People use these three words for almost anything with posts in a back yard. They are not the same thing, and the top makes the difference: open rafters, a solid roof, or a roof on a round frame.
That one choice decides how much shade you get, if you can stay outside when it rains, what the town asks for and how big the job is. This guide puts them side by side, and adds the small arbor so all four names are clear.
What each one is
Swipe the drawing sideways to see all of it.
A pergola is a frame with an open top. Posts carry beams, and the beams carry a row of rafters with sky between them. It can stand on its own posts or attach to the house on one side. We build them in wood and in aluminum.
A pavilion is a solid roof on posts, with no walls. The roof is a gable, which is two slopes that meet at a ridge, or a single slope. It is covered with shingles or metal. A pavilion is heavier than a pergola and is built on footings. See pavilions.
A gazebo is a small shelter that stands alone, away from the house. Most are round or eight sided. It has its own roof and often a floor. You step into a gazebo. You walk under a pergola or a pavilion.
An arbor is the small one. It is an arch or a short frame over a path or a gate, just wide enough to walk through. It marks an entry and gives a climbing plant something to hold. It does not shade a table.
Shade and rain, side by side
| Question | Pergola | Pavilion | Gazebo |
|---|---|---|---|
| The top | Open rafters | Solid roof, gable or single slope | Solid roof on a round or eight sided frame |
| Shade | Partial, and it moves with the sun | Full | Full, inside it |
| Rain | Comes through | Stays off | Stays off |
| Sky | You see it between the rafters | Covered | Covered |
| Wind | An open frame lets wind pass | A solid roof catches wind | A solid roof catches wind |
| Where it goes | In the yard, or attached to the house | On its own posts and footings | On its own, away from the house |
Be clear about the pergola row. An open pergola gives partial shade, not full shade. The rafters throw stripes of shade, and the stripes move during the day. In the Carolinas the summer sun is very high at noon, and that is when open rafters shade the least. Our guide on how much shade a pergola gives has the numbers.
A pavilion gives full shade at any hour, and you can stay at the table when it rains. What you give up is the sky. Under a solid roof the space is darker and feels more like a room.
The steps between a pergola and a pavilion
The choice is not only open or closed. A pergola can get more shade and still be a pergola.
Swipe the drawing sideways to see all of it.
Top slats across the rafters and a fabric canopy add shade but let rain through. A clear or tinted polycarbonate cover keeps rain off a pergola frame. A pavilion roof is the last step, and it is a different structure, not an add-on.
One caution. A solid roof changes how a town sees the structure. If you want a cover that keeps rain off, ask the town if it counts as a roof before you order it.
What moves the price
Every pergola, pavilion, privacy wall and repair is quoted after we see photos. What we can say here is what makes one job bigger than another.
- The top. Open rafters are the lightest. A solid roof adds a roof frame, shingles or metal, and stronger connections and footings. For the same footprint, a pavilion has more material and more work in it than a pergola.
- The size. Common footprints run from 10 by 10 feet to 16 by 20 feet. The quote gives the real size for your space.
- The material. Pressure-treated pine, cedar or aluminum. Cedar costs more than pine.
- The house. Freestanding on its own posts, or attached to the house on one side.
- The ground. A sound concrete slab can carry post bases. If there is none, footings are dug.
- The extras. A privacy wall on one side, a permit and its drawings, and how easy it is to reach the yard.
A large pavilion can be a large contract. North Carolina projects of $40,000 or more go through our licensed general contractor partner, and South Carolina projects over $5,000 go through our licensed partner. The pergola cost page explains each point.
Permits and the HOA, in general
We cannot tell you what your town will decide, and nothing here is legal advice. The town, the county or the HOA has the final word. These are the general ideas:
- Pergola, attached. It is treated as part of the house and usually needs a permit.
- Pergola, freestanding. In North Carolina, size is the first question, and 12 feet is the number to know. A small one may still need a zoning permit for where it sits on the lot.
- Pavilion. A roofed structure is a building and usually needs a building permit.
- Gazebo. It has a solid roof too, so expect the same question from the town.
- Arbor. It is small, but an HOA that must approve outdoor structures can still ask to see it.
The details are in do you need a permit for a pergola and in HOA pergola approval. If your project needs a building or zoning permit, the written quote says so, and who files it is agreed in writing before any work starts.
Which one fits your yard
- Choose a pergola if you want filtered light, a view of the sky and a frame that marks the patio as a place to sit. It is the lightest of the three to build. Accept that the shade is partial.
- Choose a pergola with top slats or a canopy if the patio gets strong afternoon sun and you want more shade with an open feel.
- Choose a pavilion if you want to eat outside when it rains, or you need full shade at noon in July. Plan for a building permit and a heavier build.
- Choose a gazebo if you want a small place of its own out in the garden, away from the house.
- Choose an arbor if you only want to mark a gate or a path.
Then check two things before you decide. Look at the ground the posts will stand on: a patio of loose pavers cannot hold a post without a footing under it. And read your HOA rules early, because an approval can add weeks before the build.
If the pergola will meet the house, read attached vs freestanding next.
Still not sure? Send photos
Take photos of the whole space from two corners, the ground surface up close, and the house wall and door if the structure will sit near the house. Add the rough width and depth. Tell us how you want to use the space, and which of these you are deciding between.
Send them on the photo quote page. We send a free written quote. If your project needs a visit before we can price it, we'll tell you up front, before anyone drives out.