Cardio vs Weights/Lifting

Well, for weight loss the answer is always eating fewer calories than you burn, regardless of how you burn them.

Speaking very generically, weight lifting burns fewer calories per minute, but is important for holding onto as much muscle as possible while you lose mostly fat; and cardio usually burns more calories per minute, and has more benefits for your heart and cardiovascular system.

Most common recommendations for health are 150 minutes of moderate intensity cardiovascular exercise weekly (or 75 minutes of more intense CV exercise, or a combination that works out to the equivalent) ideally spread over at least 5 days weekly, plus two days a week strength training. For a pure beginner, that would be a schedule to work up to, not jumped into all at once.

Purely for weight loss, any type of exercise burns some extra calories (varying amounts depending on the exercise), letting you eat more while losing weight at any given rate . . . but getting the calories eaten bellow the calories spent (not just exercise but basic body functions and daily life) is what causes weight loss.