I am thinking to buy a VPN so I need help to get a good one that is fast and reliable and at the same time doesn't cost an arm and a leg. Recommendations welcomed.
My vote goes to Nord every time and there's always a good deal. Possibly not the cheapest, but very reliable. Just watch out on renewal - they try to charge full price if you let it roll over automatically - generally an email sorts that out or worst case, cancel and restart the subscription - but I don't think that's unique to Nord! Also watch you're not paying for add-ons you don't need - I just go for the basic package of a VPN and nothing else.
Are you talking about a real VPN, that allows you to run a private network? (As opposed to the "VPNs" from ads that are being used to route traffic to bypass geoblocks.) If so, Wireguard is the protocol you want. I hear good things about Tailscale and they apparently have a free tier for personal use. I haven't used Tailscale myself, but the people who recommended them to me know a thing or two about networking.