DreamHost vs GoDaddy
DreamHost and GoDaddy compared on measured uptime, response time, pricing and features from our own tests. DreamHost scores higher overall.
By Jennifer T. · Updated
We may earn a commission when you buy through our links. Rankings come from the published methodology and sourced data, not from commissions. Disclosure.
Verdict
DreamHostWins overall
Independent since 1997: three shared plans with renewals printed on the card, daily backups and a 100% uptime credit
The largest registrar's cPanel hosting: three plans on a three-year term with a free domain and daily backups
DreamHost wins 2 of the six sub-scores and comes out ahead overall (7.6 vs 7.2).
How do the scores compare?
DreamHost leads on 2 sub-scores, GoDaddy on 1. Higher is better.
Which one is faster and more reliable?
Which one costs less?
On renewal, DreamHost is cheaper ($10.99/mo vs $11.99/mo). Intro prices need the listed term.
What does each include?
| DreamHost | GoDaddy | |
|---|---|---|
| Free domain | First year, on annual and multi-year terms only | First year on every plan, marked with an asterisk whose disclaimer the page keeps collapsed |
| Free SSL | Unlimited certificates on every plan | One year on Economy; unlimited certificates for all sites on Deluxe and Ultimate, auto-renewed through AutoSSL |
| Backups | Daily automated backups on every plan, restored from the panel | Automatic daily backups, with recovery of the whole account from the previous day |
| Free migration | The product page links a migration path for existing sites; terms not read | No |
| Free CDN | No | The page lists CDN and firewall among the included essentials without naming the provider |
| Caching | No | No |
| Staging | No | No |
| 20, 40 or 60 mailboxes free for the first three months, then billed separately | Free email is listed on every plan without a mailbox count | |
| Resource limits | No | 250,000 inodes and 100 GB per account in the hosting agreement; no CPU or RAM figures on the plan page |
| Data center choice | Oregon, Virginia, Amsterdam and Singapore per the product page and help center; the panel shows where each service lives | No |
| Uptime guarantee | 100% in the terms, with a credit of one day of hosting per hour of qualifying downtime, up to 10% of the next renewal, counted from the support ticket | 99.9% per month in the hosting agreement, with a credit of 5% of the monthly fee on request, usable for future purchases |
| Performance scans | Automated and on-demand performance scans on every plan | Not stated |
| Phone support | No | 24/7 chat, phone and email through GoDaddy Guides |
| Windows hosting | No | No |
| Node.js and languages | Not stated | Node.js on every plan; the dashboard exposes CPU, memory, entry processes and I/O controls |
| Security | Not stated | DDoS protection and network monitoring on every plan; a site security suite is included on the cards |