Live where you hunt. Kansas antler tag: $45 (filled last Wednesday). Doe tags after that: $22 each (up to four). Four deer a year for a bit over $100 and some gas, bullets, primers, and powder. (ok... the rifles cost a LOT more!)
But... I occasionally do the "guided" hunt and I enjoy it more because it's rare (every 3-5 years with the buddies are enjoyed). After hitting 50, packing 120 lbs packs of elk meat got to be "risky" for us all in my crew that's been elk hunting since 1987. But for 30 years, we "knocked them off the mountains" in NM- no horses, no guides... just good old hunting "gumption" got it done.
Hunting isn't about money, it's about choice-- and making one's life work with that choice is the KEY!