APT vs. APT-GET

Reference: Difference Between apt and apt-get Explained

Why apt?

Debian, the mother of distributions like Ubuntu, Linux Mint, elementary OS etc., has a robust packaging system. And Debian uses a sets of tools called Advanced Packaging Tool(APT) to manage this packaging system,. This APT is different from command apt. Various tools interact with APT and allow user to install, remove and manage packages in Debian based Linux distributions, apt-get is one such command line tool that is widely popular. But commands in apt-get is too "low-level", and they have so many functionalities which are perhaps never used by an average user. And apt commands have been introduced to solve this problem. APT consists of some of the most widely used features from apt-get and apt-cache, leaving aside obscure and seldom-used features. It can also manage apt.conf file.

What's the difference

The apt command is a smaller section of the apt-get and apt-cache options. The apt command gives the end user just enough tools to install, remove, search and update APT packages. The apt-get command has a lot more options that are useful for writing low-level scripts and tools. So with apt, you get all the necessary tools in one place. You won’t be lost under tons of command options. The main goal of apt is to provide an efficient way of handling packages in a way “pleasant for end users”. When Debian says “pleasant for end users”, it actually means that. It has fewer but sufficient command options but in a more organized way. On top of that, it enables a few options by default that are actually helpful for the end users.