Both Hostgator and DreamHost are highly rated web hosting service. It can be hard to compare the two, but that is especially why it is so important to do so. As far as features, both companies offer comparable and reliable services with ample bandwidth and disk space for the casual webmaster as well as support for more advanced users. Thus it becomes especially important to compare them on the basis of customer service, rather than individual features.

Hostgator and DreamHost take similar and yet very different approaches. DreamHost claims to follow a personable environment, running a blog and trying to seem like it is run by well, human beings. This may have been personified by when DreamHost accidentally billed millions of dollars from their users by a typo and saying “Do’h” and refunding the money. Realizing many users were offended, suffered draft fees, and other inconveniences, DreamHost retracted the next day and made a more professional and serious apology. Aside from that little incident, DreamHost’s customer reviews are overall quite positive. A few negatives here and there, but overall most customers walk away pleased with their hosting services.

Hostgator takes what feels to be a similar policy, but the personable nature of the business is revealed not by a lax or casual attitude towards customers. Instead, it is displayed by an overwhelmingly professional and at the same time courteous support staff, led by a CEO who gets hands on with the service making sure every single customer is pleased. Hostgator’s customer service is rarely ever impugned on the internet, and for good reason, their CEO Brent Oxley’s implemented many policies, such as paying support staff based on how well customers rate them, to ensure the maximum customer satisfaction. In what seems at most a one in a million customer who still does not find a resolution to their situation, Brent despite running a multi-million dollar enterprise, frequents forums and other places to discover such situations, and to remedy the problem.

The two web hosting companies have been both very highly rated, but in the end it appears Hostgator is dominant. On web hosting forums, as well as on hosting review sites that allow user input,  Hostgator is consistently ranked as one of the best, if not best hosting service. The forums are almost unanimous in praise of Hostgator, but the same cannot be said for DreamHost. Round one goes to Hostgator!