not include site-wide headers, footers or styles. If those settings must change, review them separately and understand that publishing a draft replacement cannot be undone to the original page.
Launch checklist
- Save edits and complete the correct 7.0 or 7.1 preview steps.
- Check device views, an incognito window and the intended domain.
- Test navigation, forms, media, accessibility and interactive elements.
- Choose disabled, Not linked, page-password, site-password or page-draft review deliberately.
- Share a visitor-facing URL, never the
/configeditor address. - Only after approval, confirm the paid subscription and set Site Availability to Public.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I preview a Squarespace site without making it public?
Yes. Use the built-in preview and, for reviewers, a page or site password. Public availability is a separate Site Availability setting.
Does preview show exactly what every visitor will see?
It shows a visitor-style rendering, but you should also use device view and an incognito window because logged-in state, screen size and embedded code can change what appears.
Can I share a Squarespace preview with someone who is not an editor?
Yes. Share the visitor-facing URL and the relevant page or site password, or use a shareable page-draft URL when your 7.1 plan and permissions support drafts.
What happens after I publish and replace a page draft?
The draft replaces the live page, and Squarespace warns that the original page cannot be restored through a revert. Form-block storage must be reconnected on the replacement page.
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