Brandwave

Bluehost vs DigitalOcean:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, DigitalOcean had more branded searches than Bluehost among web hosting providers worldwide. DigitalOcean had about 550,000 branded searches, while Bluehost had 201,000. DigitalOcean made up 4.2% of all web hosting provider searches we track, and Bluehost accounted for 1.5%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about web hosting providers, Bluehost appeared in two of the five answers and DigitalOcean in one. Bluehost was mentioned before DigitalOcean in two out of three answers that named either.

Among web hosting providers worldwide in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

DigitalOcean, about 3 searches for every 1 for Bluehost

DigitalOcean 550K searchesBluehost 201K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Bluehost, mentioned in 2 of 5 answers, DigitalOcean in 1

Bluehost in 2 of 5DigitalOcean in 1 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Bluehost, named ahead of DigitalOcean in 2 of 3 answers

Bluehost first in 2DigitalOcean first in 1

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Top web hosting providers in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Bluehost was mentioned in two out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. DigitalOcean was mentioned in one out of five: not in any of the three ChatGPT answers, but in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Bluehost was listed before DigitalOcean in two out of three answers that named either.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

  1. Hostinger1st
  2. SiteGround2nd
  3. Cloudways3rd
  4. Bluehost4th
  5. Kinsta5th
  6. Namecheap6th
  7. DreamHost7th
  8. GoDaddy8th
  9. DigitalOcean9th
  10. Vercel–

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

  • Hostinger5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • SiteGround4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Cloudways4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Kinsta3 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Namecheap2 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Bluehost2 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • DreamHost2 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • GoDaddy1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • DigitalOcean1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Vercel0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

See every answer about web hosting providers

5 answers

Not named in any answer:

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 19, 2026.

Is Bluehost or DigitalOcean more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Bluehost and DigitalOcean by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all ten web hosting providers we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.

Bluehost and DigitalOcean among web hosting providers worldwide, by month

Share of searches by month for DigitalOcean, Bluehost. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthGoDaddyHostingerVercelNamecheapDigitalOceanSiteGroundBluehostCloudwaysDreamHostKinsta
Oct 202533.6%35.9%11.2%9.3%4.1%2.3%1.9%0.68%0.68%0.31%
Nov 202533.3%36.1%11.3%9.3%4.2%2.3%1.9%0.69%0.69%0.25%
Dec 202533.4%36.2%11.3%9.3%4.2%2.3%1.9%0.69%0.56%0.25%
Jan 202634.1%35.7%11.8%9.6%3.5%2.4%1.6%0.58%0.48%0.21%
Feb 202631.1%32.9%15.8%10.6%3.9%2.6%1.7%0.64%0.52%0.23%
Mar 202631.9%33.4%16.5%9%4.1%2.2%1.5%0.67%0.45%0.24%
Apr 202626.5%33.3%20.5%11.3%3.4%2.2%1.5%0.68%0.45%0.2%
May 202628.1%35.2%17.7%9.7%4.3%1.9%1.6%0.72%0.48%0.21%
Jun 202630.2%31.6%19.1%10.4%3.8%2.1%1.4%0.63%0.51%0.23%
Jul 202630%31.7%19.1%10.5%3.8%2.1%1.4%0.63%0.52%0.23%
Aug 202627.8%29.7%21.9%12.1%3.6%2%1.6%0.59%0.48%0.22%
Sep 202632.3%28.5%21%9.4%4.2%1.9%1.5%0.57%0.46%0.21%

How has the Bluehost and DigitalOcean comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings

How did search popularity change for web hosting providers worldwide in September 2026?

1 change

  1. In September 2026, DigitalOcean gained share of searches among web hosting providers worldwide, from 3.6% to 4.2%.

How are branded searches counted?

2 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Bluehost’s and DigitalOcean’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.

Bluehost

1 branded search term

  • bluehost

DigitalOcean

1 branded search term

  • digitalocean

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among web hosting providers

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