I agree with most posts here - it is down to how you like the workflow (which is very different from daw to daw).

I'll mention FL Studio here, because they have one big advantage, which is that you only pay once and then you have a lifelong licence for the program (with all updates, etc.). I payed about 149$ in 2001, I think.

Still I am also using other daws, like Cubase, Maschine and Ableton, but that is mainly because they have different interesting plug-ins that I wouldn't get otherwise - or sometimes because they simply fits better with my midi-keyboards or my Yamaha-synths.

Please, you should take the advice from many people here and try out the "lite"-versions or the demos before you settle on one daw - because the one that feels intuitive to you will probably be the right one.

Will