A few important questions:
1) Commute distance?
2) Hills?
3) How much use will it get?
4) How much stuff do you need/want to carry?
If your commute isn't that far, is relatively flat, and you will not use it very often then go for something cheap like a Rad Power Bike with hub drive. No point in spending premium $$$ on high quality parts for something you ride maybe 10 miles a week.
However, if this is to effectively replace a car and you will use it everyday for significant miles then it's worth paying extra for quality components. IMO, a belt-driven mid-drive bike with automatic/CVT hub is a great combo if you're going to use it a ton. These are pricey but should have very long lifespan with very low maintenance.
For areas with steep hills, or if you are going to carry lots of weight, then look for bikes with mid-drive motors since these allow you to downshift for climbing. A traditional chain/cassette/derailleur is cheaper than a belt-drive, though you'll go through chains/chainrings/cassettes relatively quickly. I get about 500 miles per chain on my electric assist cargo bike hauling two kids and their stuff, and about 1000 miles per cassette/chainring. The bike is a "long-tail" with a super long chain so I build my own chains using a chain break tool, a fairly simple task. And I also replace my own chainring and cassette, which is also easy with the correct tools. Replacing these parts is fairly inexpensive if you do the labor yourself.