I have a soap dispenser and I love it. It is clean and stays in place when I press on the pump. If you go with that idea, you need to add some water in your dish soap so it does not clog the pump.

(I think she's thinking about hand soap, not dish soap)

I generally do NOT put the soap dispenser into kitchens that I renovate, because I've heard too many people complain that the through-counter dispensers tend to be crap. However, I think on an island would be one place I would consider it, for the very reason you mention -- however cute your dispenser, you'd rather not have to look at its backside.

As for location, I'd go with whatever seems convenient to you for using it.

Soap dispensers are typically problematic...be sure to get one that you can fill from the top and I suggest putting it to the right of the faucet if you're right handed.

this is such a good idea..I also really love my instant hot water dispenser

As a kitchen designer, I would steer you away from the in-counter soap dispenser. It ends up being more of a pain than you would expect. The problems my clients run into and I have personally run into with mine is that it is often clogged, many different brands have broken (even after short use), and it never holds enough soap (you spend a lot of time refilling). I would suggest getting a clean, nice looking soap dispenser for the countertop. If you are looking for a hand soap one, I love the Ergonomic Foam Soap Pump from Container Store. It looks sleek, it doesn't get messy, and it has a suction cup at the bottom of it so it stays in place! Cherry on the top is that it only costs $14.99. Hope this is helpful!

-Ashley

I also assumed it was for dish soap ...use that for my hands as well...as all regular pumps are sort of short-lived I would also agree to getting the best quality available

I guess I have one that is a good quality ... I have mine for over 12 years now and it had never clogged. As I said, I add a third of water to my dish soap and fill it from the top. I actually bought 2 dispensers thinking that I would use one for my hands and one for the dishes. It is less maintenance to use both for soap dishes.

EDIT: I also like A.Kitchen Design House's idea of a dispenser that has a suction cup at the bottom.

I recently bought a few soap dispensers that are motion driven from Simple Human. I can take it off the counter whenever I want but it looks great when its up there. It also works really well. We needed something that was going to be bacteria free because of an illness to a family member. I am very happy with it and no holes drilled in my granite

So many great ideas! I was originally asking about dishwashing soap, but you've given me other ideas to think about. Below is the layout of the sink that will be installed. There are 5 positions that can have holes. The second from the left is for the faucet. If I go with the soap dispenser, would you place it close to the faucet so it sort of blends in or in the one of the two on the right?

A few responses mentioned an instant hot water dispenser - how does this work separately from hot water through the faucet? Thanks!!

One thing I like about the position of my soap dispenser is that the soap can fall directly into the sink ... there is no need to put the soap in my hands then have the water runs through them. So I guess the position of the hole and the length of the pump are factors to consider.

I have a dish soap dispenser in my kitchen and like it.

Haven't had any problems with it.

It is installed on the right hand side of my sink about 8 inches from the faucet.

The instant hot water dispenser has its own tiny water heater that delivers boiling hot water available instantly...you don't really know how convenient that is til you have it...we make a cup of tea or a pitcher of ice tea instantly and use it for mundane things like quick rinse of dirty silverware etc...also great for flooding sticky dishes and pans to soak a little in the sink