More seasoned riders have remarked to me that it's not a bad idea to spend a little on the contact points: shoes/pedals, bibs/saddle, gloves/bars. Good advice in my experience.

I will echo the comments of other responders: try before you buy. But I will also suggest, once you know that a particular shoe fits, you can save a good amount buying online. When it comes to cycling shoes, I will buy pre-owned shoes as long as the condition is near-new, and I've saved a good amount doing this from time to time. A few years ago, I got a pair of high-end Diadoras off eBay for about 20% of the MSRP, from a seller who apparently was unaware of some of the upthread advice (try before you buy).

Those Diadoras of mine are the older ones which do not have replaceable sole elements (heel pads). They're wearing out, and I recently reglued the soles to the shoes with some JB Weld because they were starting to detach.

So my $0.02 is: spend a little coin on your shoes, because if they work well you might wear them for a good number of miles/years, and consider shoes which have replaceable elements, like Sidis.