InMotion Hosting vs DreamHost
InMotion Hosting and DreamHost compared on measured uptime, response time, pricing and features from our own tests. InMotion Hosting scores higher overall.
By Jennifer T. · Updated
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Verdict
InMotion HostingWins overall
Employee-owned US host since 2001 with a 90-day refund, generous disks and US-based support; backups are a paid add-on
Independent since 1997: three shared plans with renewals printed on the card, daily backups and a 100% uptime credit
InMotion Hosting wins 4 of the six sub-scores and comes out ahead overall (7.7 vs 7.6).
How do the scores compare?
InMotion Hosting leads on 4 sub-scores, DreamHost on 2. Higher is better.
| InMotion Hosting | DreamHost | |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | 8.0 (better) | 7.5 |
| Uptime | 8.5 (better) | 8.0 |
| Support | 8.0 (better) | 7.0 |
| Features | 6.5 | 7.5 (better) |
| Value | 6.5 | 8.0 (better) |
| Ease of use | 8.0 (better) | 7.0 |
Which one is faster and more reliable?
| InMotion Hosting | DreamHost | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall score | 7.7 (better) | 7.6 |
| Uptime (published)Kripesh Adwani 365 d vs WPBeginner 30 d; methods differ | 99.97% | 100.00% (better) |
Which one costs less?
On renewal, DreamHost is cheaper ($10.99/mo vs $14.99/mo). Intro prices need the listed term.
| InMotion Hosting | DreamHost | |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest plan | Launch | Web Hosting Launch |
| Intro price | $4.99/mo | $2.89/mo (better) |
| Renewal price | $14.99/mo | $10.99/mo (better) |
| Required term | 12 months | 12 months |
| Websites | 2 | 25 |
| Storage | 100 GB | 25 GB |
| Money back | 30 days, prorated to day 90 (better) | 30 days |
What does each include?
| InMotion Hosting | DreamHost | |
|---|---|---|
| Free domain | Included with the plan (the page shows the domain's value) | First year, on annual and multi-year terms only |
| Free SSL | Yes | Unlimited certificates on every plan |
| Backups | No | Daily automated backups on every plan, restored from the panel |
| Free migration | Website migration handled by InMotion's team | The product page links a migration path for existing sites; terms not read |
| Developer stack | Python, Node.js, Ruby and Git on every plan; SSH | Not stated |
| Security | Malware and DDoS protection, web application firewall | Not stated |
| Free cPanel email accounts; professional email with a 1-month trial | 20, 40 or 60 mailboxes free for the first three months, then billed separately | |
| Uptime guarantee | 99.99% on Power and Pro, with credits described in InMotion's own blog; no guarantee line on Launch | 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 |
| Choice of data center | Los Angeles, Ashburn or Amsterdam; Singapore announced | Not stated |
| Phone support | Power and Pro; Launch is live chat | No |
| Windows hosting | No | No |
| Free CDN | Not stated | No |
| Caching | Not stated | No |
| Staging | Not stated | No |
| Resource limits | Not stated | No |
| Data center choice | Not stated | Oregon, Virginia, Amsterdam and Singapore per the product page and help center; the panel shows where each service lives |
| Performance scans | Not stated | Automated and on-demand performance scans on every plan |
Company facts
| InMotion Hosting | DreamHost | |
|---|---|---|
| Control panel | cPanel with InMotion's Account Management Panel | DreamHost's own panel (no cPanel) |
| Data centers | 4 | 4 |
| Support channels | chat, ticket, phone, email, knowledge-base | chat, ticket, email, knowledge-base |
| Founded | 2001 | 1997 |