Confused about CPL vs ATPL

[sstaurus]

Hello

I have searched around the internet and the forums here, but if you know of a place please let me know. (I can't find a specific answer).

I am still confused on the CPL and ATPL. I know that you need CPL to get paid basically, and the ATPL to work for airlines (and I know what fATPL is). But do you have to go CPL then ATPL? I thought I heard that some people skip the CPL and go straight to ATPL, is that true? Or do you need both? What would be the benefit of this, or doing just the ATPL? Coming from Canada, is it different from the UK? (everything I read here is mostly UK based)

Thanks.