DreamHost vs IONOS (1&1): Which Hosting Provider is Better in 2025?
DreamHost and IONOS (formerly 1&1) represent different philosophies in web hosting. IONOS attracts customers with rock-bottom introductory prices—some plans start at just $1/month—while DreamHost focuses on consistent pricing, superior performance, and better long-term value.
The decision between these providers isn't just about finding the lowest price tag. It's about understanding renewal rates, evaluating actual performance, assessing support quality, and determining which platform better serves your specific website needs.
In this comprehensive comparison, we'll examine both hosting providers across pricing, features, performance, ease of use, and support to help you make the right choice for your website in 2025.
Quick Verdict Summary
Choose IONOS if:
- Absolute lowest introductory price is priority
- Need phone support (24/7)
- Want traditional cPanel interface
- Can commit to long-term contracts for best rates
Choose DreamHost if:
- Want better long-term value and consistent pricing
- Need superior WordPress performance
- Value ease of use and modern interface
- Want better security features and uptime
- Prefer unlimited bandwidth and email without restrictions
Pricing Comparison
Web Hosting First-Year Costs
IONOS:
- Basic Plan: $1/month (first 12 months, then $10/month)
- Unlimited Plan: $1/month (first 6 months, then $8/month)
- Pro Plan: $1/month (first month only, then $10-12/month)
Important IONOS Notes:
- Promotional $1/month applies for limited time only
- Renewal prices 800-1000% higher
- Must read fine print carefully
- Monthly billing costs significantly more
DreamHost:
- Web Hosting Starter: $2.59/month (first year), $10.99/month renewal
- Web Hosting Unlimited: $3.95/month (first year), $13.99/month renewal
- Transparent pricing structure
- 97-day money-back guarantee
First Year Comparison:
- IONOS Basic: $12 (year 1, then $120/year)
- DreamHost Starter: $31.08 (year 1, then $131.88/year)
- IONOS cheaper first year, DreamHost better long-term value
True Three-Year Cost Analysis
IONOS Basic (3 years):
- Year 1: $12 + renewal months at $10 = ~$72
- Years 2-3: $240
- Total: $312 over 3 years
DreamHost Web Hostingg](/go/dreamhost-web-hosting) Starter (3 years):
- Year 1: $31.08
- Years 2-3: $263.76
- Total: $294.84 over 3 years
- DreamHost actually cheaper: $17.16 less
Key Insight: IONOS's aggressive intro pricing doesn't translate to better long-term value.
Features Comparison
Storage and Bandwidth
IONOS:
- Basic: 10GB storage, limited traffic
- Unlimited: Unlimited storage and traffic (with acceptable use policy)
- Pro: Unlimited storage and traffic
- Caveat: "Unlimited" has restrictions in terms of service
DreamHost:
- Starter: 50GB SSD storage, unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited: Unlimited SSD storage, unlimited bandwidth
- Truly unlimited: No hidden restrictions, proven track record
Winner: DreamHost for genuinely unlimited resources
Email Hosting
IONOS:
- Basic: 10 email accounts
- Unlimited: 100 email accounts
- Pro: Unlimited email accounts
- 2GB per mailbox
- Additional storage costs extra
DreamHost:
- All plans: Unlimited email addresses
- 25GB per mailbox (12.5x IONOS)
- No restrictions or extra costs
- Better webmail interface
Winner: DreamHost with unlimited email and 12x more storage per mailbox
SSL Certificates
IONOS:
- Basic SSL included (Wildcard SSL extra)
- Manual SSL setup on lower plans
- Premium SSL certificates available
DreamHost:
- Free Let's Encrypt SSL on all plans
- Automatic installation and renewal
- Unlimited SSL certificates
- One-click activation
Winner: DreamHost for automation and unlimited certificates
WordPress Features
IONOS:
- WordPress installation available
- Basic WordPress features
- No managed WordPress on entry plans
- WordPress Pro available (extra cost)
DreamHost:
- WordPress pre-installed on all plans
- One-click WordPress installation
- DreamPress managed WordPress available
- WordPress-optimized infrastructure
- Staging environments (DreamPress)
- Built-in caching (DreamPress)
Winner: DreamHost as WordPress specialist
Backup Solutions
IONOS:
- Daily backups on higher plans
- Manual backup restoration
- Limited backup retention
- Site backup costs extra on basic plans
DreamHost:
- Daily automatic backups (all plans)
- Easy restoration process
- Included at no extra cost
- More reliable backup system
Winner: DreamHost for included, reliable backups
Performance and Reliability
Speed and Loading Times
IONOS Performance:
- Average load time: 1.2-2.5 seconds
- Performance varies significantly by plan
- Basic plan can be slower
- CDN available (extra cost)
- Server response time: 400-700ms
DreamHost Performance:
- Entry-level web hosting: 500ms-2 seconds average
- More consistent across plans
- Better resource allocation
- Cloudflare CDN integration available (free)
- DreamPress: 0.8-1.2 seconds consistently
- Server response time: 200-600ms
Winner: DreamHost for consistent, reliable performance
Uptime Reliability
IONOS:
- Advertised: 99.9% uptime guarantee
- Actual: 99.93% average (third-party monitoring)
- Compensation for downtime available
- Some users report occasional issues
DreamHost:
- Advertised: 100% uptime guarantee
- Actual: 99.96%+ average
- Industry-leading uptime
- Compensation: 1 day credit per hour of downtime
- Very stable infrastructure
Winner: DreamHost with better uptime guarantee and performance
Server Locations
IONOS:
- Data centers in US, Europe, UK
- Choose location during signup
- Better global coverage
DreamHost:
- Data centers in US (LA and Virginia)
- No location choice for entry-level web hosting
