Private Software Recommendations

Web Browser

TL;DR - use ungoogled-chromium (Chrome without Google) or LibreWolf (Firefox without Mozilla).

Qutebrowser and Icecat are good browsers as well, but they're not as user-friendly.

Password Manager

TL;DR - use Keepass or Nextcloud Password Manager (requires hosting your own Nextcloud Server). I don't recommend online password managers, but Bitwarden isn't too bad as it's FOSS, doesn't cost money, and can be self-hosted.

VPNs

TL;DR - use MullvadVPN as it doesn't require any details for registration (your account is just a randomly generated number) and it accepts paying with cash or crypto (including Monero).

I should worth noting that VPN ads are quite misleading, and realistically most people don't need one.

Instant Messaging

TL;DR - use Session or Matrix (with the Element client).

I actually prefer XMPP over Matrix, but I think Matrix (Element) is a lot simpler for normies.

Email

TL;DR - use something like Tutanota or host your own mail server and learn to encrypt mail manually.

It's worth noting that email was not designed to be private or secure. It might be easier to use an encrypted chat protocol like XMPP or Matrix where possible.