Migration Assistant vs clean install: Migration Assistant is easier, clean install is cleaner

Migration Assistant transfers everything automatically and handles Intel-to-Apple Silicon transitions, but it also brings over years of old preferences, caches, and Intel-only apps. A clean install lets you manually copy only your data files and reinstall apps from scratch, many of which now have faster, more battery-efficient Apple Silicon native versions. For most people, Migration Assistant is fine; for those who hate digital clutter, a clean install is better.