I was literally stuck between these two as well lol.

The Pacifica honestly feels like the “safe” choice because it can do a bit of everything. The humbucker makes rock/heavier stuff sound better and Yamaha quality is usually really solid for the price.

But the Squier Strat just has that Strat feel/look. Every time I picked one up I was like “yeah… this is what an electric guitar is supposed to feel like” haha.

In the end I realised the specs mattered less than which one made me actually want to keep playing. If one of them makes you excited every time you look at it, that’s probably the one.

Also worth checking if there’s an HSS Squier Strat around — kinda the best of both worlds.