What type of clamp should a beginner woodworker buy first?

Across specialist communities like r/woodworking and r/BeginnerWoodWorking, the most common advice is to start with a handful of inexpensive F-style steel bar clamps for general holding and light glue-ups, then add one-handed trigger clamps for quick positioning. Parallel-jaw clamps are widely praised for panel and cabinet glue-ups but are usually a later, pricier purchase.