Is it possible to create tables using the table tag?

Question

Search Engine Optimization

Hello, I had a disagreement with the customer about one element.
The customer believes that table layout is outdated and should not be used in any form.
I believe that the table element should still be used, where it is clearly visible that there should be a table, especially since, according to semantics, the table has th heading tags and information on them in td tags, and in divs it is a set of blocks nested in each other.
The layout has a table element, for example 2 columns, 5 rows. How would it be more correct from the point of view of semantics, to do everything with divs or use a table?

Answer 1

If this is really a table with data, then of course you need to use table.

Answer 2

When it comes to the layout of web pages using tables, the approach is outdated. If we are talking about using tables for their intended purpose - everything is OK
In the distant past, when browsers did not yet thoroughly support the CSS cascading style sheet, a tabular layout style was used for development, that is, layout using tables with an invisible border, where many styles were not required - they were the default.
In 1998, the Cascading Style Sheets Level 2 specification appeared, or in short CSS2, and then CSS2.1, which made it possible to move the block design code into separate files and use it on all pages of the site. The development of this technology and support from browsers has led to the use of block layout, instead of tables.
The tabular approach to layout was relevant before the advent of CSS technology and has been deprecated” since 2011. As soon as the World Wide Web Consortium supported the CSS standard, the table approach was replaced by the block approach.
The main disadvantage of the table approach is that the page will not be displayed until the table's closing tag is loaded, which affects performance. Also, the disadvantages include an excess of code, which complicates its understanding.
Tables should be used only for their intended purpose.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch ?v=Sxb2o9nVB1Q
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