Yes, the barrier for entry is so low. You can even run barefoot if you are so inclined (I do experiment with this). Granted climbing can become expensive-ish if you want to do regular climbing. But bouldering is very cheap to get into.
Plus there is something so primal about running and climbing. Like these are the things we are supposed to be good at, it is how we are meant to move in some sense. It feels so empowering to know you can run for X time/distance or that you can climb a wall this hard…