Bluehost vs DreamHost: Complete 2026 Comparison
In-depth comparison of these two hosting providers across pricing, performance, features, and support.
Overall Winner
DreamHost
- Wins in 4 of 7 categories
- Top in: Best Value, Best Performance, Best Support
- 3.8/5 overall rating
Category Winners
Best Price
Tie
Both at $2.95/mo
Best Value
DreamHost
Lower renewal markup (171% vs 239%)
Best Performance
DreamHost
100% uptime, 3.8/5 rating
Best Support
DreamHost
Live chat, Phone, 24/7
Best for WordPress
Tie
Similar WordPress features
Best for Developers
DreamHost
SSH, Git, Staging, Node.js
Best for Beginners
Bluehost
Higher ease of use score (9.0/10)
Feature Comparison
| Feature | ||
|---|---|---|
| Essential Info | ||
| Hosting Type | Shared Hosting | Shared Hosting |
| Monthly Price | $2.95/mo | $2.95/mo |
| Renewal Price | $9.99 | $7.99 |
| Renewal Markup | 239% | 171% |
| Overall Rating | 3.4/5 | 3.8/5 |
| Uptime Guarantee | 99.99% | 100% |
| Trustpilot Rating | 4.6/5 | 4.7/5 |
| Trustpilot Reviews | 27,784 | 7,738 |
| Free SSL | ||
| Free Domain | ||
| Free Migration | ||
| Pricing Details | ||
| First Year Cost | $35.40 | $35.40 |
| Second Year Cost | $119.88 | $95.88 |
| Money Back Guarantee | 30 days | 97 days |
| Setup Fee | Free | Free |
| Monthly Billing | — | — |
| Minimum Contract | — | — |
| Technical Specs | ||
| Storage | 10 GB | 50 GB |
| Storage Type | SSD | NVME SSD |
| Bandwidth | Unmetered GB | Unmetered GB |
| Max Websites | 1 | — |
| Max Databases | 20 | — |
| PHP Versions | 7.4, 8.0, 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4 | 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4 |
| SSH Access | ||
| Git Deployment | ||
| Staging Environment | ||
| Cron Jobs | ||
| Redis Available | — | — |
| Programming Languages | ||
| Node.js Support | ||
| Python Support | ||
| Ruby Support | ||
| WordPress Features | ||
| WordPress Optimized | ||
| WordPress Auto-Install | ||
| WordPress Auto-Updates | ||
| WordPress Staging | ||
| WooCommerce Optimized | ||
| LiteSpeed Cache | ||
| Object Caching | ||
| WP Multisite | — | — |
| WP-CLI Access | ||
| Security | ||
| DDoS Protection | ||
| DDoS Protection Level | Basic (SiteLock WAF available as paid add-on) | Basic |
| Malware Scanning | ||
| Malware Removal | ||
| Firewall Included | ||
| Backup Frequency | Daily (CodeGuard on higher plans) | Daily (automatic, not guaranteed accessible) |
| Backup Retention | — | 30 days |
| Backup Restore Fee | Free | — |
| On-Demand Backup | ||
| Two-Factor Auth | ||
| Wildcard SSL | ||
| Dedicated IP | ||
| Support | ||
| Support Channels | Phone, Live Chat, Knowledge Base, Webinars, Blog, Academy | Live Chat, Phone (callback), Email/Ticket, Knowledge Base |
| Live Chat | ||
| Live Chat Hours | 24/7 | 24/7 |
| Phone Support | ||
| Phone Support Hours | 24/7 | Callback system (not 24/7 direct) |
| Ticket Support | ||
| Priority Support | ||
| Support Languages | English | English, Spanish |
| Knowledge Base Quality | 4.0/10 | 5.0/10 |
| Avg Support Wait | — | — |
| Email Accounts | ||
| Email Account Limit | 5 | — |
| Mailbox Size | 0.1 GB | — |
| Webmail Access | ||
| Spam Filter | ||
| Email Forwarding | ||
| Performance | ||
| CDN Included | ||
| CDN Provider | Cloudflare CDN | Cloudflare CDN |
| Server Locations | Provo, UT (US), Orem, UT (US), Frankfurt (Germany), Mumbai (India), Sao Paulo (Brazil), Paris (France), Sydney (Australia), London (UK), Madrid (Spain), Hong Kong (China), Shanghai (China) | Ashburn, VA (US), Hillsboro, OR (US), Netherlands (EU) |
| Server Location Count | 11 | 3 |
| Choose Server Location | ||
| HTTP/2 Support | — | — |
| Brotli Compression | — | — |
| Uptime SLA Credit | ||
| Platform Support | ||
| Drupal Support | ||
| Joomla Support | ||
| Magento Support | ||
| Laravel Support | ||
| Django Support | ||
| Next.js Support | ||
