Tony, the Civic is more "click, click", and the 3 is a bit more smooth very much like a Miata. Both shift equally well with positive engagement. The 3 has the actual gear indicator in the gauge cluster which is really cool if you are day dreaming (see the 6 below). I think Honda has always had...
We have a 2018 Honda Civic Sport 6MT hatch and a 2021 Mazda 3 Premium 6MT hatch. They are very different but both absolutely awesome cars. The Honda is more basic but has awesomely consistent gas mileage (44.0+), where as the Mazda is ultra plush with the beautiful maroon/red leather interior...