"Pricey" is of course relative but, FWIW, the $40 < x < $80 price range for a low end Wi-Fi 6 wireless router would net your particular situation 80% of the real world improvement the $150-$300 recommendations in this article would.
For a recommendation on the cheaper side I've had luck with the TP Link Archer AX10 and AX21. There are some slightly cheaper options from "rando" companies with similar hardware if you'd rather go that route.
