Cleats are a solution in search of a problem. Nothing changes if you remove them.
Tell me you’ve never cycled seriously without telling me you’ve never cycled seriously.
I commute 14km to work every other day and can confirm there is no difference.
Although placebos have been confirmed to help even though you know you are using a placebo so ¯_(ツ)_/¯
Riding in a road race or crit, or even a time trial, is very different from a commute ride.
But even on commutes it’s really good, depending on how often you expect to be stopping at lights. It’s great in rainy weather where my flats often slip off the pedal, or climbing up the many hills on my commute that necessitate getting out of the saddle.
Edit: also, you backslashed one of the underscores, which is great, but forgot to escape the backslash itself.
The idea behind clips is that you can pull up on the rising pedal instead of just following momentum from the other foot pushing down. It does work, but isn’t really necessary for commuter biking.
I got a used bike that had a hybrid pedal with a clip on one side and flats on the other. While the clip (heavy) side usually landed down, it didn’t always and it was weird to pedal with it. I just ride around on my bike, so I replaced them with cheap flat pedals and it’s fine. I also converted it to an e-bike, and I don’t need the extra pedal power.
There’s a huge difference, because I occasionally ride other bikes without them. My feet slip off the pedals without the cleats. I wouldn’t ride seriously without them.