Comprehensive DreamHost Web Hosting: The Good Bad and Ugly

If you want to build a Linux-powered website or you need an Affordable yet competitive shared hosting package, DreamHost Web Hosting should be one of the first places you look at.

However, I see DreamHost as an all-around web hosting provider. But that doesn’t stop them from having some strengths and weaknesses when it comes to the different services they offer.

But then, one of the things that would put you at ease with DreamHost Web Hosting is its long years of experience, which puts it one step ahead of other web hosting services since it has managed to keep up with the trends while still improving on different customer service issues.

Coupled with that, DreamHost has a rich feature set that satisfies many personal and business-related web hosting needs by offering shared, WordPress, virtual private server (VPS), cloud, and dedicated plans. Coupled with that, the plans are fairly priced.

With all these, everything might seem to sound perfect, but that is not always the case with Dreamhost or other web hosting services.

I have done some digging about the plans, the bandwidth, the user experience, the uptime, performance, and some other important features every web hosting service is expected to have to see if it is going to be a great fit for your website needs.

DreamHost Web Hosting Packages

DreamHost offers a great selection of Web hosting options, from shared hosting and DreamPress hosting to VPS hosting.

These packages come with free domain registration and Free SSL. But, these are not the only offerings from DreamHost.

They also offer WordPress hosting, cloud hosting, dedicated web hosting, and reseller hosting.

Below I will be digging into DreamHost web hosting packages and then do a extensive review on based on some performance metrics.

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DreamHost Plan: Shared web hosting

Shared hosting is an excellent option for people looking for a low-cost approach to building a website. You can have limitless data transfers, storage, and internet access while sharing server resources with other websites.

Although it is not a power packed hosting package, but then, shared hosting is an perfect choice if your website does not anticipate a high volume of traffic.

Furthermore, DreamHost provides two shared hosting plans namely Shared Starter and Shared Unlimited, with monthly prices starting at $4.95 and $10.95, respectively.

The Shared Unlimited plan costs $4.95 per month with a one-year commitment. It also comes with email and unrestricted website hosting. However, you are dependent on the other sites that share the server resources with you.

DreamHost Plan: VPS Hosting

DreamHost offers four Linux-based VPS web hosting plans, ranging from $15.00 per month (or $13.75 per month with a one-year commitment) to $120 per month (or $110 per month with an annual contract).

These plans is an upgrade from shared hosting since it comes with resources dedicated to your site coupled with improved performance from the server.

Thats not all; All VPS plans gives you the ability to host unlimited websites, withstand unlimited traffic, and email addresses coupled with free SSL for as many sites as you need.

It also comes with a 100% uptime guarantee and each plan comes with managed services.

What this basically means is; DreamHost handles complex low-level tasks such as updating the operating system for you. However, all plans are limited to the Ubuntu Linux operating system, and the base memory and storage are relatively low.

DreamHost Plan: Dedicated Web Hosting

A dedicated server gives you complete control since you have complete root access and can use whatever software and configuration you choose.

Basically, you are ethe one manning the server and due to this, You should expect a greater performance because you won’t have to share resources with other sites.

Sounds interesting right? Well, that doesn’t mean you will be left alone to do all the heavy lifting, This plan also comes with a 24/7 technical assistance, so you don’t have to worry about keeping your server operational.

Overall, a dedicated server is the only option for demanding websites and webmasters.

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DreamHost Plan: Cloud Hosting

DreamHost provides a wide choice of cloud hosting services that are ideal for addressing the demands of any website.

You can pick from Linux, BSD, and Windows versions ranging from the 512MB RAM server for $4.50 per month to the 8GB RAM server for $48 per month.

Although, all packages include 80 GB of storage and unlimited monthly data transfers, making DreamHost a fantastic choice for cloud hosting services. They are also the co-editors pick for cloud hosting services.

DreamHost Plan: WordPress Hosting

WordPress hosting is the most popular service provided by DreamHost to its clients.

Its tools and technologies are particularly designed for WordPress websites, making it the user’s favorite choice.

Also, WordPress hosting provides strong features, add-ons, and 24/7 support to totally redesign your website.

DreamHost works with WordPress.org to ensure that you are always utilizing the most recent version and that your website is safe. 

DreamHost Web Hosting Review

When compared to the features it provides to its users, DreamHost Plans are noticed to some with industry-standard pricing.

However, pricing isn’t the only metrics we will be looking at while reviewing DreamHost.

Having said that, let’s delve deep into DreamHost’s performance by looking into its uptime, bandwidth, loading time, the users’ experience, customer support, and other performance metrics before coming to a conclusion about how good DreamHost is.

