TechRadar Verdict
A very good email hosting service, but no email in its most basic web hosting plan is a shame.
Spam, virus, and phishing filters included
Good integrations
No email with most basic web hosting plan
Malware removal costs extra
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DreamHostis anotheremail providerthat is really marketed as aweb hostingservice but also functions as acloud hostingprovider,website builder,marketingservices, and more.
This review will focus primarily on how DreamHost functions as an email provider, however, and we’re happy to confirm that DreamHost’s email hosting services work really well. The main downside is that the cheapest shared hosting plan doesn’t come with an email account included. You can purchase one as an add-on, but that still compares poorly against most other hosting providers.
If you do sign up for DreamHost email though, you’ll find a service that functions incredibly well. The platform is intuitive and offers good support, available through multiple channels. You can set up a professional account for your business, sync your messages between your mobile and desktop devices, and protect yourself against malware, spam, and phishing.
The fact that DreamHost also lets you use itsemail hostingeven if your domain is with another web hosting provider is another nice touch. It means users can access DreamHost’s email features without the need to change their current hosting plan.
DreamHost: Plans and pricing
DreamHost offers a single plan purely for email hosting on either monthly or annual contract terms. The monthly plan will set subscribers back $1.99 per mailbox per month and comes with 25GB ofcloud storageper mailbox, ad-free webmail, and mobile and desktop syncing. The annual plan saves customers 16%, coming out at $1.67 per mailbox per month. It also comes with the same features provided by the monthly plan.
Of course, you might only be looking for email hosting as part of a broader web hosting offering If that’s the case, you may be disappointed to discover that DreamHost’s cheapest offering, its Shared Starter plan, doesn’t come with email hosting as standard. This plan costs $2.95 per month for a single website, but to add an email account, you’ll need to pay an extra $1.67 per month for an add-on.
Email is included with DreamHost’s two other more expensive hosting plans, however, DreamPress and VPS. These plans cost $16.95 and $13.75 respectively and come with several other features, including functionality that may boost your employees’productivity, like an AI business advisor.
Features
The features that come with DreamHost’s email hosting are impressive and should do more than simply let you give your business a more professional-sounding email address that would be available through a personalGmailaccount.
For example, customers are able to drag and drop messages between folders in webmail and set up automatic delivery filters to make the process of organizing messages much quicker. They can also route messages using custom aliases to further streamline the management of your messages.
DreamHost’s email interface is also worth mentioning. This is highly intuitive, so accessing all the common features that you’d expect from an email platform, including marking messages as read, spam, or simply deleting them is straightforward.
And with the ubiquity ofhybrid workmeaning that employees are just as likely to respond to messages via their smartphone as their desk, DreamHost’s promise to sync emails between devices is hugely important. You can also manage your storage via any device you choose as well.
Support
Although DreamHost may not offer telephone support, the assistance it provides via email andlive chatare both reliable and effective, in our experience. The chat support is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, so you should always be able to get in contact with someone to assist you.
DreamHost also has an extensive knowledge base if you’d rather take a stab at resolving your issue yourself. This is broken down by product so you’ll find resources forshared hosting,WordPress, SQLdatabases, and the various other tools that DreamHost offers.
Regarding its email hosting, specifically, the DreamHost knowledge base has guides on setting up your email account, configuration, backing up messages, troubleshooting, and more. There’s also an email FAQ webpage for additional information.
Security
DreamHost boasts some strong security credentials, with all the company’s pricing tiers coming with SSL certificates,firewalls, dailycloud backups, and domain privacy. The SSL certificates provideencryptionfor your web traffic and DreamHost’s servers are monitored at all times to guard against cyberattacks.The antispam feature included for all email accounts is another welcome safeguard.
It’s something of a shame, however, that if customers want the most robust security from DreamHost, they’ll have to pay for the privilege. This is because itsmalware removaltool, DreamShield Malware Remover, has to be purchased as an add-on for $29.99 per year or $3 a month. It would have been a bonus if DreamShield had been included with some of DreamHost’s premium pricing tiers, but that doesn’t take away from this platform’s robust security posture.
The competition
DreamHost is going up against some impressive names in the world of email hosting but holds its own. Although some, likeIONOS, might represent a better choice for larger corporates that are more focused on web hosting than email, DreamHost delivers a reliable email service. It’s also appreciated that DreamHost users can sign up for its email hosting even if their web domain is with a different platform.
Interesting, when it comes toGoogle Workspace, it seems like DreamHost has decided that if you can’t beat them, it’s better to join them. This is because DreamHost offers a service whereGoogleWorkspace is provided in parallel. This option gives customer a stress-free way of connecting their domain with Google Workspace, with DreamHost taking care of the set-up. Customers will be put on a single payment plan for DreamHost hosting plans, domains, and Google Workspace so they have streamline billing for receiving all these services.
DreamHost: Final verdict
Purely as an email provider, DreamHost is a decent option for businesses. It boasts good security and support and all the core features you’d expect are included. It’s disappointing that there’s no email with its cheapest hosting plan and malware removal costs extra, but the close Google Workspace integration is an interesting addition. There’s plenty to praise here.
We’ve also featured thebest email hosting services.
Barclay has been writing about technology for a decade, starting out as a freelancer with ITProPortal covering everything from London’s start-up scene to comparisons of the best cloud storage services. After that, he spent some time as the managing editor of an online outlet focusing on cloud computing, furthering his interest in virtualization, Big Data, and the Internet of Things.
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