It isn’t very often, in the course of business, that we can get genuinely excited about one of our vendors. Usually the best a vendor can hope for is to simply avoid irritating us; if we aren’t thinking about them, they’re probably doing a good job.

Given this typical state of affairs, it’s a fun change of pace for me to be bubbling over with enthusiasm about my Web hosting provider, Dreamhost. In my previous Web development business I spent many years overseeing a sizable Web hosting department, so I have an especially exacting set of demands from a Web host. I’m happy to report that Dreamhost meets–and in many cases, exceeds–all of them. True to their name, they are quite simply a dream to host with.

Why does a Dreamhost hosting review earn such high marks? Call it the Four C’s — cost, convenience, customer service, and custom options:

1. Cost — Web hosting has become a commodity service, a trend that disturbed me when I was in that business, but delights me now that I’m a customer. Any Dreamhost review has to mention their amazing prices: a full-featured Web hosting account with Dreamhost is $9.95/mo¹, and that includes all but the most elaborate of extras². This price includes as many different Web sites as you care to host!
2. Convenience — Everything related to your account–absolutely everything–is automated, and can be managed from Dreamhost’s “Control Panel,” a full featured customer Web app. It lets you set up and manage new domains, install new software (like WordPress), perform backup and restore tasks, do online billing, and more.
3. Customer service — I’m pleased to say that I’ve only rarely had to contact Dreamhost’s customer support, but each time I did, I received a prompt and thoroughly knowledgeable response. Phone support is available for a small fee. There’s also an entire support Wiki dedicated just to customers, a discussion forum, a status blog, and even a Twitter account.
4. Custom options — While Dreamhost has plenty of training wheels for newbies (see “Convenience,” above), power users will have a field day with all of the advanced Web administration options. In addition to full SSH/SFTP shell access, you can install nearly a dozen software packages, including tools for content management, e-commerce, blogging, project management, wiki collaboration, bulletin board systems, chat servers, and more (see the full list).

I’ve been hosting my own Websites at Dreamhost since early 2007, and now manage over a dozen sites (and 30+ domains) on their servers. I’ve tried many different Web hosts through the years, and they are far and away the best I’ve ever encountered –including my old company! Whether you’re looking to switch, or getting ready to establish your first online presence, you can’t go wrong with Dreamhost.

If you have any questions about my experiences, or my Dreamhost hosting review in general, leave a comment below and I’ll try my best to answer it.

UPDATE: After writing this glowing review–which represents my candid and unvarnished opinion of a great service–I was reminded that Dreamhost has a referral program that allows existing customers (me!) to offer discounts to new customers (you!), while receiving a modest referral bonus (yay!). Here are the Dreamhost Coupon details, exclusively for readers of Bits & Bytes 2.0.

1. This is the price if you prepay for one year. It’s $10.95 if you pay month-by-month, and as low as $5.95 per month paid several years in advance. [↩]
2. Like VPN access ($19.95/mo) and SSL certificate hosting ($99/yr). [↩]