- Cloudflare CDN compensates globally
Winner: IONOS for data center location options
Ease of Use
Control Panel
IONOS:
- Uses cPanel (industry standard)
- Familiar to experienced users
- Comprehensive features
- Can be overwhelming for beginners
- Dated interface design
DreamHost:
- Custom DreamHost Panel
- Modern, clean design
- Simplified for beginners
- More intuitive navigation
- Integrated billing
- Less cluttered than cPanel
- Learning curve for cPanel users
Winner: IONOS for cPanel familiarity; DreamHost for modern simplicity
Website Builder
IONOS:
- MyWebsite Creator included
- Drag-and-drop builder
- Basic templates
- Limited flexibility
- Proprietary platform
DreamHost:
- WordPress with page builders
- Liftoff AI website builder
- Thousands of themes
- Complete flexibility
- Industry-standard tools
Winner: DreamHost for flexibility and modern tools
Setup Process
IONOS:
- Account creation: 5 minutes
- Many upsells during checkout
- WordPress setup: 5-10 minutes
- Can be confusing for beginners
DreamHost:
- Account creation: 5 minutes
- Clean checkout process
- WordPress pre-installed automatically
- Clear, straightforward setup
Winner: DreamHost for streamlined setup
Customer Support
Support Availability
IONOS:
- 24/7 phone support (major advantage)
- Live chat available
- Email/ticket support
- Knowledge base
- Response times vary
DreamHost:
- 24/7 ticket support
- Live chat support
- Callback option available
- NO phone support
- Extensive knowledge base
- Active community forum
Winner: IONOS for phone support availability
Support Quality
IONOS:
- Response time: Variable (5 minutes to hours)
- Quality inconsistent
- Script-based responses common
- Language barriers reported
- Basic issues handled well
- Complex issues sometimes problematic
DreamHost:
- Response time: 1-5 minutes (chat), 1-4 hours (tickets)
- Consistently knowledgeable support
- WordPress expertise
- Technical depth
- Personalized responses
- Strong customer satisfaction ratings
Winner: DreamHost for support quality and expertise
Security Features
IONOS:
- Basic security measures
- SSL certificates included
- DDoS protection
- Malware scanning (premium plans)
- Security updates
- Two-factor authentication
DreamHost:
- Free SSL certificates (unlimited)
- Automatic security updates
- DDoS protection
- ModSecurity firewall
- Malware scanning
- Two-factor authentication
- More comprehensive security approach
- Better security track record
Winner: DreamHost for comprehensive security
Use Case Recommendations
Choose IONOS If You:
Need Absolute Lowest First-Year Cost
- Willing to accept $1/month intro rate
- Understand renewal price jumps
- Short-term hosting needs
Require Phone Support
- Prefer talking to support by phone
- Need immediate phone assistance
- Phone access critical
Want cPanel Specifically
- Experienced with cPanel
- Require cPanel features
- Training materials use cPanel
Need European Data Centers
- Target European audience
- GDPR compliance concerns
- Prefer EU server locations
Choose DreamHost If You:
Want Better Long-Term Value
- Focus on total cost vs intro pricing
- Value consistent renewal rates
- Plan to host long-term
Run WordPress Websites
- WordPress is your platform
- Need WordPress optimization
- Want managed WordPress options (DreamPress)
- Value WordPress expertise
Need Unlimited Resources
- Unlimited bandwidth essential
- Unlimited email addresses needed
- Multiple websites planned
Value Performance and Uptime
- Site speed critical
- Uptime essential for business
- Reliability top priority
Want Better Security
- Security features important
- Prefer comprehensive protection
- Value automated security
Prefer Modern Interface
- Clean, simple interface desired
- Don't need cPanel complexity
- Value user-friendly design
Migration Considerations
Moving TO IONOS
Process:
- Manual migration typically
- Support assistance available
- May incur costs
- Can be time-consuming
Moving TO DreamHost
Process:
- Free migration service for WordPress sites
- Automated migration tools
- Support assistance included
- Generally smooth process
- No migration costs
Winner: DreamHost with free migration service
The Verdict
Overall Winner: DreamHost
Why DreamHost Wins:
- Better Long-Term Value: Lower 3-year total cost
- Superior Performance: Faster, more reliable
- Better Features: Unlimited email, bandwidth, backups included
- WordPress Excellence: Specialist WordPress hosting
- Stronger Security: More comprehensive protection
- Better Support Quality: More knowledgeable, consistent
- Transparent Pricing: No surprise renewal jumps
- 100% Uptime Guarantee: Industry-leading reliability
- 97-Day Money-Back: Longest guarantee
- Free Migration: No migration costs
When IONOS Makes Sense:
- Need absolute cheapest first month ($1)
- Require phone support
- Prefer cPanel interface
- Need European data centers
For Most Users: DreamHost provides better overall value, performance, features, and support despite slightly higher introductory pricing.
Getting Started
Start with DreamHost
For Most Websites: DreamHost Web Hosting Unlimited at $3.95/month
- Unlimited websites and storage
- Unlimited bandwidth and email
- Better long-term value
- 97-day guarantee
For WordPress Sites: DreamHost's DreamPress from $16.95/month
- Managed WordPress hostingg](/go/dreamhost-wordpress)
- Superior WordPress performance
- WordPress specialist support
Find Your Domain: Use Namr to discover the perfect domain name, then pair it with reliable DreamHost hosting for long-term success.
Choose hosting based on total value, not just the lowest introductory price—your website deserves reliable, consistent performance.