Dreamhost quietly drops promised free starter website perk, FAQ lags
What happened
Between the Sep 14, 2026 and Sep 21, 2026 captures of Dreamhost's pricing page, Pulse recorded one change: The 'Free Handcrafted Starter Website' perk was dropped from the Launch, Growth, and Scale plan feature lists, though the FAQ still describes it as an included benefit. Pulse files it as a product change (feature removed). Pulse's latest capture (Nov 9, 2026) lists Web Hosting Launch at $10.99, VPS Stack 4 at $11.99, Web Hosting Growth at $12.99, VPS Stack 8 at $16.99 and DreamPress 1 at $19.99.
It lands 98 days after Dreamhost's previous change, "Dreamhost cuts Remixer AI builder to 30-day trial on all plans" (Jun 15, 2026). Dreamhost has been tracked since 2023-11-14.
In the same window Hostgator, Kinsta and Siteground also changed their Cloud & DevOps pricing pages. Those moves are listed further down, and the Pulse Agent can compare them side by side.
- RemovedScaleFeature
BeforeFree Handcrafted Starter Website perk
AfterNot listed
| Plan | Field | Before | After | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scale | Feature | Free Handcrafted Starter Website perk | Not listed | Removed |
Values as written on Dreamhost's public pricing page in the two captures Pulse compared; where the page states no number, the cells give the wording before and after.
Evidence
The two captures Pulse comparedFull-page captures of Dreamhost's pricing page (dreamhost.com) from Sep 14, 2026 and Sep 21, 2026; the change is marked near the top of the page, where the Free Handcrafted Starter Website perk no longer appears.
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The two full-page captures with this change marked up are free with an account.
Dreamhost, the last 90 days
Full history- Oct 18, 2026ImprovementDreamhost adds Liftoff AI Website Builder to Launch, Growth and Scale plans
- Sep 21, 2026Feature removedDreamhost quietly drops promised free starter website perk, FAQ lags This change
- Jul 2, 2026Price decreaseRemixer AI Website Builder now free (was $1.99/mo)
Across Cloud & DevOps in the same window
All Cloud & DevOps changes- HostgatorJul 3HostGator: AI-Powered Malware Detection & Removal rolled out across all plans
- KinstaNov 9Kinsta Enterprise price jumps $417 to $500/mo, drops upfront annual deals
- KinstaOct 26Kinsta narrows Enterprise custom agreement terms to select plans
- SitegroundOct 26Siteground adds exclusive Node.js hosting: 5 apps on GrowBig, 10 on GoGeek
- KinstaOct 19Kinsta adds free agency site hosting and dedicated enterprise servers
Questions about this change
Did Dreamhost raise prices in September 2026?
No list-price increase was recorded between Sep 14, 2026 and Sep 21, 2026. The change Pulse detected was a product change: feature removed.
What changed on Dreamhost's pricing page between Sep 14, 2026 and Sep 21, 2026?
Scale feature removed: Free Handcrafted Starter Website perk. Pulse compared the captures it took on Sep 14, 2026 and Sep 21, 2026; the before/after table above lists each item as written on the page.
How often does Dreamhost change its pricing?
Pulse recorded 0 other pricing-page changes for Dreamhost in the 90 days before this one; the previous change was "Dreamhost cuts Remixer AI builder to 30-day trial on all plans" on Jun 15, 2026; Dreamhost has been tracked since 2023-11-14.