What you're really choosing between
A prefab shower is a manufactured unit that gets dropped into a framed opening. A custom tile shower is built in place, layer by layer, to fit your space and your design. Both can be perfectly good. They cost different money, take different time, and create different end results.
If you'd rather just talk through it, we can walk your bathroom and tell you what makes sense.
Where prefab fits
Secondary baths, rental properties, tight schedules, or any case where you want a clean, functional shower and don't need design flexibility. Modern acrylic and solid-surface units look better than they used to, and a quality unit properly installed will outlast a poorly waterproofed custom shower every time.
Where custom tile fits
Primary baths, larger walk-in showers, anything with a niche, a bench, a curbless entry, full-height tile, or a glass enclosure that's part of the room's design. Custom is also the right answer anywhere the layout is unusual — sloped ceilings, odd angles, or a space that no off-the-shelf unit will fit.
The waterproofing conversation
The most important part of any tile shower is the layer you'll never see. Done right, a custom shower lasts decades. Done wrong, you find out about it through your ceiling in two years. We use bonded waterproofing systems, pre-pitched pre-pans, pre-formed corners, and properly integrated drains. Ask any contractor you're considering to describe their waterproofing system in detail. If they can't, that's your answer.
More on how we approach custom showers.