I know purists will wince at the thought,but can you start out bass fishing with instead of all of the complicated lures, with a bobber, hook and minnow? Don't have lots of dough in the pockets, so looking out for a cheaper way to start out.

$3 pack of plastic worms of your choice, few bucks worth of different kind of hooks, some weights, and you can catch fish for as long as your pack of worms last.

 

You can even buy some Mend It and repair the worms you have, multiple times. 

also a dozen shiners goes for about 7 bucks at my local shop. You'll have to spend at least that much every time you wanna fish. Getting some plastics and learning how to use them will be more cost-effective in the long run and will also help you learn more about what your local bass feed on.

I know purists will wince at the thought,but can you start out bass fishing with instead of all of the complicated lures, with a bobber, hook and minnow? Don't have lots of dough in the pockets, so looking out for a cheaper way to start out.

 

Simplest way to live bait. Catch baby bluegill with bread or dough balls and you have bass favorite prey. 

Walmart clearance bin baits normally cost $1 to $1.50. During the winter you can normally find baits that cost $6-10 for $1.50-$3 on clearance. Big bites baits are almost .99cents a pack at DSG.  The cost of lures adds up but in the end it isn't that bad if you shop around.    

You could invest in a minnow trap if you have a source to catch them. I would probably go the bluegill route that was mentioned. A pond I fish in, as well as most ponds with bass, has bluegills in abundance. When the bite is tough I sometimes catch a few on bread, grasshoppers, red wigglers, dragonflies, etc. Live frogs or lizards are another excellent choice if you have access to them. They are tougher to catch, but Bass love them.

I am divided on this issue. You can certainly start fishing with live bait. It is the way we all started at an early stage-whether it was crawlers, dillies, or shiners. If you want to be cost-effective than bargain basement priced plastic worms are cheaper than live bait. Obviously if you catch your own live bait this is quite the opposite. 

 

However, there is one other as equal consideration to account for. It is easier in my opinion to start out fishing with live bait. It really is idiot proof in many ways. Using lures takes a bit more knowledge and requires you present the bait properly.  Also, fish hold on longer to live bait then most plastics. If you want to get bit more often and learn how to detect a bite, then live bait is the better method to start. Again, everyone I know started of this way, and it will keep you entertained versus the potential of you throwing around a lure incorrectly and not getting bit. Do not rush ahead, as fishing is a lifelong learning experience and it takes time, patience, and experience to advance. 

Catch worms in your yard for free.

I will be catching my own bait, so the cost point might be moot.

$3 pack of plastic worms of your choice, few bucks worth of different kind of hooks, some weights, and you can catch fish for as long as your pack of worms last.

 

You can even buy some Mend It and repair the worms you have, multiple times.

Could not have said it better myself

Lots of people catch bass on livebait. I don't do it often anymore but fishing live craws with a hook and no weight is how I use to catch lots of bass before I had an understanding of how to fish lures. 

get a couple of 1/4 oz inline spinners instead of nightcrawlers. cast and reel in. nothing complicated.