Hey missdeli! Sorry for the slow response. For software I've used and can recommend all of these. Usually I start with the RAW processors to adjust colors, get the WB right etc. Then I'll stick the image into one of the RAW processors to do some more intense work like cloning, stacking, and blending etc of the frames.
For Image Manipulation I'd look at these:
GIMP - Free
Affinity Photo ~$50
Photoshop
For RAW Processing
Darktable - Free
Sequator - (Free) Star stacking after RAW Process
CaptureOne
Lightroom
The last option, although I personally think it limits your ability to grow, is Luminar. The reason I say that is they use AI to achieve the results, but don't really help you learn what its doing to your photo. But, depending on what you want to do it could be the easy 2 button option too.
Lightroom and Photoshop are the two most popular. I personally use CaptureOne and Affinity because of the costs