DreamHost vs. Bluehost 2025: Which WordPress Host Bundles the Most Value?

If you've narrowed down your hosting search to DreamHost and Bluehost, but can't decide between them, let’s make it easier: Bluehost is the better choice.

Although the hosts are similar, it's in their differences that Bluehost inches ahead by bundling specific features into all its plans. DreamHost either doesn't include those features, charges extra for them, or requires upgrading to its expensive DreamPress plans to get them. DreamHost does come with its own perks, but for most users, Bluehost delivers better long-term value.

However, if you’re still truly stuck, then set aside a few minutes to read our comprehensive DreamHost vs Bluehost comparison below. We'll break down pricing, features, performance, security, and support. By the end, you should have a clear path forward.

DreamHost vs. Bluehost review at a glance

• DreamHost: Best for high-limit entry plan
• Bluehost: Best for features and security on all plans

		Our Pick
Star rating	4.9 AllAboutCookies writers and editors score products based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	4.5 AllAboutCookies writers and editors score products based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.
Starting price	$2.99/mo	$3.99/mo
Money-back guarantee	Yes — 30 days	Yes — 30 days
Uptime guarantee	100%	99.99%
Monthly visits	40K - 400K	40K - 400K
Number of websites	25 - 100	10 - 100
Storage	25 - 100 GB NVMe	10 - 100 GB NVMe
Free SSL certificate	On all plans	On all plans
Free domain for a year	On all plans	On all plans
Learn more	Get DreamHost Read DreamHost Review	Get Bluehost Read Bluehost Review

DreamHost pros and cons

Not too long ago, DreamHost completely revamped its WordPress plans. To anyone who follows the web hosting industry and has an understanding of the major players and their offerings, it was obvious that the restructuring was closely modeled after Bluehost. You can even see it in the comparison table above. However, DreamHost made a notable power move on its entry-level plan by offering 2.5 times more storage space and 2.5 times higher website limits.

DreamHost didn’t stop there, though. While both hosts offer an AI website builder, DreamHost has an additional service where they will literally build your first site for you. It doesn’t get any easier than that.

Of course, DreamHost is not without its downsides — just that those are easy to miss amidst the sea of features. Two notable ones are that no DreamHost plan includes a CDN, nor does it offer the ability to launch a staging site. These are reserved for DreamHost’s expensive DreamPress plans. With Bluehost, you get both, even on the cheapest plan.

Bluehost pros and cons

At this point, you already have some idea of the advantages and disadvantages that Bluehost offers over DreamHost. The two big pros are that you get a CDN and staging sites on all plans, but there is also a third one that we haven’t touched upon yet: security. Bluehost includes malware scanning on all plans and adds malware removal on the third tier. In contrast, DreamHost doesn’t add scanning until the tier two plan, and even then, it’s limited to one scan per month (unless you buy an add-on).

Another area where Bluehost excels is email. Both hosts offer paid, professional email services, but only Bluehost provides free email on top of it.

On the downside, Bluehost’s Starter plan has lower storage and website limits, and its documentation is often unclear. Even while conducting research for this analysis, I found myself needing to contact Bluehost customer support to clarify contradictions in its marketing materials.

Which web hosting service has the best core features?

This is a close call because both hosts have advantages over each other, but in the end, Bluehost is the winner.

		Our Pick
Number of contributors	User roles supported - no hard cap	User roles supported - no hard cap
Websites per account	25 - 100	10 - 100
Storage available	25 - 100 GB NVMe	10 - 100 GB NVMe
Bandwidth	Unmetered	Not specified
Monthly visits	40K - 400K	40K - 400K
Staging environment	No*	On all plans
Migration assistance	On all plans - free via plugin + paid	On all plans - free via transfer wizard + paid
Email	20 - 60 boxes per account - free for 3 months	5 - unlimited boxes per account
Control panel	On all plans - DreamHost panel	On all plans - Bluehost account manager + cPanel
Website builder	On all plans - AI-powered**	On all plans - AI-powered
Hosting types available	Shared / WordPress (unmanaged + managed) / ecommerce / cloud / managed VPS / dedicated server / AI website builder	Shared / WordPress / WooCommerce / cloud / VPS (unmanaged + managed) / dedicated server / email-only
Learn more	Get DreamHost Read DreamHost Review	Get Bluehost Read Bluehost Review

The fact that Bluehost gives you the ability to build staging sites beats out DreamHost’s extra storage space on the entry plan. Staging sites let you test changes on a clone of your live website before pushing them public. Almost any website can benefit from this. Extra storage space is nice, but unless you really need it, it’s not as practical.

