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Some advice/info:
Windows 8.1 is losing support from Microsoft in January 2023. I would not recommend retaining Windows 8.1.
It was mentioned to get a Chromebook. While I'm not against a Chromebook, Chrome OS is owned by Google and is a Linux system, so you may find yourself unable to get software or apps that you want because it isn't compatible or maybe isn't partnered or supported by Google. Android tablets will be the same way. Anything that runs a proprietary operating system always has the possibility.
If you do decide to upgrade your current machine, (or even buy a new system) I would recommend not upgrading to Windows 11. Even if the specs support 11 (honestly did not check), Win 11 has been found to not play nice with older hardware. Even a lot of recent Windows 10 built systems have hardware compatibility issues with Windows 11. This is also the case with older software not being supported by Windows 11. For example, you have to run the latest version of Adobe Premeire Elements on Windows 11, because it does not support drivers for older versions.
Upgrading your HDD; your old system may have ran fine, you're still running on old hardware that is nearer to loss of support and updates. It may be fine for a year, maybe more, but sooner than later you'll lose update support for the hardware. Not always a huge deal, but something to take into consideration.
Most new SSD will come with some type of data transfer solution to copy your old drive to the new drive. It's usually really easy because they are designed for your average consumer. With that said, as already mentioned I would avoid transferring your old data to your new drive since you stated it's full of unwanted crap causing issues.
You can use an ISO file downloaded from Microsoft thats relatively easy and straight forward for installing a fresh copy of windows. Just be aware you will want an empty USB drive, as the USB needs to be formatted for the ISO and will wipe anything currently stored on the drive. Microsoft provides a tool that formats and copies the ISO to your USB drive that you need, and provides instructions on how to get the install going on your new drive.
If it were me, I'd just pick up a new laptop, but be a little flexible with your cost point. You can pick up new laptops for pretty cheap, but you sacrifice storage space or memory with those really cheap (sub $500 USD) systems.
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