Subscription sites usually have free trials. Take advantage of those to try them out before deciding whether to pay to join one.
As others have said, you can find out a lot of stuff for free so get to know free sources first.
Membership of a local family history society, either in the area where you live or one where some of your ancestors came from is usually cheap. Some have online forums or FB groups. Some have volunteer-compiled records accessible to members. There may be other members researching the same surname in that area.
There are also specialist FH societies and groups e.g. Jewish, Catholic, Quaker, Travellers, Polish, Italian.
