Drive shaft broke in half!

Hi guys,

New member here; first of all thanks in advance for taking a look at this. Here's the short of it: I've a 2003 Ranger, 4x4, SuperCab, V6, manual, EDGE package that I bought ~4 years ago. No big issues so far until coming from dinner this wknd the rear shaft drive broke in half (seemingly) with the rear portion of it still attached to the back differential and the front part of it pivoting down to the floor... I had it towed to the autoshop where I do my annual inspections.

I'm on a tight budget and need the truck for work, so would really appreciate some advice on what to do plus ballpark cost estimates. I've seen refurbished shafts online going for ~$250 (plus shipping). Questions:

1. Any idea what labor to replace the drive shaft should run me?
2. Anything else that could be done other than just replacing the thing with the same part? (e.g. I heard about aluminum shafts?)
3. Any other compatible shafts out there (so I could shop around for $)?

Any input would be very appreciated, i've spent some time going over the forum but couldn't find the info.

Thanks for your time.