DreamHost is one of those companies that comes highly recommended. Indeed, WordPress itself recommends them. DreamHost began as the New Dream Network in 1997, when the founders were still students at Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, California.
The company’s name has now been changed to DreamHost, and it now hosts over a million websites from across the world.
DreamHost offers both basic entry-level shared hosting and more specialised WordPress managed hosting, i.e. DreamPress. They also provide dedicated server hosting and high-end virtual private server (VPS) hosting. Cloud computing and object storage hosting solutions are also available for people who want to host apps online.
Aside from the obvious pricing differences, the key difference between the low-cost shared hosting and the premium DreamPress managed hosting plans is that the latter is geared at website owners seeking faster loading times and overall better site performance. Dreamhost will start you off with ‘unlimited’ everything but when your site becomes busy enough and large enough to cause loading lags, Dreamhost’s solution won’t be to up their game, it will be for you to upgrade your plan, ie. pay more!
DreamHost summary of web hosting options:
Website Hosting
Dedicated WordPress hosting
Email Hosting
Registration of a domain name
Cloud based services
Speed tests utilizing Pingdom over a period of a week with a lightly loaded basic theme showed that Dreamhost loaded at 1.41 seconds, and DreamPress loaded at a about a third of that, averaging 581 milliseconds. If speed matters to you, DreamPress is the best option.
However, using the same testing, Siteground shared, not separate, hosting loading was still lower than DreamHost, at 576 milliseconds. Something to think about.
Finally, when using a feature rich theme, DreamHost again lags DreamPress at 3x slower, so DreamPress would be the preferred option in such a case.
Pros
Officially recommended by WordPress
Unlimited disk space & data transfer
1-click WordPress auto-installer
SSD Storage / Unlimited Traffic
Excellent customer service
97-Day Money-Back Guarantee
Cons
Restrictions on Cheaper Plans
No phone support or 24/7 LiveChat
I think the no phone support can be a real deal breaker for a beginner. Another con is that a restriction on cheaper plans, as noted above, includes no email. It is very difficult if you are starting a business and are not able to have a professional email such as ‘contact@yourbusinessname.com’, instead of ‘contact@gmail.com’.
Perhaps not a ‘con’, but a departure from the hosting providers norms, DreamHost does not utilise the cPanel software to administer your account, unlike many popular shared hosting companies but like most managed WordPress servers.
To manage the domains linked with your account, install WordPress, and use the tools that enable you interact with your server space and databases, you must instead utilise the proprietary DreamHost control panel.
Unless you choose for the more costly DreamPress Plus or Pro subscriptions, you won’t have access to any premium WordPress themes, which may be a turnoff for some.
DreamHost at a Glance
Bandwidth: Unlimited Bandwidth
Storage: Unlimited Storage Space
Uptime: 99.95%
Support: 24/7 Live Chat
Money-back guarantee: 97-day
DreamHost Prices, Hosting Plans:
Shared Starter: Starting At $2.95 /mo*
DreamPress: Starting At $16.95 /mo*
VPS Basic: Starting At $13.95 /mo*
Conclusion
All plans are presently discounted by 47%. Dreamhost provides a no-questions-asked money-back guarantee. DreamHost provides a highly stable platform on which to host your website. Their initial costs may be slightly more than the competition’s, but by being up forward about them, they eliminate any potential for misinterpretation later on.
DreamHost is a top selection and a NetHostingPlans choice for cloud-based web hosting services because to its broad tools, which include excellent website-building software, security settings, a hefty money-back guarantee, and unlimited storage, monthly data transfers, domains, and email.
