DreamHost vs Namecheap
DreamHost and Namecheap compared on measured uptime, response time, pricing and features from our own tests. DreamHost scores higher overall.
By Jennifer T. · Updated
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Verdict
DreamHostWins overall
Independent since 1997: three shared plans with renewals printed on the card, daily backups and a 100% uptime credit
The Phoenix registrar's cPanel hosting: three sites for $5.88 at renewal, a 30-day free trial and four data centers
DreamHost wins 4 of the six sub-scores and comes out ahead overall (7.6 vs 6.9).
How do the scores compare?
DreamHost leads on 4 sub-scores, Namecheap on 1. Higher is better.
Which one is faster and more reliable?
Which one costs less?
On renewal, Namecheap is cheaper ($5.88/mo vs $10.99/mo). Intro prices need the listed term.
What does each include?
| DreamHost | Namecheap | |
|---|---|---|
| Free domain | First year, on annual and multi-year terms only | No |
| Free SSL | Unlimited certificates on every plan | 50 standard certificates for one year on every plan, installed automatically |
| Backups | Daily automated backups on every plan, restored from the panel | Twice a week on Stellar (restored by ticket); Stellar Plus and Business add AutoBackup with 6 daily, 3 weekly and 5 monthly copies |
| Free migration | The product page links a migration path for existing sites; terms not read | cPanel-to-cPanel transfers free; manual migration case by case |
| Free CDN | No | Supersonic CDN with DDoS protection, for domains on Namecheap's hosting nameservers |
| Caching | No | No |
| Staging | No | No |
| 20, 40 or 60 mailboxes free for the first three months, then billed separately | Not stated | |
| Resource limits | No | Not stated |
| Data center choice | Oregon, Virginia, Amsterdam and Singapore per the product page and help center; the panel shows where each service lives | Phoenix, Amsterdam, Singapore or Farnborough at checkout; moving an account later is a billing request |
| 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 | 100% monthly on shared plans; one day of service added per hour of unscheduled downtime, up to one month, claimed by ticket within 10 days |
| Performance scans | Automated and on-demand performance scans on every plan | Not stated |
| Phone support | No | No |
| Windows hosting | No | No |
| SSH and languages | Not stated | Jailshell SSH, PHP, Perl, Python, Node.js and Ruby scripts |
| Security | Not stated | Imunify360 (malware scanning, intrusion prevention, machine-learning firewall), KernelCare patching, account isolation, cPanel two-factor login |
| Website builder | Not stated | Sitejet AI website builder and an AI assistant for WordPress on every plan |
| Dedicated IP | Not stated | $4.00 a month add-on |