One of the difficulties in answering this question, in my opinion, is that it can be very difficult for someone with even a modest level of experience (such as myself) to recall how difficult answering some "basic" questions is for someone with no experience (I'm assuming this is the case for you, uscpriya, my apologies if that isn't the case). "What do you want to look at with it?" is a perfectly reasonable question, and ideally it's a top concern, but if you've never looked through a telescope, then even you aren't really in a great position to answer this question. Some of the things I most enjoy observing are things that I assumed at first I wouldn't enjoy at all (Sun, double stars, variable stars) and I never would have guessed that I would prefer binoculars over telescopes most of the time (though I do love using my telescopes, especially for certain classes of objects where binos don't cut it). The objects I assumed I would want to look at the most when I first started, planets and galaxies, are some of my less observed objects now.
That being said, I think that for a complete beginner, you can never hope to "get it completely right" on the first piece of gear you buy. You might get lucky, but more likely than not you'll at least want something else in addition to it later on, or you might choose to simply replace it. That assumes, of course, that you enjoy astronomy and don't decide that it isn't for you.
So.... where do you start if all you really know about what you want is that there's a lot you don't know yet about what you want? I'd say that first you shouldn't spend too much money, because you don't know yet that you'll actually want to stick with it. At the same time, you don't want to go too cheap, because your initial experience shouldn't be doomed from the start. Secondly, you should get something versatile, that allows you to explore your options. Starting out with a hydrogen-alpha solar telescope, for example, would just be weird because there is so much to see that you can't possibly see with that scope (i.e., everything that isn't the sun).
I started out with a 6" dob. That was a great choice for me. It was enough to observe all of the Messier objects from my side yard (I live in the mountains and the nearest cities are quite small to tiny, so you may not be as fortunate in that regard?), and is a good lunar, planetary, and double star scope. About the only thing I couldn't do with it was observe the sun (although all I would've needed was a solar filter, of course). I do think that an 8" dob is a better choice for a beginner though, since you get more for not too much more money or weight.
Another reasonable alternative is to start out with a binocular instead. Even a modest pair will begin to show you what it's possible to see with optical aid and for some objects will actually provide a better view that you could ever get with a telescope anyway. "Which binocular?" is a tougher question. If you consider this route, I would make a separate post in the Binocular Forum, where you'll get a lot of good answers.
Hopefully this helps, and welcome to CN and astronomy! 
Edited by JoeFaz, 19 February 2025 - 08:58 AM.
