Better at stopping impacts: film
Paint protection film is 7.5 to 8.5 mil of urethane. A stone dents the film and the topcoat heals. A coating is microns thick and the stone reaches the paint. If your paint problem is chips on the bumper and hood, the better product is film, and no coating changes that.
Better at what coatings do: nothing
UV blocking, chemical resistance, hydrophobics, hardness against wash marring, gloss. Wax does these for weeks; a sealant for months; a professional coating for years, with a warranty. There is no better product for that job.
Why the answer is usually both
Film on the impact zones, coating over the film and the rest of the car. The coating keeps the film's topcoat from aging in the sun and makes the whole car wash the same. That is why every Full Front (from $1,799) and Full Body (from $4,990) PPF install includes a $549 Ceramic Pro coating.
What is not better
"Graphene" coatings, "diamond" coatings and spray-on ceramics are marketing terms for the same silica chemistry at various concentrations. The professional-grade versions are fine; the labels do not change the physics.
