I have heard several different things, but how I currently understand it is that Communism is a post-socialism state in which goods are produced with such efficiency and surplus that money becomes worthless and class, labor, and the state are phased out. Is this wrong? Is there any difference at all? I am pretty new to leftism. TIA
"Communist society passes through two phases of development: the lower phase known as Socialism, and the higher phase known as Communism. In the first stage, communist society cannot as yet be free from the traditions and traces of capitalism, from whose womb it has emerged. Only the further development of socialism on the basis which it has itself created can lead to the second and higher phase of communist society. Consequently socialism and communism are two stages of maturity of the new communist form of society."
https://www.marxists.org/subject/economy/authors/pe/pe-ch40.htm
My simple explanation though would be that under socialism the motto would be "from each according to their ability, to each according to their work" - while under communism the motto would be "from each according to their ability, to each according to their need"