If you go for AliExpress.. you really should have a very good idea of what you need, what could fit your feet. Which you can't have as you don't have the experience.
For my first shoes I guess I had to try 6 different pairs.. and in the end they still turned out to be not optimal and I gave them away to a friend.

You can get good deals when looking at end of season sales.

I agree with the sentiment, but I would probably take a risk one way or another since I am opting for a budget route be it through local classifieds or otherwise. First pair will not be a winner one way or another, and would be okay being out $40CAD vs $140CAD on my first miss. Would you have any recs for where I can find old season shoes (and perhaps cleat recs)? My bike has Shimano PD-530 pedals which I understand are SPD and not SPD-SL.