Have you recently decided to develop your own website but have trouble making up your mind when it comes to selecting which company you want to host it? There are many options in the market right now, and two of the most prominent would have to be Dreamhost vs Bluehost.
Whenever you make up your mind about one of them, something about the other suddenly seems better. You are then left wondering which one to go for, Dreamhost or Bluehost.
Well, we have a detailed review featuring an in-depth comparison of both companies so that your choice becomes much easier!
Which Dreamhost vs Bluehost is better when it comes to features?
Well, we have to admit it; it’s a tough competition since both companies offer many tools and services. Their plans are strikingly similar and affordable as well. Apart from this, both Bluehost vs Dreamhost offer dedicated hosting options and VPS.
So if they are both so similar, what sets them apart and how will we decide? We have you covered, so just keep on reading.
What Does Dreamhost Offer?
Dreamhost is a well-known hosting company that presently hosts over 1.5 million websites. He is a wonderful choice for bloggers, designers, and small companies, and you will soon get to know why.
He offers two shared hosting plans, and the features you get vary based on the plan you select. However, regardless of which of those two plans you choose, you will get the following advantages:
- A domain name free of cost
- Bandwidth that is unmetered
- Pre-installed WordPress
- WordPress updates are made automatically
- Website Builder for WordPress
- SSL certificate for free
- Daily automatic backups
- Guaranteed uptime of 100 percent
- Support available 24/7
And this isn’t just it. You can also get unlimited website storage, domains, and email addresses if you go for the more costly Shared Unlimited plan.
What Does Bluehost Offer?
If you thought that Dreamhost’s 1.5 million websites were a lot, you would be surprised to know that Bluehost has over two million websites worldwide. Bluehost offers a variety of services, including shared and managed WordPress hosting.
Customers have more options when it comes to selection because they may pick from four different shared hosting plans, all of which provide the features mentioned below:
- For the first year, you get a free domain name
- An SSL certificate free of cost
- Automatic WordPress updates
- WordPress installation by a single click
- Bandwidth that is unmetered
- Access to cPanel
- Support available 24/7
If you decide to go for a plan other than the Basic one, you will also get an unlimited number of websites, unlimited SSD storage, and unmetered bandwidth.
Dreamhost vs Bluehost A Ease of Use Solution
Not everyone who desides to make their website is an expert, which is why it is critical to select a host that provides a user-friendly experience. An easy-to-use hosting provider can assist you in streamlining your website setup process, allowing you to quickly access any tools and services you may require so that your website is operating at maximum capacity.
Well, both Dreamhost and Bluehost understand how important this is, which is why they have spent time working on how user-friendly they are. You experience this when you take a look at their hosting dashboards, control panels, and WordPress installation procedures.
User experience with Dreamhost
With Dreamhost, your user-friendly experience starts at the very beginning. It provides a simple sign-up procedure, and after you’ve done so, you can access your Dreamhost control panel.
Instead of using cPanel like Bluehost, Dreamhost has created its own dashboard.
It gives you access to information about your account, domain, and hosting. You may also set up new websites, customize their settings and features, and access their databases and files, among many other things.
With only one click, Dreamhost will install WordPress for you. However, keep this in mind installation isn’t always fast, and you may have to wait for a few minutes to receive an email stating that your new website is up and running.
The Dreamhost Start-Up Wizard guides clients through the process of creating a website. It will assist you with selecting a theme, creating pages, and entering important information.
But you also have things in your hands since you have the option to use the ordinary WordPress dashboard to create your site from scratch.
User experience with Bluehost
If you are a beginner at this, then Bluehost’s user interface would be a better pick for you. It has a cleaner design that makes browsing between tools and services faster and easier.
The Bluehost dashboard is simple to navigate. On the left-hand side of the screen, you will find a menu that will allow you to quickly access any services or information you require.
Once you’ve chosen a domain, Bluehost offers a one-click WordPress install, which installs and configures WordPress for you.
Bluehost uses cPanel, which gives you more control over the files, databases, and other functions of your website.
When you install WordPress through Bluehost, you will see that the Bluehost menu has also been installed. This is an excellent choice for newcomers who may be intimidated by the WordPress setup, thinking it is too difficult.
You can quickly create pages and posts, manage menus, add themes and plugins, establish a staging area, and much more from the Bluehost menu.
So, when it comes to their user-friendly interface, Bluehost definitely has the upper hand over Dreamhost.
Dreamhost vs Bluehost : Who Wins The Race In Customer Support?
As we mentioned above, both Dreamhost and Bluehost provide 24/7 customer support, making life for their users much easier. You get assistance throughout the entire process, ranging from “getting started” information to tutorials, webinars, and much more.
If these are still not enough for you, on both platforms, you can get access to a member of the support team through both telephone and live chat.
So when they both offer the same thing, how will we know which one is better? That’s pretty easy through a survey, of course.
In a survey, we asked users to rate both Bluehost and Dreamhost on the basis of their support quality, and this is the result we got:
- Dreamhost got a rating of 4.1 out of 5.
- Bluehost got a rating of 3.3 out of 5.
So this survey pretty much makes this a lot clear for us. When it comes to customer support, Dreamhost is the better option, hands down.
Who Ranks Better In Affordability?
If you take a look at the hosting prices of both Dreamhost and Bluehost, you will understand why they are called “budget hosts”. But when you make a comparison of the two, you do realize that with different plans and term lengths, prices do vary. In order to avail the most affordable prices, you will have to agree to a term length of three years.
Now let’s take a look at their pricing…
Prices with Dreamhost
The best price you can get with Dreamhost is with their low-tier Shared Starter plan, which costs just $2.59 a month. But if you’re after value for money, it would be a good idea to go for the Shared Unlimited Package. So, if you do eventually decide to go with Dreamhost, we would definitely recommend this package.
The cost of the Shared Unlimited plan varies greatly depending on the term of the plan you sign up for. To make it simple for you, we have mentioned that here:
- If you sign up for a 3-year plan, you will have to pay $3.95 a month, which will end up costing you a total of $142.20.
- If you sign up for a 12-month plan, you will have to pay $2.95 a month, which will end up costing you a total of $35.40.
- If you sign up for the Monthly Plan, you will have to pay $2.99 for the first month, after which you will need to pay $13.99 a month.
With both the 12-month and the 3-year plan, you will pay the entire amount upfront, and once this term has expired, you will be charged at the rate of $7.95 a month.
Prices with Bluehost
If you’re looking for the cheapest deal with Bluehost, then that would have to be the Basic plan which costs just $2.95 a month. But we will recommend the more expensive plan here as well since we always prefer value for money.
The Choice Plus plan offers much more features at a slightly higher price, and like Dreamhost, the price with Bluehost varies depending on the term length as well. Here, we are breaking it down for you:
- With the 3-Year plan, you will pay $5.45 a month, which will add up to a total of $196.20.
- With the 12-Month plan, you will pay $7.45 a month, which will add up to a total of $89.40.
You will also have to pay the amount upfront with both these term lengths, and after it expires, you will be charged at a monthly rate of $14.99.
There is not much difference when it comes to looking at the prices and terms and conditions of both options. But if you look at the renewal prices, Dreamhost is far better.
So Which One Is Actually Better?
Both Dreamhost and Bluehost are great choices, and it all comes down to what you’re looking for. To make it easier to choose, we have summed it up for you right here:
Dreamhost: If you’re searching for a low-cost budget host with a wide selection of options and quick website loading times, Dreamhost is the provider for you.
Bluehost: If you’re searching for a user-friendly host that’s great for beginners or gives cPanel access at a low price, Bluehost could be the better choice.