Not necessarily. Protonmail will happily let you create an account if you don't use a VPN or Tor. Such accounts are tied to your IP, so you can't create too many of them, which is all Protonmail cares about, since spam accounts reduce the trustworthiness of their email service. I really doubt sellers are going through efforts to steal accounts, if they can just make them for free at a coffee shop.

Darknet markets create a system where people can create accounts non-anonymously, and convert them into anonymous accounts by selling them to others. I wish this were more common. For example I'd love to be able to pay for an anonymous Youtube Premium account

Edit: also in case it reassures anybody, the accounts I got from the darknet were clearly freshly made accounts, not stolen. Only a few days old, and no emails except the "welcome to protonmail" one.

Posteo accepts other currencies as well, though obviously mailing cash internationally takes longer.

Very cool I did not know this. Do they ever plan to support Monero? Physical payment methods are still unideal because security cameras can track you.

this doesn't work these days, google requires your phone number during signup even on android google app. also if you're using 'your' old android phone the IMEI is probably already tied as being owned by you..

Using a nearby public wifi spot, means that the email provider has your approximate location. If the feds get involved, then combined with security camera footage they can likely track you down.

Monero provides a way for people to pay for things anonymously, and is a lot more convenient then trying to pay with cash anonymously. For some people, their privacy is more important than whatever qualms they may have against crypto. Clearly you are not one of those people, and that's fine

Why all that version over using the public access computers of your local library?

every time I tried using VPN or Tor, they asked for phone number or a second email address. For the second email address, I've tried temporary email services but they all got rejected. Any recs?

what do you mean? Are you talking about how you can pay for Protonmail using cash? I haven't found a way to anonymously send cash. Physical movement can be easily tracked via surveillance cameras

as mentioned in other comments, making burners on Tuta is a pain. You often have to wait 1-2 days before they'll let you use the account, and in my experience the account often gets deleted during that period if it was made over Tor. Out of the 5-10 times I tried, I was only able to make 2-3 accounts. I'd rather pay for a reliable method.

And in my mind, paying is a more sustainable path. Protonmail and Tuta are pro-privacy, ultimately these services just want to avoid people creating unlimited spam accounts. Rotating Tor exits is something a bot can do, and so I wouldn't be surprised if Tuta started blocking it entirely. Payment is a barrier that doesn't cost your privacy. Protonmail and Tuta don't accept crypto during account creation, but darknet markets provide a workaround

Tuta will kill any new account that is used to register to another service. It's in their ToS and you get blocked immediately.

I don't quite remember since I bought it so long ago, but I think the easiest method was to simply buy some bitcoin or ethereum at an exchange (they usually don't support monero), and then use a swap service to convert to monero. I also remember something about rinsing/washing your initial funds, by first sending them to another Monero wallet that you own? Sort of like a mixer, but since Monero transactions are mixed up by default, you can just send them to another wallet and the final wallet is now unlinked from you? To be honest I don't even know if this step is necessary. Hopefully somebody else can pitch in here with more up-to-date tips.

As for your VPN concerns, if you can't use a VPN all the time, reading online it seems like the official Monero GUI wallet supports Tor, though I haven't tried it so I can't really help here