You can use member accounts to give a person or group of people special access to password-protected areas of your Squarespace 5 site.
In this guide, we'll walk you through the process of adding one site member and assigning them to a new audience with access to one hidden page.
Tip: Setting a password prevents pages from being indexed by search engines.
Note: You must be on the Unlimited billing plan to create audiences and member accounts.
Step 1 - Add an audience
- From Website Management, click Member Permissions under Members & Access.
- Click Add New Audience at the bottom.
- Enter a name for your audience, such as "All Pages," and click Save Changes.
Step 2 - Assign the audience permissions
- In the main Member Permissions window, find the name of the page you want to limit access to.
- For The Public audience, set the page to Restricted.
- For the new audience you created, set the page to Visible.
- Click Update Permissions.
For detailed instructions, visit Creating member accounts.
Step 3 - Create a member account
- From Website Management, click Member Accounts under Members & Access. Then click Create Account.
- In the Account Information section, create a login, display name, and password.
- Optional - Add an email address in the Member Information section, and check Send an Email Invitation in the Email Invitation section.
- Click Create the account.
For detailed instructions, visit Adding and editing audiences.
Step 4 - Assign the member account to the audience
In the main Member Accounts window, use the drop-down to assign the member account to the audience you created in Step 1. 
The member will now be able to see the restricted page after logging into your site.
More options
You can give members editorial privileges and create group member accounts. To learn more, visit Creating member accounts and Adding and editing audiences.
Password-protect your whole site
To password-protect your whole site, follow the steps above, but set all pages in The Public audience to Restricted. Only members with a login will be able to see any content on your site.
Hiding navigation links
Pages in hidden sections can be accessed by anyone via their direct URL, but won't show up in your navigation. To learn more, visit Hiding a page in the navigation.
Squarespace 7 comparison
On Squarespace 7, you can add Member Areas to your site to create exclusive content that's only visible to visitors who sign up for a membership.
Even without Member Areas, you can:
- Add a password to any individual page.
- Add a password to the whole site.
- Add contributors to your site and give them different permissions, including Editor, Comment Moderator, and Store Manager.
To learn more, visit these guides on the Squarespace 7 help site: