The key difference between cleavage and cell division is that the cleavage refers to the complete division of the cytoplasm into two different parts while the cell division refers to the production of two or more daughter cells from a parent cell.
Cells should divide in order to produce new cells. Hence, multicellular organisms undergo cell cycles. The cell cycle is the overall process that results in new cells from the parent cells. Cell division occurs in two ways namely, mitosis and meiosis. Mitosis yields daughter cells that are genetically identical to the parent cell. One mitotic cycle produces two daughter cells. In contrast, meiosis produces daughter cells that contain half of the chromosome number of the parent cell. One meiotic cycle produces four daughter cells. Cell division occurs via several phases such as interphase, prophase, metaphase, anaphase, telophase, and finally cytokinesis. Cleavage is another name for cytokinesis.
