In traditional pile-raft systems, piles are connected to the raft and extend down into more competent soil. While these piles are effective in increasing the bearing capacity and reducing the structure settlements, they often lead to significant straining actions at the pile head and raft connection which may constitute the weakest link. An attempt to provide a more economic solution, that at the same time overcomes this weak link, is to disconnect the piles from the raft and introduce an intermediate cushion of compacted fill. In this case, the piles are considered as reinforcement to the subsoil (enhancing its bearing capacity) and at the same time acting as settlement reducers. ABAQUS software program is used in this paper to investigate the load transfers mechanism of the unconnected piled raft. The main aim is to provide an in depth analysis of the raft–soil–pile interactions in multi-layer under static and seismic load. The effects of cushion thickness and properties and pile material are also studied. The study shows that unconnected piled raft can be effectively used as an equivalent for connected piled raft, and in some instances, it would be a superior alternative. The unconnected system provides an economical alternative for the connected piled raft foundation, where there is no need to reinforce the piles, no need for pile head demolition and expensive waterproofing of pile-head-raft connection is avoided.