Pool Designer vs Pool Contractor: Choosing Wisely
When planning a swimming pool, many homeowners instinctively turn to a contractor. After all, they are the ones who build. Yet construction is only part of the story. The real success of a pool begins earlier, at the design stage.
This choice becomes even more decisive for complex projects such as an infinity pool, where precision design and flawless execution are crucial. A miscalculation of a few millimetres can alter the waterline or disrupt the intended mirror effect.
This is where the distinction between a pool contractor and a pool designer becomes crucial. Both play important roles, but their contribution, timing, and even their very necessity are not the same. Understanding this difference is the first step towards a pool that is not only functional but also perfectly integrated into its setting.
Why This Distinction Matters
A pool project combines two dimensions:
- Design → defining the vision, proportions, materials, and hydraulic feasibility.
- Construction → executing the work, coordinating trades, and ensuring compliance with codes and safety standards.
Too often, these two aspects are confused. Many homeowners start directly with a contractor and later face compromises, unexpected costs, or a pool that works technically but feels disconnected from the house or garden.
For a full overview of the stages before breaking ground, see also: Pool Creation Process
Roles
Understanding the difference helps examine their respective roles – first the contractor, then the designer.
Pool contractor
A pool contractor is an individual or company specialising in the physical construction of swimming pools. Their role is to handle excavation, plumbing, electrical works, and the installation of equipment, while ensuring compliance with codes and safety rules.
For an infinity pool, however, building skills alone are not enough. The overflow edge must be precise to the millimetre, the structure perfectly levelled, and the pool aligned with its surroundings — requirements that go beyond standard construction know-how.
Pool designer
A pool designer is a professional who plans and conceptualises swimming pools. Their role is to create designs that balance technical feasibility with aesthetics and client expectations. They take into account the architecture of the home, the surrounding environment, and the desired use of the pool.
Infinity pools in particular require a designer’s input, since the architectural integration and hydraulic balance must be anticipated from the earliest sketches. Without this stage, the risk of structural or hydraulic problems increases dramatically once construction begins.
PROS & CONS
Every pool project involves choices. Both contractors and designers bring strengths — but also limitations. Looking at their pros and cons helps to see where each role fits best.
Pool contractor
Pros
- Construction expertise
- Time efficiency
- Quality control
- Compliance with codes
Cons
- Dependent on design quality
- Limited design input
- Risk of communication gaps
- Entire responsibility on site
Pool designer
Pros
- Creative, bespoke vision
- Cost savings through planning
- Technical expertise in drawings
- Anticipates problems early
Cons
- Initial design investment
- Less direct control on site
- Adds time before construction
- Requires collaboration with builder
Morana's advice 👇
The strength of a contractor and the vision of a designer are complementary. For an infinity pool, success depends on anticipating how architecture, water and landscape will interact. Detailed drawings at the very beginning ensure that construction aligns with design, turning a simple pool into a refined statement.
Get a professional to turn your vision into reality!
Designer vs Contractor: Which Comes First?
A contractor builds. A designer defines. One cannot replace the other, but the order matters.
- Start with a contractor only → risk of compromises, cost overruns, lack of integration.
- Start with a designer → you secure the concept, ensure technical feasibility, and then any competent builder can execute it.
The contractor may vary from one country to another. The designer’s role, however, is universal.
See also: Infinity Pool Construction Guide
Case Study: A Pool in Catalonia
One of our projects in Catalonia illustrates this perfectly. The pool was not built by a specialised contractor, but by the same company that was constructing the house. The hydraulic network was installed by a local plumber. And yet, the result was flawless: a perfectly level infinity pool that functions reliably to this day.
Why? Because they were working from detailed design drawings and hydraulic plans. With this technical foundation, even non-specialised teams were able to deliver a world-class pool.
Our Experience
 In fact, most of our international projects have been built not by pool contractors, but by general construction companies. Sometimes, the builders had never worked on an infinity pool before.
What made it possible was not their background, but the precision of the plans they followed. The designer’s work provided the “common language” for all trades.
This experience proves that what truly matters is not who pours the concrete, but how well the project has been conceived.
Pool Designer + pool builder: not redundant, but complementary
Working with a pool builder doesn’t make a designer redundant. On the contrary, the designer brings a specialist’s eye for proportions and precise plans, while the builder ensures the construction is carried out on site. Some clients choose one, others combine both — it depends on how you want to approach your pool.
Conclusion
Both a designer and a contractor contribute to a pool project. But while a contractor (or a general builder) can change depending on the country, the designer is the constant — the one who defines the vision, prepares the technical plans, and ensures harmony between water, architecture, and landscape.
Starting with a designer secures your investment, avoids costly mistakes, and makes construction smoother. This is the path that transforms a simple pool into a lasting architectural feature.