Is nursing really easier than exclusive pumping?

I am having a second child soon and starting to prepare for how to feed him. With my first, she couldn’t/didn’t nurse, so I exclusively pumped. It was an absolutely miserable experience that I would not care to repeat. In my head I made up a story that nursing her would have been much easier, but I never did it so I’m not sure. I often see posts from women who exclusively nursed their infants talking about how hard it is. I would really like to be successful nursing my second child but I’m worried I have romanticized nursing as compared to pumping when it’s just as likely to be miserable. Can someone who exclusively pumped for at least one child and nursed a different child confirm whether nursing was actually easier than exclusive pumping and maybe talk about your experience? I’d also love to hear positive experiences about successfully nursing a child after not being able to the first time, as I am trying to have a positive mindset going into this. Baby is coming around the end of January 2025.