Thanks for the detailed response! If you don't mind enlightening me some more, I'd like to ask questions.
I meant I use VPN on public/work WiFis, never at home (the speeds linked in my post are my home wifi + VPN) It's the first time I've used VPN and checked my download speed. In the third link, you can see a drop in speed, which just so happens to be the test I disconnected (Nord) VPN.
Could it be VPN giving me the fastest internet speed I've experienced in at least a year? I tested by disconnecting and reconnecting the VPN on a few different speed test sites.
Similar results, VPN gave me faster speeds. How though? Is my internet really that crappy?