Dream Host Review: Uptime and Loading Speed

With its 100% uptime guarantee and 99.99% delivery rate, DreamHost has proven to be a dependable web host.

Their performance was tested within a 7 days span, and it was discovered that DreamHost not only had an impressive 0.342 second average response time but also a 99.99% uptime.

This means that DreamHost was extremely stable during the testing period, with only one brief outage in several months.

Overall, you can rely on DreamHost to provide a dependable platform for your website.

Dream Host Review: Customer Support

DreamHost has a number of support methods, including live chat (available from 5:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. PT), phone support, email tickets (available 24 hours a day, seven days a week), and a comprehensive knowledge base and community forum.

It also comes with Tutorials, explanations, and other useful information which you can find in the knowledge base.

The active community forum on DreamHost is an excellent place to ask questions and receive responses from other DreamHost customers.

Aside from that, you can submit a ticket or contact support via live chat for urgent matters.

Unfortunately, the chat is only available during working hours, so if you require assistance after hours, you have to submit a ticket and wait.

NB: Typically, tickets are handled quickly and efficiently.

Dream Host Review: Bandwidth and Storage

The Shared Starter plan from DreamHost has unlimited bandwidth not Unlimited space, whereas the Shared Unlimited plan includes both unlimited disk space and bandwidth.

Since these features are infinite, this might be a perfect alternative for individuals who wish to host several websites or sites with large traffic but are particular about the cost.

But then, the physical server limits make your server’s resources restricted and they cannot be extended since they are shared with other users.

Despite this, DreamHost prices are reasonable when compared to other carriers and the plans are generous.

Dream Host Review: User Experience

The DreamHost control panel provides an excellent user experience.

It comes with some colorful icons that provide a modern touch. It also comes with a left-hand sidebar that arranges the major functionality into easily accessible areas.

In addition to that, the guided Setup procedure assists you with migrating your site, updating your domain DNS, and configuring an SSL certificate.

It also makes it simple to install content management systems such as WordPress and Bold Grid website builder to create a website.

Additionally, DreamHost comes with an extensive knowledge base which includes a wide range of self-help resources, such as tutorials, guidelines, detailed documentation and an active community forum where experienced users may assist you with complicated queries.

Dream Host Review: Security

DreamHost provides a comprehensive range of security measures for free. Such as an SSL certificates, firewalls, regular backups, and domain privacy.

DreamHost additionally provides account-level security features like two-factor authentication and password protection. Coupled with that, you can also restrict the number of login attempts by enabling brute-force protection.

However, one of the things that comes as a drawback is it DreamShield feature (their premium security package) that includes virus scanning, DDoS protection, and website monitoring is a Paid subscription feature.

Nevertheless, if you run a website that demands optimum security, paying for Dreamshield subscription, which includes malware scanning that looks for potentially dangerous code on the server and website as well as DDoS protection that keeps your site secure from unwanted traffic, could be a decent investment.

Pros and Cons of Dream Host

While DreamHost is regarded as a All-rounded web hosting services, there are still some features that makes it less attractive. Let’s look into the pros and cons of DreamHost.

Pros: Cost-effective web-hosting service

DreamHost offers a variety of add-ons, such as domain registration and SSL certificates, that you can purchase with your hosting plans notwithstanding the price that you are going for and they are all Fairly priced.

This allows you to customize your hosting plan to fit your website’s needs. 

Pros: Automated Integration

DreamHost offers a simple solution for those that want to utilize a CMS on their website. You can easily

Users may swiftly and simply transfer their website to a new CMS with one-click installation and automated integration of common CMS solutions such as WordPress, Joomla etc

Pros: Comprehensive customer support

DreamHost provides extensive customer care, including free live chat and email help, a callback service for a charge, and a range of other resources such as knowledge base inquiries, system status, tech support, and discussion forums.

Pros: Website speed and uptime

DreamHost guarantees 99.99% uptime, ensuring that your website is operational at all times. You can be confident that your website is functioning as smoothly and effectively as possible when you host it with DreamHost.

Cons: Extra Fee for Advanced Features

Features such as Dreamshield security comes at an extra subscription cost. Security is meant to be pre added to the web hosting package however, it is the same for all packages.

Cons 2:

The started Plan in the shared packed Does not Include Email Hosting

Conclusion

DreamHost provides the ideal hosting package and features for you, whether you’re a novice or an expert user. DreamHost is an excellent choice for anybody searching for a dependable web hosting company, thanks to its excellent customer support, consistent uptime, and fast speeds.

Overall, DreamHost is a fantastic web hosting company with something for everyone.