Linux rewards customization, if you don't have the time for that Gnome is a good starting point assuming you can adjust yourself to its workflow. XFCE is amazing (and was my primary before I switched to wayland/swaywm) and I have deep respect for its developers for what they have managed to produce with thunar being one of the most if not the most customizable lightweight file managers. It can have its issues at times but nothing that I have not been able to work around.