What are the differences between using date_create_from_format() and strtotime() for date manipulation in PHP?

When manipulating dates in PHP, date_create_from_format() and strtotime() are two commonly used functions. date_create_from_format() allows you to create a DateTime object from a specific format, while strtotime() converts a string representation of a date and time into a Unix timestamp. The main difference is that date_create_from_format() gives you more control over the input format, while strtotime() is more flexible in accepting various date formats.

// Using date_create_from_format()
$dateString = '2022-12-31';
$date = date_create_from_format('Y-m-d', $dateString);
echo $date->format('Y-m-d');

// Using strtotime()
$dateString = '31 December 2022';
$timestamp = strtotime($dateString);
echo date('Y-m-d', $timestamp);