The same applies to DreamHost's build-a-site-for-you service. It's convenient to have, but the long-term value of that is much less than having ongoing free email accounts. A professional email address (me@mywebsite.com) is essential for business credibility. While both hosts offer advanced email services as paid add-ons, Bluehost also includes a free email address with all plans.

Which web host has the best performance and reliability?

Based on our testing, DreamHost has better overall performance and reliability than Bluehost. It maintained a perfect 100% uptime throughout our testing period and achieved faster average FCP and LCP scores, which measure the speed at which the first and largest elements on a web page load.

	Our Pick
Uptime guarantee	100%	99.99%
Tested uptime	100%	96.358%
Average performance score	98	93
Average FCP	0.43 seconds	0.6 seconds
Average LCP	1.13 seconds	1.4 seconds
Learn more	Get DreamHost Read DreamHost Review	Get Bluehost Read Bluehost Review

DreamHost delivered notably better performance across all key metrics in our testing. It maintained a perfect 100% uptime compared to Bluehost's 96.358%, which falls short of even Bluehost's own 99.99% uptime guarantee. If your site goes down, you can lose visitors, sales, and search engine rankings, so this is a meaningful difference.

The performance gap isn't massive, and for most users, the difference between 0.43 and 0.6 seconds won't make or break their site. However, if you're running a content-heavy site, an online store, or any other site where speed impacts conversions, these incremental improvements can add up.

At the same time, our performance testing should be weighed against other factors. For example, the fact that Bluehost includes a CDN can help close the speed gap by serving content from servers closer to your visitors.

Which web host is the better value?

Given the hosts’ similar price points and Bluehost’s inclusion of a CDN, staging sites, and more comprehensive security on all plans, it’s fair to say that you get more bang for your buck with Bluehost.

		Our Pick
Price range	$2.99–$71.95/mo	$3.99-$14.99/mo
Best value plan	Growth for $5.99/mo	Business for $6.99/mo
Money-back guarantee	Yes — 30 days	Yes — 30 days
Free domain for a year	On all plans	On all plans
Free CDN	No*	On all plans
Free SSL	On all plans	On all plans
Learn more	Get DreamHost Read DreamHost Review	Get Bluehost Read Bluehost Review

DreamHost plans

DreamHost's unmanaged WordPress hosting plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee and are packed with features across all tiers.

Every plan includes: a 100% uptime guarantee, an AI website builder, a free domain in the first year, a site migration tool, unmetered bandwidth, and managed WordPress updates.

You'll also get built-in traffic analytics and a free handcrafted starter website. Security is covered with unlimited free SSL certificates, a web application firewall, DDoS protection, and daily automated backups with one-click backup restore. DreamHost also provides 24/7 chat support. Phone support is available by paid request.

• Launch: 25 websites with 25 GB NVMe SSD storage, 40,000 monthly visits, and 3 free months of email with 20 mailboxes
• Growth: 50 websites with 50 GB NVMe SSD storage, 200,000 monthly visits, and 3 free months of email with 40 mailboxes
• Scale: 100 websites with 100 GB NVMe SSD storage, 400,000 monthly visits, and 3 free months of email with 60 mailboxes

Bluehost plans

Bluehost's managed WordPress hosting plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee and include the following on all plans: a 99.99% uptime guarantee, AI site creation tools, a free domain in the first year, a site migration wizard, staging sites, a free CDN, and managed WordPress updates.

Security is comprehensive with free SSL certificates, free malware scanning, a web application firewall, DDoS protection, and weekly website backups. Support includes 24/7 chat, with tiers two and three adding phone support as well.

• Starter: 10 websites with 10 GB NVMe storage, up to 40,000 visits per month
• Business: 50 websites with 50 GB NVMe storage, up to 200,000 visits per month, malware detection/removal (beyond basic scanning), and free domain privacy for the first year
• eCommerce Essentials: 100 websites with 100 GB NVMe storage, up to 400,000 visits per month, everything in Business + ecommerce tools like secure payment processing, paid course functionality, affiliate program, and more

Which web host has the best security features?

Bluehost takes the crown when it comes to security.