| Rails Support | ||
| Static Site Support | ||
| Control Panel | ||
| cPanel Included | ||
| Control Panel | cPanel | DreamHost Panel |
| Softaculous | ||
| Website Builder | ||
| Builder Name | Bluehost Website Builder | DreamHost Website Builder |
| Migration | ||
| Migration Websites Limit | 1 | — |
| Migration Turnaround | 4 days | 3 days |
| Paid Migration Cost | $149.99 | $99.00 |
| Migration Quality | 4.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| Compliance | ||
| GDPR Compliant | ||
| PCI Compliant | ||
| HIPAA Compliant | ||
| Data Center Certs | — | — |
| Ratings | ||
| Value for Money | 3.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| Performance Rating | 4.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| Support Quality | 3.5/10 | 3.5/10 |
| Security Rating | 3.0/10 | 3.5/10 |
| Features Rating | 3.5/10 | 4.0/10 |
| Ease of Use | 4.0/10 | 3.5/10 |
| Transparency Rating | 2.5/10 | 4.0/10 |
| Suitability Scores | ||
| For Bloggers | 4.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| For E-commerce | 4.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| For Agencies | 3.0/10 | 3.0/10 |
| For Developers | 3.0/10 | 5.0/10 |
| For Beginners | 5.0/10 | 3.0/10 |
| For Enterprise | 2.0/10 | 2.0/10 |
| Policies | ||
| Bandwidth Overage | Unmetered within fair use; excessive use may require upgrade | Unmetered; no overage charges |
| Storage Overage | Must upgrade plan; inode limits apply (200K soft, 1M TOS violation) | Must upgrade plan or purchase additional storage |
| Adult Content Allowed | ||
| Gambling Sites Allowed | — | |
| Crypto Sites Allowed | — | |
| Reseller Hosting | ||
| White Label | ||
| API Access | ||
| Company Info | ||
| Year Founded | 2003 | 1996 |
| Headquarters | United States | United States |
| Parent Company | Newfold Digital (formerly Endurance International Group, acquired 2010) | New Dream Network, LLC (employee-owned) |
| Green Hosting | — | — |
| Instant Activation | — | — |
| Managed WordPress | ||
| Managed WP Available | ||
| Pricing Model | — | — |
| Monthly Visit Limit | — | — |
| Visit Overage Cost | — | — |
| PHP Workers | — | — |
| Plugin Restrictions | — | — |
| Dev Environment | — | — |
| Dev Env Name | — | — |
| Regional Info | ||
| Best Countries | United States, India, United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia | United States, Canada, Netherlands |
| Local Currencies | USD, INR, GBP | USD |
| Support Languages | English | English, Spanish |
| Data Sovereignty | GDPR | GDPR |
| External Ratings | ||
| G2 Rating | 3.4/5 | 4.0/5 |
| BBB Rating | Not Accredited | Not Accredited |
| Advanced Technical | ||
| Inode Limit | 200,000 | — |
| Max DB Size | 5 GB | — |
| Max Upload Size | 50 MB | — |
| Database Type | — | — |
| Elasticsearch | — | — |
| Image Optimization | — | — |
| PHP Switching | ||
| Subdomains | — | — |
| FTP Accounts | — | — |
| Additional Pricing | ||
| Free Domain Duration | 12 months | 12 months |
| Money Back Exclusions | Cloud hosting excluded; Monthly term plans excluded; Domains non-refundable ($15.99 deducted if free domain used); Premium domains non-refundable; Setup fees excluded; Most add-on products excluded; Renewals only refundable within 30 days | Only applies to shared hosting with credit card payment; DreamPress has 30-day guarantee; Domain registrations non-refundable; SSL certificates non-refundable; Add-on services non-refundable; Updated to 30 days as of July 2025 |
| Payment Methods | Credit Card, Debit Card, PayPal | Credit Card, Debit Card, PayPal, Check |
| Auto Renewal Default | ||
| Domain Privacy Included | — | — |
| Domain Privacy Cost | — | — |
| SSL Provider | Let's Encrypt (auto-renewed every 90 days) | Let's Encrypt |
| Dedicated IP Cost | — | — |
| Additional Support | ||
| Phone Support Countries | United States | United States, Canada |
