Difficult to answer, as I overpay for most things in life due to a personal policy of "quality over quantity." I do find that shelling out more for the better option tends to satisfy me better over the long run, saves time, and causes fewer headaches.

For example, our washing machine cost about $2,500. At the time I did think I was half-crazy for shelling out that much for a washing machine but it's been worth it for all the features it has, many of which I have used. I call it the "space age washing machine." It does NOT have a separate washer and dryer--just toss the laundry in and in 3 hours' time, you'll have toasty warm and dry clothes. It even keeps the temperature warm for a certain period of time after finishing in case you don't take the clothes out immediately! It has a self-cleaning function so I don't have to worry about mold growing inside the machine drum, which made our washed clothes stinky in our previous washing machine. It has an ion-thingy mode which kills smells and bacteria and breaks down dirt. With that mode, I have literally put stinky as hell leather shoes in the machine and they came out smelling fresh as a daisy (no water or spinning required). All these space-age features are well and good, but my main reasons for buying it were: 1) 30-minute wash mode so it's ultra quick to get laundry done, especially since we prefer to hang dry, and 2) It cleans well but is very gentle on clothes. I was raised on handwashed clothes and the deterioration that fabric goes through in the wash is very noticeable to me. This is the only washing machine I've used that hasn't ruined my clothes so far.

So yeah, I love my washing machine and I intend to hold on to it for at least a decade more.