On September 7, 2023, Google Domains was acquired by Squarespace, with all domain registrations and associated customer accounts being transferred as part of the deal.

(The acquisition was finalized following regulatory approval, subsequent to an agreement made between Google and Squarespace on June 15, 2023.)

In light of this development, over the coming months, customer information and domains will be migrated from Google Domains to Squarespace Domains.

In this article, we will walk you through the process and provide detailed information on what to expect.

What is Squarespace

Squarespace is a website creation and hosting company based in New York, established in 2004.

Targeted Domains

Approximately 10 million domains hosted by Google Domains.

This purchase includes approximately 10 million domains hosted on Google Domains spread across millions of customers.

Squarespace Enters Definitive Agreement to Acquire Google Domains Assets - Squarespace

Timing of the Transition from Google Domains to Squarespace Domains

The transition will occur within a few months.

Once the domain transfer is complete, services will be managed through the Squarespace Domains management console.

Impact on Google Domains Users

Basic settings will be automatically transferred

DNS and WHOIS settings will be transferred, and domain names will be updated accordingly.

Billing-related data will be automatically transferred

Any billing currently handled by Google Domains will transition to Squarespace. However, if the domain was purchased through the Google Workspace registration flow, only the domain management will transfer to Squarespace, while billing for the domain will remain under Google Workspace management.

*Note: Customer information and payment details will be transferred during the transition period.

The cost to maintain a .com domain may increase (from 1,540 JPY to 1,800 - 3,000 JPY).

Until now, with Google Domains, if you managed a .com domain based on the Japanese yen, the basic annual fee charged was 1,540 JPY (including tax).

In terms of US dollars, it was 12 USD per year on Google Domains and Squarespace Domains offer 12 USD year at first.

However, when searching for .com domains on Squarespace Domains, you will see 3,000 JPY crossed out and replaced with 1,800 JPY.

This means that the cost will increase by at least a few hundred yen, and potentially by more than 1,000 yen.

Squarespace has stated that it will at least maintain the current domain renewal fees for a period of 12 months, so there should not be any immediate financial impact. However, it is entirely possible that prices could increase in the coming years.

Under the terms of the agreement, Squarespace will honor all existing Google Domains customers' renewal prices for at least 12 months following the closing of the transaction, as well as provide additional incentives to encourage Google Domains customers to build a website with Squarespace and adopt other Squarespace offerings.

Squarespace Enters Definitive Agreement to Acquire Google Domains Assets - Squarespace

Lack of Language Support:

As of now, Squarespace Domains only offers support in English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, and Portuguese. This presents a disadvantage for Japanese and other foreign languages  users as they will no longer be able to receive services in those languages.

However, there is a possibility that Squarespace may provide support in Japanese and other languages in the future.

Required Actions:

Essentially, no specific actions are required.

*If you prefer not to manage your domain with Squarespace, it is also possible to transfer your domain to another registrar.

If you wish to transfer your domain to a registrar that provides support in Japanese, assistance is available through CoDigital. Please feel free to contact us for support.