During my 2020 trip across PA I:
1. Camped for free in Connellsville, PA, along the GAP.
2. Paid maybe $20 to camp at Husky Haven in Rockwood, also on the GAP.
3. Got a motel for less than $100 in Cumberland, MD, at the end of the GAP. (I could have camped at the YMCA for much less.)
4. Paid between $20 and $25 at a private campground near Everett, PA. Had the entire place to myself, and there were power outlets to charge the phone and Kindle.
5. Paid around $20 for a site at Cowans Gap State Park.
6. Paid about the same for a site at Caledonia State Park.
7. Paid no more than $30 for a site at a nice, private campground a bit south of York, PA that is accessible directly from a bike trail leading from the center of town.
8. Got a sub-$80 motel room in New Holland, PA. (Long final day the next morning, so I wanted to be able to hit the road quickly.
And not everything out west is cheap. Not a resident and want to stay at a Montana state park? As of 2019, that would cost you $28 ($18 for residents) unless you stayed at one of the 5 that have special hiker/biker sites. ($12 for non-residents.) Want to make a reservation at that park to guarantee a space? Add another $10. (Reservation fee in NJ and PA is only $5.) Want a shower? Cough up another $3. (Free in PA and NJ.) Damage came to $41 for a night at Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park.