Squarespace now sells you domain names directly so you can sidestep GoDaddy

Website builder Squarespace is adding an extra string to its bow today with the launch of Squarespace Domains, a service that helps users procure more than 200 top-level domain (TLD) names, priced from $20 to $70 a year.

Founded in 2004, Squarespace has built a solid reputation in the creative realm, with a DIY platform for building and hosting websites and a content-management system (CMS) for bloggers. And from today, anyone can search for their preferred domain across a multitude of TLDs, including .academy, .camera, .pizza, .plumbing, and more.

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Squarespace is also touting WHOIS Privacy as a free add-on for subscribers. This means that when you register a domain name, your personal details will automatically be hidden in the WHOIS public database, something that GoDaddy and other providers charge for. Other perks include a “beautiful ad-free parking page,” and will soon include SSL certificates and free domain-name transfers.

This move pits Squarespace against some major competitors, oldies such as GoDaddy, as well as relative newcomers, like Google, which offers a similar service in the U.S.

In many ways, it’s surprising the New York-based company has not offered domain name registration as part of its package before now, though historically, the company has offered a free domain as part of a Squarespace annual subscription. It certainly makes sense — rather than having to mess around with different vendors, you can now do everything from within the one platform.