What is the difference in nuance between using て form and から to express "so" or "because"?


As discussed in [this
post](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/78259/what-is-the-meaning-
of-%e3%81%a6-forms-in-this-sentence).

Example:

このカフェは安くて好きだ。

このカフェは安いから、好きだ。

Besides the relative context dependency of the first sentence, is there a
difference in meaning? Is there a reason to use one over the other?




Beware that this is a partial answer, and there are probably other differences
to take into account too.

One key difference is that 〜て to express causality has a constraint: you can
only use it if the second clause (after the て, 好きだ in your examples) is non-
volitional, i.e. it does not include the intention or the will of the speaker,
but it rather expresses a state, a feeling or it is in a potential form.

For example:

> ○このカフェは安くて、100円だけでもコーヒーが飲める。This cafe is cheap so you can drink coffee for
> only 100 yen.

> ○このカフェは安くて、いつも混んでいる。This cafe is cheap so it's always crowded

> ✕このカフェは安くて、行きたい。This cafe is cheap so I want to go (incorrect).

> ✕このカフェは安くて、一緒に行きませんか。This cafe is cheap so let's go together? (incorrect).

The first and the second examples are ok because the second clause does not
contain volition or intention. The first expresses a potential (買える) and the
second expresses a state (混んでいる). However, the third and the fourth sentences
are not correct because they contain the speaker's volition or intention. The
third expresses a will (行きたい) and the fourth is an invitation (行きませんか). Both
sentences would work with から, though:

> ○このカフェは安いから、行きたい。This cafe is cheap so I want to go.

> ○このカフェは安いから、一緒に行きませんか。This cafe is cheap so let's go together?

This constraint in the usage of causal て means that て and から are not
interchangeable in the 100% of situations. Please check out this [excellent
article](https://www.learn-japanese-adventure.com/te-form-cause-reason.html)
(in particular the section "Constraints of using te-form for Cause or Reason")
to deepen your understanding and find out more examples and cases regarding
this 〜て. I think that から is more straightforward and it's usually taught very
soon, so you'll probably figure out the differences between both by studying
more on the usage of 〜て.

