This has been hashed out on BF before; some people are like you and think $10 is virtually no money, so just buy the tool; some people think that the tool is so trivial, and it's so easy to get by without it, it's not worth buying.

I'm in camp B. So is legendary framebuilder Dave Moulton.

My removal method is the same as Homebrew01. I tap it with my one crescent wrench that I own. (that's a joke, I actually own two, but the second one I found in the street while riding, and it's the same size as the 1st)

Installation of course is no tools needed (although once I spent an embarassing amount of time not understanding why the link wouldn't click together from chain pressure, when I didn't have it on the top where the chainring actually pulls...)

If somebody were to get me quicklink pliers for a stocking stuffer though, I wouldn't throw them away...