Abstract: The horizontal bearing capacity of the laterally loaded pile is influenced by the uncertainty of soil parameters and the fluctuation of the horizontal loads will increase the risks of failure of the pile. In order to solve these problems, a robust geotechnical design (RGD) based on the reliability is presented in this study as a new geotechnical design concept. First, the mean and standard deviation of the soil parameters are investigated to clarify the uncertainty of the soil parameters in the RGD method. And then the size of the pile, the reinforcement ratio and the concrete strength are taken into consideration as the design parameters, and the boundary conditions of the pile top are also analyzed. The horizontal deflection failure modes (DFM) and the resistance of bending moment strength failure modes (SFM) of the pile top are used as a target function in the design of the horizontal bearing capacity of a single pile. As a safe evaluation standard, the design robustness is used to evaluate the feasibility of the design scheme for the horizontal bearing capacity of the single pile with the RGD method. By use of the RGD approach, the cost efficiency and robustness are the optimun target to achieve the multi-objective engineering optimization. The design scheme satisfies the bearing capacity requirements. Meanwhile, the cost efficiency and robustness of the design are guaranteed. Comparing with the traditional design methodology, the rationality and importance of the RGD are proved in this study. Analysis results show that the increase of the pile diameter and the reinforcement ratio can significantly improve the horizontal bearing capacity of the single pile, but the effect of the concrete strength of the pile shaft on the resistance to the pile head displacement is not remarkable and its economic benefit is poor.