Strongly seconding this, Mint is an amazing distro for Linux newcomers. It's very stable, very efficient, it has the massive Debian/Ubuntu software repos, it works out of the box with a massive amount of different hardware, and the default desktop has a very Windows-like layout which greatly eases the learning curve. And frankly, it's a great choice even for the super-nerdy Linux veterans like me. I'm typing this on a laptop running the default Mint experience - all hardware supported by default - and I'm very happy with it.

I've been using Linux on the desktop for over 25 years now. I cut my teeth on Slackware 3 via floppy disks. I've used a lot of distros and desktop environments of various flavours and interface layouts over the years. I build Linux From Scratch every 2-3 years or so, just to keep up to date on how it all works under the hood. Linux is in my bones and blood at this point. Not to toot my own horn, but I think I know what I'm talking about on the topic. Mint is my go-to suggestion for any new Linux user.

Me waiting for linux mint 22 to release to start my propaganda blitz for windows refugees.