--- title: "ScalaHosting vs DreamHost: which is better in 2026?" url: "https://hostidea.com/compare/dreamhost-vs-scalahosting" canonical: "https://hostidea.com/compare/dreamhost-vs-scalahosting" author: "Jennifer T." generated: "2026-10-15" note: "Markdown twin generated at build time from the same content as the HTML page. The HTML page is canonical." --- # ScalaHosting vs DreamHost ScalaHosting and DreamHost compared on measured uptime, response time, pricing and features from our own tests. ScalaHosting scores higher overall. By [Jennifer T.](https://hostidea.com/authors/jennifer-t) ยท Updated Oct 14, 2026 We may earn a commission when you buy through our links. Rankings come from the published methodology and sourced data, not from commissions. [Disclosure](https://hostidea.com/disclosure). ## Verdict [8.1 out of 10](https://hostidea.com/methodology#scoring) [ScalaHosting](https://hostidea.com/reviews/scalahosting)Wins overall Dallas and Sofia host with its own SPanel, an anytime prorated refund and a credit table that reaches 100 percent [7.6 out of 10](https://hostidea.com/methodology#scoring) [DreamHost](https://hostidea.com/reviews/dreamhost) Independent since 1997: three shared plans with renewals printed on the card, daily backups and a 100% uptime credit ScalaHosting wins 5 of the six sub-scores and comes out ahead overall (8.1 vs 7.6). ## How do the scores compare? ScalaHosting leads on 5 sub-scores, DreamHost on 1. Higher is better. | | [ScalaHosting](https://hostidea.com/reviews/scalahosting) | [DreamHost](https://hostidea.com/reviews/dreamhost) | | --- | --- | --- | | Performance | 8.0 | 7.5 | | Uptime | 8.5 | 8.0 | | Support | 8.5 | 7.0 | | Features | 8.0 | 7.5 | | Value | 7.5 | 8.0 | | Ease of use | 7.5 | 7.0 | ## Which one is faster and more reliable? | | [ScalaHosting](https://hostidea.com/reviews/scalahosting) | [DreamHost](https://hostidea.com/reviews/dreamhost) | | --- | --- | --- | | Overall score | 8.1 | 7.6 | | Uptime (published)Kripesh Adwani 365 d vs WPBeginner 30 d; methods differ | 99.99% | 100.00% | | Response time (published)WPBeginner vs WPBeginner; methods differ | 526 ms | 658 ms | ## Which one costs less? On renewal, DreamHost is cheaper ($10.99/mo vs $11.95/mo). Intro prices need the listed term. Prices verified Oct 13, 2026 (ScalaHosting) and Oct 14, 2026 (DreamHost). USD. | | [ScalaHosting](https://hostidea.com/reviews/scalahosting) | [DreamHost](https://hostidea.com/reviews/dreamhost) | | --- | --- | --- | | Cheapest plan | Mini | Web Hosting Launch | | Intro price | $2.95/mo | $2.89/mo | | Renewal price | $11.95/mo | $10.99/mo | | Required term | 36 months | 12 months | | Websites | 1 | 25 | | Storage | 10 GB | 25 GB | | Money back | 30 days, then prorated at any time | 30 days | ## What does each include? | | [ScalaHosting](https://hostidea.com/reviews/scalahosting) | [DreamHost](https://hostidea.com/reviews/dreamhost) | | --- | --- | --- | | Free domain | Start, Advanced and Entry Cloud; not on Mini | First year, on annual and multi-year terms only | | Free SSL | Yes | Unlimited certificates on every plan | | Automated backups | Daily, 7 restore points kept for the last 7 days | Not stated | | Free migration | Website and email migration | The product page links a migration path for existing sites; terms not read | | Control panel | SPanel (free, with SShield security and spam protection) or cPanel | Not stated | | CDN | CDN integration | Not stated | | WP-CLI and SSH | Yes | Not stated | | Malware protection | Real-time, on every plan | Not stated | | Staging | Not listed on the plan cards | No | | Uptime guarantee | 99.9%; credits from 10% at 99.8% up to 100% below 99%, claimed through billing | 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 | | Money-back guarantee | Full refund within 30 days; prorated refund of unused time at any time after that; new clients only; web, reseller and VPS hosting | Not stated | | Choice of data center | Dallas, New York, Seattle or Sofia on ScalaHosting's own infrastructure; partner cloud and AWS regions for cloud plans | Not stated | | Phone support | Yes | No | | Windows hosting | No | No | | Backups | Not stated | Daily automated backups on every plan, restored from the panel | | Free CDN | Not stated | No | | Caching | Not stated | No | | Email | Not stated | 20, 40 or 60 mailboxes free for the first three months, then billed separately | | 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 | | [ScalaHosting](https://hostidea.com/reviews/scalahosting) | [DreamHost](https://hostidea.com/reviews/dreamhost) | | --- | --- | --- | | Control panel | SPanel (ScalaHosting's own) or cPanel | DreamHost's own panel (no cPanel) | | Data centers | 5 | 4 | | Support channels | chat, ticket, phone, knowledge-base | chat, ticket, email, knowledge-base | | Founded | 2007 | 1997 | Visit ScalaHosting (affiliate link: /go/scalahosting)Visit DreamHost (affiliate link: /go/dreamhost)