Any Warhammer (
AoS or
40k) is a big commitment. Financial concerns aside, it is a hobby that devours time like no other. Painting, Assembling, Collecting, Reading, and sometimes even playing. To get everything out of it, you need to enjoy most of the aspects that come with it or you may feel a bit bitter about the money spent. That said, lately Games Workshop has a number of self-contained setups that can help mitigate your financial risk and help bring people to play since all they need to do is show up!
Spire of Dawn
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Age-of-Sigmar-Spire-of-Dawn-ENG is $80 and the models are really cool. It is a the lower cost entry to full
AoS but that said, Elfs (Aelves) lack a good battletome and may falter when trying to expand. I had these models when they were sold as Isle of Blood.
Warhammer Quest
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Warhammer-Quest-and-mighty-heroes-bundle-ENG Is made of pure fun, has an eclectic mix of miniatures and comes in at $205. It can be completely self-contained and is really enjoyable. I had Warhammer Quest as a child and died many times to that
Gargoyle.
Gorechose
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Gorechosen-ENG Is $60 of rules learning and only comes with 4 minis. Not all that recommended unless you will play the board game often. It is fun, comes in at a modern-board-game-price and Chaos in
AoS is always well-supported (and loved).
Age of Sigmar Starter Set
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Age-Sigmar-Box-ENG $125, crammed with minis that you will use and rivals
40k in boxed set excellence. Easy to split with a friend (provided you want to play those armies) and easy to put together and play (unpainted but it is good enough to start). Value-wise, it cost the same as Modern Board Games of its size and content. If you only want to play with 1 of the armies, it is extremely easy to sell the other half for a favorable price on ebay. I would recommend that you paint the army you do not want to play as practice before moving on to the army that you do.
Recently,
AoS has a Skirmish mode and the rules are cheap at 10$
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Age-of-Sigmar-Skirmish-ENG-2017 Skirmish lets you play with a small model count, but uses the same rules as the base game....mostly. While the Warband boxes that are made for Skirmish may have point cost issues, the learn to paint box for Age of Sigmar:
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Stormcast-Eternals-Starter-Paint-Set-2016 Is a pretty tiny investment to see if the hobby, miniatures, and painting resonate with you.
Above all, try and make sure you are enjoying the time you are spending. Also, hit up a
GW store if you can and ask about
AoS, who there plays, and when they have painting events and such. Currently the company is more than happy to welcome new folks in to the hobby regardless of your $$$ base for doing so. I truly hope this helps and I look forward to seeing another player across the table.