If you want the most user friendly, easy to figure out phone, honestly it's an apple device;
They have always centred on being user friendly.
It's not that Android phones (essentially operating system that all non-apple smart phones use) are
not user friendly, but they have more of a learning curve.
One of the biggest issues with getting a smart phone is that as of a number of years ago, these apps all essentially started requiring the latest operating system (think of it as to a phone, what 'Windows' is to a PC).
I have a good suggestion;
Most localities have smart phone resellers - see if you can buy a used iphone that can run the latest ios, then don't mess things up by updating it, and call it done.
They should be able to show you the device, show you how it works, then you can sleep on it and go back to make a decision later.
You should be able to get an iphone 5S or (slightly larger) 6 (I personally prefer a smaller device) that can still run a very recent IOS (the last update for those devices is from last month) which will allow you to install or run virtually any app you might want.
More info on iphone versions versus which OS they can run:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPhone#Software
I used to have a iphone 3G (second gen iphone) that I bought used;
I replaced it with a iphone 4S (fifth gen iphone) that I also bought used;
That was replaced with a 6S (10th gen) that was purchased for me new by my employer (techincally it's not mine).
I liked the shape and size of 3g the most - but it had a lousy camera.
I prefer the smaller 4 & 5 iphones compared to the 6 and newer (or obscenely large 6-plus and newer) - and the camera took a huge leap forward with the 6S.
I stopped updating my operating systems with my 6S because I found that overall, it did more bad than good on my 4S (ate up hard drive space, and effectively didn't give me any practical features I wanted).
I can't run most apps on my 6S, and some web sites don't play well with the version of safari (the apple web browser on my phone).
but I do not care about those issues.
I want a phone to:
1) make calls, and text
2) have a camera
3) double as a music player
4) be able to occasionally look something up on the internet
#1 - does it all fine; I have found that group messages with IOS & non-IOS users doesn't function properly, but I don't care.
#2 - the camera on this phone is so much better than my last two, I don't care about any further resolution increased past this one.
#3 - works perfect - as a matter of fact, a couple updates after my 6S's IOS moved your music to being streamed (which requires data); I have been told that you can create a "playlist" that will save those songs to your phone, but that seems like pure nonsense to me.
#4 - hiccups aside, it works just fine - if I really want to be on a website that doesn't "play well" on my phone, I put down my phone and go to my computer.
In most situations where someone tries to tell me that a phone is required for confirmation or what ever, I tell them I have too old of a phone for that to work, and have never been in a situation where there wasn't a go-around that they quickly did for me.
My opinion is that technology is great, but it is fast becoming a crutch for many.
When it comes to roping one's self to a device, I'd rather tune out, than tune in.
Good luck!