		Our Pick
Malware scanning	Starting from Growth plan*
Firewall protection
DDoS protection
Backup frequency	Daily	Weekly**
Other	Free domain privacy	Domain privacy included on higher tiers
Learn more	Get DreamHost Read DreamHost Review	Get Bluehost Read Bluehost Review

Both hosts cover the fundamentals, including firewall protection and DDoS protection, across all plans. However, Bluehost pulls ahead with malware scanning included on every plan at no extra cost. DreamHost only includes its free DreamShield scan starting from the Growth plan, and it’s limited to one scan per month. If you're on the Launch plan, you get no malware scanning unless you pay for the DreamShield Protect add-on.

Malware scanning detects infected files before they compromise your site or spread to visitors. The fact that DreamHost's entry-level plan completely lacks this protection while Bluehost includes it on all tiers is a significant plus for Bluehost.

DreamHost does have one advantage over Bluehost, though, which is that all DreamHost plans include daily automated backups (versus Bluehost's weekly). However, that's less important than malware protection. Plus, if you sign up for one of Bluehost's two higher plans, you'll automatically get a free one-year subscription to CodeGuard, which includes daily backups.

Which web host has the best support and reputation?

DreamHost nudges out a win in the support and reputation department.

	Our Pick
24/7 customer support
Support options	Live chat, tickets, callback service for an additional fee, contact form, knowledge base, video tutorials	Live chat, phone, knowledge base, online courses, video tutorials
Trustpilot score	4.7	4.6
G2 rating	4.0	3.4
Capterra rating	4.3*	3.6
Learn more	Get DreamHost Read DreamHost Review	Get Bluehost Read Bluehost Review

Both hosts offer 24/7 chat support, but beyond that, their support and reputation are actually one of the most divergent comparison areas.

For instance, Bluehost adds phone support to its chat support starting with the tier two Business plan, whereas DreamHost doesn’t include phone support at all. However, DreamHost has a pay-per-call system where you can request a callback for a fee.[1] This might be off-putting if you’re someone who really prefers to get help over the phone, but on the entry-level plan, it at least gives you that option — even if you have to pay for it.

Another strong comparison point is consistency. I can’t count how many times I’ve had to start a chat with Bluehost’s customer support to clear up contradicting statements on the same page. I’ve never had to do that with DreamHost.

In terms of online sentiment, DreamHost has overall higher ratings on the major review sites, though notably, many of the 1-star reviews mention poor customer support. In contrast, Bluehost’s 1-star reviews tend to be more about how the company rips you off with renewal rates and surprise fees. On Reddit, users have mixed opinions about DreamHost, but the Bluehost rants are overwhelmingly negative.[2][3]

Top alternatives

DreamHost and Bluehost have a lot to offer, but they might not be your cup of tea — and that’s perfectly okay. There is no shortage of hosting options; good alternatives to both of them exist. Three that you might want to consider are:

Hostinger: This is a popular budget hosting provider that has its own custom control panel and provides many of the same features as DreamHost and Bluehost. It’s also priced similarly and offers 4-year contracts to lock in low promo rates for a long time.

Learn more in our Hostinger review.

IONOS: Known for its aggressively priced $1 per month promo rates, IONOS lumps in AI tools, email inboxes, malware scanning, and automatic backups on all plans. IONOS also has a unique free domain offer, where it’s for the length of your initial contract, instead of only the first year.

Learn more in our IONOS review.

UltaHost: A rapidly growing host that combines competitive pricing with AI-powered tools and generous resource limits. UltaHost includes features like NVMe storage, free backups, malware scanning, and a website builder on all plans.

Learn more in our UltaHost review.

DreamHost vs Bluehost: Which is better?

All things considered, as impressive as DreamHost is, Bluehost stands taller on the hosting podium. Given its comparable pricing and the comprehensive features included across plans, Bluehost is the better choice for most users.

		Our Pick
Value
Core features
Performance and reliability
Security
Support and reputation
Learn more	Get DreamHost Read DreamHost Review	Get Bluehost Read Bluehost Review

While DreamHost offers superior performance metrics and more generous storage allocations on its tier one plan, Bluehost's inclusion of essential features — malware scanning, staging sites, a CDN, and free email — on even its cheapest plan makes it the more practical option.

That said, DreamHost is still a solid choice in specific scenarios. If raw performance is your top priority and you're willing to work within its limitations, DreamHost delivers faster load times and perfect uptime. It's particularly appealing for users who don't need email hosting and value DreamHost's unique site-building service.

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