| Priority Support Cost | — | — |
| Community Forum | ||
| Support Outsourced | — | — |
| Object Cache Type | — | Built-in caching (DreamPress) |
| Business & Affiliate | ||
| Affiliate Program | ||
| Commission Type | Flat rate (tiered) | Flat rate (tiered) |
| Commission Amount | $65 per sale base; up to $125/sale for high performers; 30-day cookie; $100 minimum first payout; via Impact.com | Up to $300 per referral; 97-day holding period; monthly bank transfer payout; no earning limits; top earners made $20K+ last year |
| Additional Policies | ||
| File Hosting Allowed | ||
| Proxy/VPN Allowed | ||
| Bandwidth Overage Cost | — | $0.00 |
| Account Suspension Policy | AUP violations may result in suspension or termination; 48 hours to respond to abuse team before suspension | AUP violations result in suspension or termination; content illegal in USA prohibited |
| Malware Removal Cost | — | — |
| Downloadable Backups | ||
| Additional Platforms | ||
| PrestaShop | ||
| Ghost | ||
| Shopify Migration | ||
| Wix Migration | ||
| Squarespace Migration | ||
| Webflow Export | ||
| Editorial Info | ||
| Best For | WordPress beginners (officially recommended by WordPress.org); Users wanting phone support 24/7; Users who need cPanel; Staging environment included; Free Cloudflare CDN; Global audience (11 data centers Oct 2025); High affiliate payouts ($65-125/sale) | Privacy-conscious users (employee-owned, privacy advocacy); WordPress users (DreamPress managed hosting); Users wanting long money-back period; Developers (SSH, Git, multiple languages); Users wanting 100% uptime guarantee; Open-source advocates; US-based websites (2 US + 1 EU data center) |
| Avoid If | Budget-conscious at renewal time; Need Node.js on shared hosting; Adult or gambling content; Require large email storage; Dislike aggressive upselling; Need cheap VPS (competitors much cheaper); Enterprise compliance requirements | Need cPanel; Need included email on basic plan; Need more global data center options; Prefer direct phone support; Need enterprise compliance (no SOC2/HIPAA); Budget-conscious long-term (VPS renewal 150% markup) |
| Known Issues | Renewal prices 2-3x higher than promo ($2.95 → $9.99); Aggressive upselling on add-ons; Limited 100MB email on Basic plan; No Node.js on shared hosting; 4,000+ negative reviews cite cancellation/billing issues; VPS pricing significantly higher than competitors; G2 rating only 3.4/5; Not BBB accredited; Some Reddit reports of downtime issues; $99.95 domain redemption fee | No cPanel (custom panel takes adjustment); Email not included on Shared Starter (only free 3 months); PHP Extended Support costs $5/mo extra; DreamShield security and hack recovery are paid extras; Money-back guarantee reduced from 97 to 30 days (July 2025); Phone support is callback only (not direct dial); Automatic backups exist but not guaranteed accessible; Only 3 data center locations |
| Unique Selling Point | Only host officially recommended by WordPress.org with staging on all WP plans | Employee-owned privacy advocate with 100% uptime guarantee and full developer tools |
| Ideal Customer | WordPress beginner wanting official endorsement and phone support | Privacy-conscious developer or WordPress enthusiast wanting ethical hosting |
| Best Alternative To | HostGator | Bluehost |
| Primary Competitors | HostGator, SiteGround, Hostinger | Bluehost, InMotion, A2 Hosting |
We strive for accuracy, but pricing and features change frequently. Some data may be outdated. Report an error and we'll update it promptly.
Our Verdict
Choose Bluehost if you...
- Are new to web hosting
- Want more server locations (11 available)
Choose DreamHost if you...
- Prefer more predictable renewal pricing
- Want higher-rated hosting (3.8/5)
- Want to run Node.js applications