You can buy cheaper sunglasses and they will cut the glare just fine. But you will sacrifice longevity and take on additional eye strain over time.
Or you can buy high end sunglasses and the glare cutting will be noticeably better, they will last longer, and your eye strain will be significantly less. Of course, your wallet will be markedly lighter, but you knew that going in. 
Both will work. I've done both. Personally I will never go back to wearing cheap sunglasses.
That said, if $200+ Maui Jims are too expensive for you (and they would've been for me too had I not received a gift card years ago), places like MEC etc have other brands in the $50-100 range that will also be noticeably better than the cheapos.
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I have 6 or so different pairs of shades. 3 pairs of Maui Jims. The optics are second to none. If you are not prone to breaking your shades and can afford them they are a real treat. 2 of the MJs I own have glass lenses. They have the best optics, but are a tad heavy, and not terribly shatter resistant if that is a concern for you. My other pair of MJs are polycarbonate (plastic). Way lighter and more comfortable, but optics not as good and they scratch easier. The grey MJ lenses are awesome for a bright sunny day with lots of glare on the water. Unbeatable summer glasses. The bronze lenses are the best all around, but I find not quite dark enough for bright days on the water. The HT (green) lenses are amazing for overcast/cloudy days with glare on the water. I also wear these lenses a lot for driving when it's not that sunny but the road has a lot of glare.
If I could have just one pair of MJs it would be bronze tint with glass lenses.
If you are in the market for MJs I would go to an optometrist with a ton of frames to try on. IRIS in Chilliwack is good. I'm sure many others are too. Personally I would not try on at a place that just has a 1/2 dozen or so MJ frames. There are so many diff shapes and styles if you are gonna drop this kind of coin you might as well get the ones that fit best! IRIS in Chilliwack has probably 50 different MJ frames in stock.
If a $300+ pair of MJs or other high end sunglasses are not a pragmatic option then I will agree with others that the "cheapo" polarized glasses for under $50 are actually pretty good. I have a pair of Suncloud (low end Smith) from Fred's that are pretty darn decent for $40ish I paid for them. I keep them as a back up pair in my truck in case I forget the "good ones." Also have Oakleys, Smith, and others. For the money they are certainly better value than a pair of Maui Jims. I typically do NOT wear my MJs golfing, doing yard work, and so on as I'm prone to putting them on my hat, forgetting about them, then launching them across the room when the hat comes off!! They are a treat to wear on the water/fishing, and that's all I really wear them for. As soon as I get home they go back in the soft case, and then that in the hard case (!)
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Topic: Best Polarized sunglasses ??? (Read 7424 times)