Generally agreed, I would actually try using as many services with their progressive web apps.

The main reason I think they may need google services is the banking app. Mine will refuse to launch without google services installed.

You sound like the ideal candidate for a refurbished Pixel 7 / 8 from amazon.

Test its hardware thoroughly on the stock os in case you need to return it.

Install GrapheneOS using the Web installer.

Install Droid-ify into your main profile from the f-droid web page. It looks much better than the official f-droid client and actually has a working auto-update

Create a work profile. I use an app called Shelter as the work profile admin app. This allows you to auto freeze your big-tech apps to help with battery life / privacy. Install google services from the built-in GrapheneOS app store.

Enjoy.

I’ve been using Linode (now owned by Akamai) for a couple years now and have enjoyed their pricing / service.

You are correct, a VPN connection does not bridge to another profile. You can install a VPN in said work profile. The always-on VPN settings in grapheneos have the work icon to indicate what VPN is in your work profile.

That’s most likely the problem. In my experience, nearly all tor exit nodes are flagged as such and captchas are nearly impossible to “pass” when using such an exit node. I would try using a free VPN to test. Try protonvpn without an account and see if you can get past the captcha.

Are you using a VPN? It might be that changing your exit IP might help. I’ve noticed captchas get harder to pass if your on a VPN that has a lot of traffic trying to pass captchas. Probably DDoS protection.