There is a fine line between playfulness with the truth/truth inflation and deception, is DreamHost crossing it? In 2006, DreamHost generated revenue of $13.1 million and has no doubt increased in recent years. Surely a company of this magnitude has a responsibility to avoid the sales trickery that they’re currently utilizing. Firstly you’ll notice the offer of unlimited everything, which is a matter in itself, but it isn’t that which has caught my attention. It’s the hidden costs and unreasonable numbers used. $5.95 is the monthly cost advertised on the homepage.

Navigating to the purchasing stage, you’ll find that you actually need to spend $714 for 10 years of web hosting to gain that stated homepage figure. If you wish to pay on a monthly basis then a setup charge of $49.95 is required, plus a monthly fee of $10.95. There is the argument that the asterisk stating, “depending on pre-payment” makes this completely acceptable practice, but it just feels wrong.

At PinchHost we don’t have any hidden costs or setup fees and the prices stated on the homepage are the most that you’ll pay. We’ll be the last web hosting company to move to unlimited plans, we just don’t believe in overselling and unattainable promises.

As a web host, we endeavour to communicate everything that is relevant and give a sense of who we are. Having personally put my faith into hosting companies and being disappointed I don’t want PinchHost to be a profit hungry unethical company. Our profit margins are actually relatively low as a new entrant into the market, we do understand why it might be tempting to exaggerate, but in all sincerity, we would rather be an honest company in a sometimes-misleading industry.