In reply to raussmf:
I've probably got 6-7 pairs of shoes in the cupboard, mostly because I'm loathe to throw them away if they've still got some wear left in them. However, one type can't possibly do everything so they vary from super soft velcros through to the stiffest of the stiff in a pair of FiveTen Anasazi Blancos lace-ups.
However for the last decade or more I've done the majority of my climbing and certainly 99% of my indoor bouldering (up to V5/6) wearing one of the cheapest mainstream shoes available - Evolv Defys velcros, with an occasional detour to Evolv Pontas or Valor velcros when they've been available more cheaply.
On several occasions when climbing indoors, I've had people say that they were surprised at my choice of shoes and that I haven't felt that need to buy a supposedly "performance" model at twice the price. Conversely, when projecting my first f7c on Peak limestone last year I bought a pair of Anasazi Blancos just for that one route. It's all about understanding the style of climbing you want to do and picking something appropriate.
What many people don't understand is that whilst climbing shoe manufacturers are going in one direction and producing an ever larger number of diverse high performance shoes at the top end of their ranges, the mainstream climbing wall industry been moving in another direction making the blocs and routes they set more "fun" and further removed from some styles of outdoor climbing. That generally means amongst other things - walls are getting steeper; there's fewer hard moves from small crimps that can rip skin or risk rupturing tendons and fewer routes feature precise, technical and hard to use footholds.
Basically, these days if you're climbing average grades indoors, climbing shoe performance is probably less relevant than it's ever been. Also, the overlap between shoes suitable for different styles and types of climbing is getting smaller and smaller. Shoes for steep hard bouldering are increasingly useless for trad, equally shoes suitable for hard UK slate or limestone won't be too great for a trip Fontainebleau sandstone.
For example, Evolv Shamans have been specifically designed for climbing things like V10 outdoor boulder problems on granite. That type of climbing has little relevance to 99% of UK climbers and they are perhaps not a particularly suitable shoe for Go Outdoors to stock for their customer base. However, they do stock them and promote them as a "performance" shoe with the obvious implication that buying them will improve your performance.
So:
Ignore the disingenuous marketing that spending more will help you climb harder.
Be realistic about your climbing standard and type of climbing. Performance shoes are primarily designed for performance climbers. Really aggressive downturned shoes are designed for really steep and hard climbing. Very stiff shoes are designed for hard technical outdoor routes etc..
Try on as many options as you can. That may mean travelling to visit one of the few remaining independent retailers.
If in doubt, buy what fits best. If it doesn't fit then it's obviously not the right option.
HTH